Critical Analysis of Understanding the Unbending Data Science Skill Gap

The number of positions for data scientists required is expected to grow by 15% between 2019-2029

According to LinkedIn Workforce Report 2018, 151,000 unfilled data scientists' jobs were available in the United States. The demand for data science is rapidly increasing day by day and as a result of it, there is also a rise in demand for data scientists. Talking about our country, India ranks 66th globally in both data science and technology and 67th worldwide. We have made significant achievements in the field of data science; its current ranking motivates us to do further better in this particular sector. Nowadays, basic data science analytics is no longer a good option to rely on, thus we need a framework of scientific methods such as usage of Big Data Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, and a lot more.

Ensuring quality education in high school and college plays a vital role in bridging this huge gap between demand and skill supply that we are striving for in this data science industry. It doesn't end here; the companies also need to look at training and programs where they can make use of these talents and nurture them. This process requires private players, industries, and professionals to join hands by stepping up together.

Data science work and AI is very vast in this fast-moving world. It is required in almost every sector, starting from business, education, healthcare, and much more. Thus, their demand is increasing day by day.

Data scientists cumulatively use fields such as big data analytics, machine learning, artificial intelligence, statistics, and computer science. They focus on converting this big data analytics into useful information for the companies to predict their insights and produce advanced analytics. Data Scientists are so very important to our society but still why is there such a gap in data science skills in the market?

Data science education in India is still at its basic level, and it's hard to find proper universities or educational institutions offering a degree in the subject.  Very few of the data science programmers working in the industry come with an in-depth knowledge of the underlying math, statistics, and programming skills; a minimum requirement to be a proper well-groomed data scientist. While plenty of short-term courses exist, the quality of these programs is not at all up to the mark. It's hard to find courses that are customized and provide a solid foundation to the students so that they establish themselves properly in data science.

By providing quality courses, it's not just the job space that is at ease, the entrepreneurial talent in the field of data science is being looked after too.  India, known to be a hub for start-ups, these courses will also help young talent to take that jump to the entrepreneurial space. Moreover, many companies hire data scientists based on their graduation degrees, so by this, the companies tend to exclude the applicants who have got the skills but not the degree or the piece of paper. Data Science Bootcamps have filled up the void, but these courses are still not considered to be Coding Bootcamps. As a result of this lack of training, education, and ability to scout talent, has resulted in a significant gap in seeking good data scientists.

Upskilling is the need of the hour. We need to upskill a significant number of engineers in our country. It is not about just making people smarter and better, the key will be reskilling or upskilling the entry-level data scientists with pre-existing skills in the industry. This will help the companies to fulfill their demand for data scientists in India. Finally, studies have shown that data scientists spend most of their time just gathering and cleaning data. It amounts to 41% of their time. Whereas only 31% of the time, they are seen to build and run models. That's the sad reality of our data scientists working nature and condition but needs to be accepted. However, by reducing this grunt work and focusing on something more productive, data scientists can provide more valuable insights.