Ruairí McConville, graduate of the MSc in data science at ATU, explains the value of flexible learning and the importance of taking a chance on a career pivot.
When Ruairí McConville was made redundant not too long ago, he decided to use the setback to his advantage. He had always had an interest in data science, so he took the plunge and went back to college to do a master’s in data science at Atlantic Technological University (ATU).
Going by a few of his most recent roles, the choice of data science might have been a little bit out of character. “My last role was as a senior design quality engineer with a medical device company, so it’s not really in the computing or IT spectrum at all,” he tells SiliconRepublic.com. “The day to day consisted of a lot of project meetings to discuss everything from product specifications to risk management.”
Being made redundant gave McConville the chance to finally act on his ambition to explore data science more. He has a bachelor’s degree in chemistry but, as he says, he was always interested in the “empirical evidence side of science”.
“I was always the person who was playing around with formulas in an Excel spreadsheet or graph for hours on end to try and figure something out. Data science is also a relatively new term so I guess I actually always had an interest in data science even before I really knew what it was.”
‘The skills you learn while studying data science are quite transferable and can be used in all sorts of industries’
He was particularly interested in how data can inform the medical device sector. He thought that an ideal role for him would combine data science and medtech, so when he heard that ATU was running a part-time online master’s in data science, he decided it would be a good opportunity for him to get some formal training in the subject.
“My whole reason for choosing to do the master’s in data science was to give me tools that I can use in my current career and at some stage in the future maybe switch careers into something more data-related.”
As he says, “Medical devices and life sciences, in general, are very data-driven industries, but different as it’s usually smaller scale data – so not on the kind of scale that you would be studying in the master’s – but it still requires analysis and interrogation.”
The confidence that comes with experience
Now that he has his master’s qualification, McConville is finding that a lot of the more data-oriented roles in the medtech sector are open to him. Plus, doing the course has given him the confidence to pursue these careers.
He says he is currently interviewing for roles in data science. Thanks to the course, he has built up a portfolio of projects to show prospective employers the skills he has learned.
“The skills you learn while studying data science are quite transferable and can be used in all sorts of industries,” McConville explains. “Effectively you’re using linear algebra and statistics on a particular dataset, so no matter what area you work in, you can still use those skills.”
“One of the foundational pillars of data science is ‘domain expertise’ and that domain can span a wide array of subjects. That would be one of the big takeaways from doing the master’s: it’s extremely transferable. I have been able to automate a lot of the data handling and processing that previously would have been a very manual task which frees up a lot of time. The data visualisation aspect features heavily in my day to day.”
Flexible delivery
While he was doing the course, McConville was able to hold down a job on the side. The online, flexible learning delivery was a big help to him and others who were trying to upskill mid-career. “Flexibility was one of the big draws for me, the fact that you could study part-time and online… Some courses in this area were full-time but I was working a full-time job the whole way throughout the course and needed flexibility.”
That said, he was not willing to sacrifice flexibility for a less-than-comprehensive course. Since he had no previous work experience in data science, he needed thorough formal training. ATU was one of the few providers that offered him everything he wanted.
‘Data literacy is becoming extremely important and that will become a feature in everyone’s day to day in the not-too-distant future’
“There weren’t many courses that offered the entire data science spectrum on a part-time online basis. I wanted to go the comprehensive route and learn everything I could, from basics of the statistics and linear algebra all the way up to deep learning, machine learning, artificial intelligence, that kind of thing. The MSc in data science at ATU offered a range of modules that covered all of that.”
McConville was one of the few people on the course who did not have a tech background, but that did not hinder him. He thinks that the programme is suitable for those who are already working in a computer science or IT field and would like to develop their skills further. But he also thinks that it would benefit anyone like him, who may have a career move in mind.
“Data literacy is becoming extremely important and that will become a feature in everyone’s day to day in the not-too-distant future. It’s obviously quite topical at the moment with AI never too far from the headlines and the popularity of generative AI tools like ChatGPT and DALL-E.”
“Fundamentally behind all of that is data science – and the basics of that are taught very well in the MSc in data science at ATU.”
“The world is going to become more and more data-driven in the future,” McConville warns, adding: “I would advise anyone thinking of doing the MSc in data science to go for it. I mean, if you’re having any second thoughts, there’s nothing bad that can come from learning data science.”
More information about the MSc in data science at ATU is available here.
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