When it comes to pursuing a course like data science, the first word that instinctively pops up in our mind is ‘coding’. This was my first thought too, right until the first day. As the semester progressed, it soon become clear that this course is not just about the code – my first year was a journey brimming with discovering hidden potentials and enriching skills that not only helped me develop my coding abilities, but also helped prepare me for the corporate world.
When it comes to pursuing a course like data science, the first word that instinctively pops up in our mind is ‘coding’. This was my first thought too, right until the first day. As the semester progressed, it soon become clear that this course is not just about the code – my first year was a journey brimming with discovering hidden potentials and enriching skills that not only helped me develop my coding abilities, but also helped prepare me for the corporate world.
Going from zero to ten hackathons
Although the first day was an introduction to a coding and math-intensive course, it also presented itself with the opportunity to become a class representative. Your college years are all about uncovering who you are; naturally I grabbed onto this opportunity. And to my surprise, I was selected! While I spent my days learning Python libraries, I was also given the responsibility to convey student concerns, coordinate schedules and represent my cohort in feedback meetings. As my skills grew, I was encouraged to participate in hackathons with my friends wherein I found myself as a finalist in the second hackathon I applied for at IIT Bombay. Although we didn’t win, this experience allowed me to connect with the judges who were representatives of a reputed company. The experience aided in the understanding of what is expected out of a presentation and how important communication skills truly are. This was also a motivation to push further on my ideas and was only the beginning of more hackathons to come. By the end of the first semester, with the encouragement of our professors, we had already participated in ten hackathons.
Balancing soft skills with hard skills
The SP Jain Global Bachelor of Data Science course also consists of classes like Ethics and Foundational Skills. Due to these, my attention was brought to soft skills such as presentation and communication to convey my ideas in a crisp and clear manner, creating a profile for myself by indulging in extracurricular activities, undertaking teamwork in order to contribute well to shared goals while navigating different personalities, and developing the skill of time management by meeting deadlines for multiple courses.
From theoretical to practical
Critical thinking and problem solving are amongst the key skills I developed while pursuing my courses. Most of all, self-motivation by taking responsibility for my own learning was the principal learning through my first year. What further strengthened our knowledge on soft skills and other data science concepts were the numerous workshops organised by S P Jain Global. We dove deep into how to approach interview rounds when job hunting, measures to keep ourselves safe on the web with the guidance of a cybersecurity expert, understanding the core concepts of neural networks and much more.
Inside the Gen AI Hackathon organised by SP Jain Global
While coding was an integral part in the second semester, I once again found myself with several opportunities in hand, right at the beginning. ‘Gen AI Hackathon’ was a hackathon organised by SP Jain Global itself, and I was surprised to find out it was my seniors who were running the show. It was a pleasure to be invited to oversee the competition, ensuring everything was running smoothly. This gave me a know-how of how events are organised which I’m confident is a skill besides the usual coding that will help me in the future.
Participating in the IEEE
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is the world’s largest technical professional organisation. So, when I was given the chance to work with my peers and join a core committee that would run the S P Jain Global IEEE student-chapter branch, I couldn’t say no. As the webmaster, my initial nights were consumed by trying to figure out how a website is really coded, and finally, with the help of my peers, we were able to construct a basic structure. As the college courses helped me improve my understanding of other languages like JavaScript, it was relatively easier to make our IEEE website a lot more interactive rather than it being static. The role of webmaster wasn’t only about the exposure of building and hosting a website: it was the opportunity that came knocking to us first-year students of organising an IEEE conference, which brings in advantages that’s a lot more than just more coding.
In conclusion
Given the countless opportunities and exposure, it is safe to say that data science does not only refer to simply coding most of the day – the course teaches skills like teamwork, adaptability and determination while connecting students to corporate officials via activities like internships and workshops. This holistic approach equips us with technical expertise and experience, along with valuable soft skills needed to excel in real-world environments.
About the Author
Karrnidh Arora belongs to the 2024 batch of our Bachelor of Data Science program. She is currently completing her second year at our Sydney campus.
Discover more about the BDS program at SP Jain Global through more such engaging stories. Click here to read them.
