After working as a Financial Analyst in Japan, Daniel uprooted his life and moved to Amsterdam. Here, he joined Le Wagon's data science bootcamp to deep dive into the topic and learn to code in the tech hub that is Amsterdam. Flash forward a couple of months and he's now working as an Analytics Engineer. Discover his journey!
Summary
"Through and through, Le Wagon was a really positive experience. If you’re thinking about taking part in the bootcamp, I would definitely recommend it. It’s as simple as that!"
Hi Daniel, can you please introduce yourself?
Hello, my name is Daniel, I’m originally from Germany and I graduated from Le Wagon’s data science bootcamp in Amsterdam. Since then, I’ve begun working as an Analytics Engineer here in Amsterdam.
What were you doing before joining Le Wagon?
Before joining Le Wagon, I graduated from University with a Bachelor's of Business Administration and afterwards, I began working as a Financial Analyst for about eight years. I was working in Japan for a large automotive supplier where I was doing everything that’s related to finance analysis.
I then left my position as a Financial Analyst in Japan to come back to Europe, more specifically to Amsterdam, to pursue the data science bootcamp.
What made you decide to do the bootcamp in Amsterdam?
At first, I needed to decide which bootcamp to go with, but it was pretty clear to me that it would be Le Wagon. My wife Anna had actually graduated from Le Wagon’s web development bootcamp in Japan and had an amazing experience. I then had a look at the different campuses, but this was during the pandemic, so I decided that I would go back to Europe. After that, it was a mix of a gut feeling and of course the advantages of living in the Netherlands: being in an international environment where the working language is often English and Amsterdam being a tech hub. There are lots of companies that are developing here and it's therefore a great place with many opportunities to find a job afterwards.
What made you decide to do the data science bootcamp?
My previous role was related to data analysis so it was sort of a no brainer for me. I had already been exposed to the topic of data engineering and data wrangling and optimization which really fascinated me. So much so that I decided to deep dive into the topic. Having said that, I knew that in my previous role, there was no potential for me to be able to do so. Thats when I took the decision to change industries and really focus on the topic. Flash forward just a few weeks later and I joined Le Wagon’s data science bootcamp specifically to really start from scratch and later deep dive into advanced machine learning models, taking me through the whole learning process.
Can you tell us about your experience at the bootcamp?
The first impression was really welcoming. I had been coming directly from Japan, which had strict Covid regulations at the time, so being on campus here in Amsterdam was really great. It was a pleasure to meet all of these like-minded individuals in person. There were many people who drastically changed their lives to join the bootcamp, whether that be moving to a new country, having just quit their job or just looking for a fresh start. This was a really motivating mindset to be a part of.
I still remember the first day, as it was quite overwhelming, but after a few days you really find your own rhythm. There was never a point within the bootcamp where I felt alone, whether you got support from your buddy of the day or the teaching staff, the support was always there. It was always a super comfortable learning atmosphere. I always knew that it was okay to make mistakes, having this “you learn with mistakes” approach was super motivating. Before I knew it, we were beginning our final projects and by then you truly realize all that you had learned in such a short period of time.
What was your favourite aspect of the bootcamp?
My favourite aspect of the bootcamp was the project presentations on Demo Day. You truly felt everything come together and it was great to see the final product that we created as well as your classmates' hard work. All of the projects had completely different background and content, so it really demonstrated all of the things that we could now do in such a short period of time (2 weeks). Daniel Presenting on Demo Day
How does the bootcamp format compare to your previous learning environments?
It’s definitely way more hands on. I personally am way more of a hands on learner, so it really suited my learning style. You’d start the day with a certain amount of theory and theoretical knowledge, and everything you go through in the morning lecture, you then actually put into practice throughout the day. I much preferred this learning by doing style over purely theoretical courses that I had previously done.
Can you tell us about your experience finding your first job post-bootcamp?
The Career Week was actually one of the main reasons that I chose Le Wagon. Being connected to the local tech industry was really important to me, especially being new to the city. I was really positively surprised by how well structured the career week was for me. I got lots of help preparing my CV, getting a 1:1 to go over my strengths and the different paths, and much more. The week really helped me structure my day. This is really important, especially right after a bootcamp where you were used to a certain degree of structure.
My overall experience finding my first role here in Amsterdam was quite a good one. I, of course, was sending quite a few applications around and really had to motivate myself to do the work after the bootcamp. The Le Wagon community was also really great during this time. My classmates and I would compare our experiences and reassure each other that we were all going through this experience of finding a job together. After about two months, I signed my first contract and began my role as an Analytics Engineer at IntoAnalytics.
Can you tell us more about your role as an Analytics Engineer?
IntoAnalytics is quite a young company. They mainly face questions such as how to bridge from data to insights. First, how to get the data there, so all the data engineering related topics as well as visualization and finally, machine learning. My role within the company is pretty diverse. I’m currently working on the reporting side, due to my previous experience, but I also work quite a bit on the data engineering side.
We have an office here in Amsterdam, but the company is part of a bigger group which is based out of Belgium. My colleagues are living all over the Netherlands, but if we meet up, it’s usually in Amsterdam. My team at IntoAnalytics is quite small, but it’s really a diverse young team.
I definitely feel as though what I learnt at the bootcamp is applied in my day-to-day job. I wouldn’t have felt as confident in my current role before the bootcamp. I know that what I learned at Le Wagon will also really help in the long run as we'll be deep diving into the topic of machine learning.
What advice would you give to someone thinking of doing the data science bootcamp?
Do it. Through and through, Le Wagon was a really positive experience. If you’re thinking about taking part in the bootcamp, I would definitely recommend it. It’s as simple as that!
