Today@Dal

What is a data scientist?

This is a question that now has a better answer than it did ten years ago. Then, there was a nebulous understanding that there was a lot of data being collected that nobody understood or had the tools to analyze. There was a Harvard Business Review article by Thomas H. Davenport and DJ Patil that speculated about it being the ‘Sexiest Job of the 21st Century,’ and that article has been revisited by the same authors wondering Is Data Scientist Still the Sexiest Job of the 21st Century?

There is decidedly even more data being generated now and this article does a great job of explaining the evolving role of the data scientist. Data science is now institutionalized, woven into many roles, and evolving technology means that the data being collected is increasing in volume, constantly changing, which in turn, according to Davenport and Patil, means that the Data Scientist position will continue to adapt.

If you are working with data scientists or play a role in leveraging data science in your business, knowledge of key data management topics, such as data privacy, is critical. The Faculty of Open Learning & Career Development has a new Certificate in Data Management for Professionals launching this September that would benefit a range of professionals including product managers, business analysts, data engineers and others.

There are three four-week courses that comprise the certificate. The first course explores data quality concepts and data management frameworks. The second focuses on data governance including metadata management, data privacy and security. The final course involves an overview of various storage technologies (relational databases, data lakes and NoSql). The first one, Introduction to Enterprise Data Management, starts September 21st. This certificate will teach you about data management and how to thrive in this evolving field.