Alex H.
About me
| Alex H. | |
| Chemistry | |
| Chemistry | |
| Undergraduate | |
| Constantine | |
| 2021 | |
| United Kingdom |
My employment
| Data Scientist | |
| KPMG UK | |
| United Kingdom | |
| Finance and consultancy | |
| 2021 |
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A day in the life of a Data Scientist in the United Kingdom
One of the biggest challenges is learning the technical skills as I come from a non-technical background but my team is really supportive and helps with learning development.
Briefly describe the organisation you work for
I currently work for KPMG, one of the Big 4 consultancy & finance firms.
What do you do?
I am a training data scientist. My time is split between project work and training where I can be doing anything from labelling and cleaning data, investigating and building ML models, or general coding projects.
Reflecting upon your past employment and education, what led you to your current career choice?
I had a love for the data analysis that comes with chemistry but decided I wanted something a little bit more technical that would push me which is how I ended up at data science!
Is your current job sector different from what you thought you would enter when you graduated?
I initially thought I would continue working in chemistry and even looked at further education but in my final year I decided that the thing I love most about the subject is the data manipulation and problem solving that comes with lab projects so I applied to tech only grad schemes.
Describe your most memorable day at work
I got to use some of my corporate volunteering hours for a virtual school session about food GHG emissions. This was a great opportunity provided by the company and I got to lead some discussion with the students and dip into my atmospheric chemistry knowledge - it was challenge to rephrase things like 'what is a GHG?' for 10-12 year olds but overall an extremely enjoyable and rewarding session.
Are there any challenges associated with your job?
One of the biggest challenges is learning the technical skills as I come from a non-technical background but my team is really supportive and helps with learning development. I also have dedicated training time although it is still sometimes hard to balance it alongside projects.
What extracurricular activities did you undertake at university and what transferable skills did you develop through these?
I was captain of Constantine WAFC in my final year and part of ChemSoc for 2 years. Both improved my confidence and allow me to effectively deliver sessions and presentations in my current role.
What top tips do you have for York students preparing for today’s job market and life after graduation?
Definitely do your research! It's never too soon to start looking at post-uni options and it means you can figure out early on what you would like to do and gives this idea chance to develop - I wish I'd done this as I might've realised I didn't want to stay with chemistry and could have tried to get relevant experience for the technology field.
What topics from students are you happy to answer questions on?
Happy to answer queries on things to do with the firm or my job or general advice about picking a grad scheme etc.
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