Butterflies in my belly; my stomach is tied up in knots. I know I’m taking a risk by sharing my story, but I wanted to reach out to others aspiring to be a data scientist. I am writing this with hopes that my story will encourage and motivate you. At the very least, hopefully, your journey won’t be as long as mine.
So, full speed ahead.
I don’t have a PhD. Heck, I don’t even have any degree to speak of. Still, I am very fortunate enough to work as a data scientist in a ridiculously good company.
How I did it? Hint: I had a lot of help.
Never Let Schooling Interfere With Your Education — Grant Allen
Formative Years
It was 1995 and I had just gotten my very first computer. It was a 1982 Apple IIe. It didn’t come with any software but it came with a manual. That’s how I learned my very first computer language: Apple BASIC.
My love for programming was born.
In Algebra class, I remember learning about the quadratic equation. I had a cheap graphic calculator then, a Casio, that’s about half the price of a TI-82. It came with a manual too so I decided to write a program that will solve the quadratic equation for me without much hassle.
My love for solving problems was born.
In my senior year, my parents didn’t know anything about financial aid but I was determined to go to college so I decided to join the Navy so that I could use MGIB pay for my college. After all, four years of service didn’t seem that long.
My love for adventure was born.
Later in my career in the Navy, I was promoted as the ship’s financial manager. I was in charge of managing multiple budgets. The experience taught me bookkeeping.
My love for numbers was born.
After the Navy, I ended volunteering for a non-profit. They eventually recruited me to start a domestic violence crisis program from scratch. I had no social work experience but I agreed anyway.
My love for saying “Why not?” was born.
Rock Bottom
After a few successful years, my boss retired and the new boss fired me. I was devastated. I fell into a deep state of clinical depression and I felt worthless.
#education #careers #bootcamp #data-science #job-hunting #data analysis
