Is Data Analytics Hard to Learn?

Every business today is obsessed with tracking helpful data and driving valuable insights to benefit their company. The reason behind this is straightforward. Organisations want to know whether their efforts are bearing fruit or do they need to do more to boost revenue.

Despite the growing number of tools to monitor and track data, companies need dedicated professionals to handle massive volumes of data. 

So, the opportunities for budding data analysts are endless, but people willing to apply for the role often question, “Is data analytics hard to learn?” 

Data analytics isn’t easy, but it isn’t an uphill battle. You can become a skilled data analyst with the right mentorship and training.

What makes Data Analytics challenging?

We’ll take a closer look at a few challenges you may face when becoming a data analyst. 

Learning technical skills

Data analytics requires you to learn a few technical skills. Someone who isn’t confident in their maths might find it more challenging. However, do not fret, software and tools do most of the maths for you, but, you must know the basics to analyse results properly. 

You will also require a few advanced technical skills to understand complicated systems and datasets. Otherwise, you’ll struggle to drive meaningful insights. 

Data analysts must also have sound research skills to know where they can find the data and how they can identify the problems. 

Applying them to the work environment 

Data analysts help companies extract helpful insights from extensive data that people may find useless. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that you’re a data translator, filling the gap between the business world and the data. 

You must transform the raw data into helpful insights and spot the trends. The key is to make others understand what you extracted from the data. 

People often assume data analysts would deal with machine learning processes from day one, which isn’t entirely wrong; their primary task is to break down complicated datasets and make them understandable to others in the firm. 

Data cleaning 

One of data analysts' biggest challenges is ensuring they have the necessary data for a particular task. Poorly formatted data leads to miscalculations and gives inaccurate outputs.

Data analysts must eliminate faulty, useless data before working on a particular project - the better the data quality, the more accurate the outcome. 

Once you get used to dealing with data regularly, it makes the analysis work more manageable and easy.  

Consistent learning 

Data analysts must be curious beings with an appetite for continuous learning. The domain of data analysis is evolving rapidly, and the trends are changing swiftly. 

Regardless of how many platforms you join to improve your learning process, there will always be something more you can master. 

Keeping up with new data analysis practices can be challenging. However, those with an innovative mindset enjoy learning and are eager to stay up to date with the latest concepts introduced in data analytics. 

Tips to get started as a Data Analyst

Building new skills isn’t enough to be successful as a data analyst. You must encourage yourself through the inevitable stumbling blocks and boost your confidence. 

A few helpful tips from experts will help you trust your abilities and be on the right track in your career. 

Build your foundation 

The area of data analytics heavily relies on databases, statistics, maths, and other technical skills. So, as with any other field, building your base is crucial before using data-related tools and software. Some core concepts you must familiarise yourself with include: 

• Python

• SQL

• Statistics 

• Data structures 

• Storytelling and data visualisation 

• Data cleaning 

Once you have a broad overview, you can access your existing skills and identify the areas for improvement. Following this, you can build foundational skills before entering the work environment. 

Remember that Data Analytics skills are a lifetime investment 

The World Economic Forum report listed data analytics as the most in-demand career. Many industries, including healthcare, financial services, IT, and energy, are increasingly hiring data analysts to extract quality data and improve their business processes. 

According to Indeed, data analysts in Ireland make around €49,813, depending on their experience and competence. Therefore, investing your time in learning data analytics skills can pay you off in the long run. 

Learning new skills takes energy and time, but you’ll reap its rewards in the future, given the high-paying, in-demand field. 

Each day you get to learn new and varying concepts. Besides, you may also struggle to finish data projects for your portfolio. However, these efforts mean nothing but climbing toward the ladder of your success. 

Move gradually 

You must develop your data analyst skills bit by bit. Once you’ve learned the basics, it’s time to choose a skill and dig deeper into it. Ideally, go for a skill you’re confident about or already have some competency in. Alternatively, you can pick a skill you believe you’re weak at. Here are a few ideas to get started: 

• Use SQL (Structured Query Language) to interact with data 

• Learn Python and R programming basics 

• Get grips with Microsoft Excel 

• Brush up your statistics and maths skills 

Practise your skills on projects

You do not necessarily need a job to practise your data analytics skills. You can apply your learning by practising with real data. 

Choose your favourite topic and dig deeper to see what you can find in the data. The following ideas may help you out. 

• Determine which factors affect YouTube video popularity. 

• Clean the data of over 200,000 questions on Reddit. 

Build your portfolio 

You must also build a strong portfolio to demonstrate your expertise in data analytics. At this point, you may only have worked on a few personal projects. However, your potential employer wants to see you have the required skills to add value to their organisation. 

Expand your network

You could know the ropes of data analytics, but if you aren’t actively involved with a professional community, you’ll always lack the chance to seize new opportunities and learn consistently. 

It’s never too late to expand your network. Whether you’re working on a project or are completing a course, get involved with a community of professionals. You can refer to them when out of ideas. 

For instance, Reddit has many communities focused on data analytics. Likewise, GitHub allows you to post your code for feedback and partner for projects.

FAQs

How long does it take to learn Data Analytics?

Your consistency, dedication, and natural talents significantly determine how quickly you learn data analytics. So, those who put in more effort and are tech-savvy might take less time. 

Is Data Analytics a tough job? 

The ever-changing nature of data analytics makes the job a bit challenging. It’s because keeping up with new trends feels like a struggle. However, once you set up your routine and dedicate time to learning each skill regularly, your job becomes smooth - but not effortless. 

Final Words

The growing demand for skilled data analysts encourages more people to break into the field. However, non-technical people often question, “Is Data analytics hard to learn?” and “Can I enter the field if I lack technical skills?” 

The truth is, each field requires effort to learn and succeed, and data analytics is no different. 

You'll enjoy the process if you’re passionate about the field and are committed to your goals. Further, consistent learning can help you climb the ladder gradually. 

You can also take a course to quickly hone your skills and learn from the experts in the field. UCD Professional Academy Courses teaches you general and complicated data analytics concepts to build confidence before stepping into the work environment.