How did a young girl from Port Elizabeth, who studied professional cooking and financial management, end up in her dream job as a business analyst at the innovative tech company Quikr?
Turns out it’s because of her life-long love of maths and statistics. In fact, HyperionDev graduate Esethu Pakela has dreamt of becoming a data scientist ever since she left school. In her job as a medical administrator at Mercantile Hospital, her former employer encouraged Esethu to study further and this was the final push for her to take the leap and study an online, part-time course in data science with HyperionDev.
Studying while holding down a full-time job may seem daunting to some, but not for Esethu. She explains:
“I found the bootcamp flexible enough to do course work after hours and on weekends. Booking a code review session was also hugely helpful in getting valuable input when doing assignments.”
Were some subjects a little tough to master? Esethu says the intricacies of artificial intelligence and machine learning presented a steep learning curve. Undaunted, she expanded on HyperionDev’s coursework by watching videos to get her head fully around these tricky subjects.
Why study data science?
Becoming a data scientist was not only a passion for Esethu; she was laser-focused on the opportunities that come with working in the tech industry. Importantly, she now has the chance to earn a much better salary than she did as an administrator. But it’s also about developing her skills in an in-demand career field and creating a better work-life balance.
“I wanted to work remotely. I love being able to control my own time, and to work from wherever I want, be it in a beach hut or a cafe. It has also opened up the world to me because my skills are in demand across the globe, in all industries.”
Esethu’s ambitions include presenting at IT conferences and educational institutions and doing Ted Talks. She is also passionate about encouraging more women to join the tech space. Her ultimate goal is to become a world-renowned business intelligence tech guru. We can’t see anything stopping her.
The stepping stones to success
As a Hyperiondev graduate, Esethu’s part-time data science bootcamp included learning how to code and mastering the world’s most popular programming language, Python. She also learned everything there is to know about data science libraries such as NumPy, pandas and the Python framework scikit-learn. Essential skills that go hand-in-hand with coding are understanding how to use the best software and techniques to read visual and statistical data and present it in a way that solves real-world problems.
“These skills helped me land the job I’m currently in where I’m able to wrangle large data sets and present them in a visual format to my company’s decision-makers,” she says.
HyperionDev’s code review process was also a pivotal part of her studies, checking how one small change can affect the bigger picture. For Esethu, it also taught her alternative ways of solving programming challenges and showed her whether she was on the right track or not.
Putting good code to good use
Interested to know how studying data science and becoming a HyperionDev graduate has set the groundwork for her current job as a business analyst at Quikr? Esethu explains that working primarily in Python, Excel and MySQL enables her to perform these KPIs:
- Analyse and evaluate current business processes the company has and identify areas of improvement.
- Research and review up-to-date business processes and new IT advancements to improve systems and processes.
- Use business intelligence to produce business models that assist business growth.
- Create initiatives depending on the business’s requirements to align with key metrics and investor storytelling boards.
- Update, implement, and maintain databases.
- Assist in creating good sales funnels for customers and partners.
- Prioritise initiatives based on business needs and requirements.
From part-time student and medical administrator to full-time business analyst
Esethu says HyperionDev was instrumental in ramping up her CV through webinars and the company’s career advisor’s reviews and support. In no time, she reached over 500 connections on LinkedIn, which caught the attention of Quikr’s CEO, who then reached out for an interview. The rest is history.
Learning to code is about more than just programming
Esethu is a firm believer that code will change the world for the better by establishing higher levels of automation and convenience in all industries. She says:
“Learning to code has taught me resilience. It has taught me to overcome imposter syndrome and trust myself more. Professionally, learning to code has helped me to expand my knowledge and continuously gain new skills and expertise. If a challenge presents itself in my job, I automatically open up myself to research the solution or learn the techniques to solve it.”
Was it easy? Esethu is frank: “It’s not easy, but it’s worth it! Do it!” Check out her Github portfolio to keep an eye on HyperionDev graduate Esethu’s journey through the fast-changing world of IT.
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If you feel inspired by Esethu’s story and are ready to embark on your own journey toward a fulfilling career in the tech industry, consider registering with HyperionDev here.
Who knows, your success story may be next.
