RSS Merseyside Local Group & UK Data Service: Starting a Career in Data - Panel

RSS Merseyside Local Group & UK Data Service: Starting a Career in Data - Panel

Date: Wednesday 17 March 2021, 3.00PM
Location: Online
Online - joining instructions will be emailed to those registered
Local Group Meeting


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The rise of data science continues with employer demand for data scientists increasing by 20-30% year-on-year. Hundreds of universities now offer courses focusing on Data Skills, Statistics, Informatics and Machine Learning. With more and more future career paths increasingly relying on data and analytical skills, there are a number of questions that graduates often face, such as:

  • Should I learn Python or R, or something else?

  • What’s the difference between data science and statistics?

  • Do I need to be good at maths to do data science?

To discuss these questions we will be hosting a panel of individuals of varying backgrounds and experience in data science within industry and academia. Submit any questions you’d like to see discussed at http://sli.do/173, but otherwise, you can also ask questions during the event.
 

The Royal Statistical Society’s Merseyside Local Group and the UK Data Service are pleased to announce our joint event “Starting a career in data”. 

The rise of data science continues with employer demand for data scientists increasing by 20 to 30% year-on-year. Hundreds of universities now offer courses focusing on Data Skills, Statistics, Informatics and Machine Learning. With more and more future career paths increasingly relying on data and analytical skills, there are a number of questions that graduates often face, such as:

  • Should I learn Python or R, or something else?

  • What’s the difference between data science and statistics?

  • Do I need to be good at maths to do data science?

  • What advice would you have for somebody trying to get their first job in data?

To discuss these questions we will be hosting a panel of individuals of varying backgrounds and experience in data science within industry and academia. Prior to the event please submit any questions you’d like to see discussed at http://sli.do/173, but otherwise, there will be the opportunity to ask questions while the event is in progress.

The event will take place on Wednesday 17th March from 15.00-16.00 and will be broadcasted live via the RSS Merseyside Group’s official YouTube channel.
 

Dr Kerry Parker

Kerry is a Data Scientist at The Very Group who has a background in physics. Her first coding experience was with C++ but has since discovered a love for Python. Kerry moved from academia to industry in 2017 to work at a small software company where she found her calling for Data Science. She has since joined the marketing team for Very, the UK’s second-biggest e-commerce retailer, to develop her expertise in a different industry. Kerry is also a co-founder of the meetup group TechNomads which runs events to connect people who are passionate about tech.

Fiona Pye

Fiona is an early career data scientist working as a data analyst for WSP, a global Civil Engineering consultancy. Through her background in Geoscience, Fiona found her love of all things coding, stats and data which she used to answer research questions. Her day job mainly comprises SQL and all things database but has many passion projects which use R, Python and Raspberry Pi. Fiona loves attending events within the tech community, learning from and getting to know others.

Dr Liam Brierley

Liam is a Skills Development Fellow at the University of Liverpool. Since graduating with a degree in zoology, his research interests have focused on using epidemiology and statistics to predict outbreaks of new infectious diseases. Liam is also a Statistical Ambassador for the RSS and has spoken about how data science can save lives in national media and at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

The panel will be moderated by Joseph Allen, a research associate with the UK Data Service. The UK Data Service holds the UK’s largest collection of social, economic and population data resources. Explore data, training resources and more at https://ukdataservice.ac.uk/

 
Joseph Allen (UK Data Service) 
Liam Brierley (RSS Merseyside Local Group)