Most Important Skills For A Data Scientist At Cohere Health
Shailja, a Data Scientist, emphasizes that while hard skills like Python, R, SQL, and data visualization tools are crucial, "soft skills are sometimes a little bit even more important." This includes translating doctor's requests into actionable data projects, effectively communicating findings, and presenting "interesting insights" to influence their understanding and project direction.
Data Analysis, Communication, Project Management, Problem-Solving, Data Visualization
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Shailja Somani
Data Scientist
Cohere Health
Johns Hopkins University, 2020
Currently pursuing my MS in Applied Data Science at the University of San Diego (part-time online while working full-time)
Psychology
Technology
Data and Analytics
Greek Life Member, LGBTQ
Video Highlights
1. Proficiency in programming languages like Python and R, and database querying languages like SQL is essential.
2. Data visualization skills using tools such as Tableau or Power BI are important for presenting findings effectively.
3. Strong communication and translation skills are crucial for understanding client needs, managing expectations, and communicating complex data insights in a clear and concise manner
Transcript
What skills are most important for a job like yours?
There are hard skills that are important. I work mostly in Python or R. We use SQL to query your data a lot, and then data visualization is great. Tools like Tableau or Power BI help present findings.
All that being said, I think hard skills are obviously important. People often think of those, but what are sometimes even more important are soft skills. This means when doctors come to me with requests, I'm able to translate what they want into data needs and actually create projects.
A lot of times, they don't know what they're asking for. They don't know what the data looks like or what modeling techniques look like. So I need to be able to translate what they want into a project plan.
I can then say, "Hey, is this what you're looking for?" and work with them on that. I'll say, "Okay, cool. This is my timeline. This is when I can get it to you by."
Conversely, a lot of times they'll ask for one thing, and the more you dig into the data, you find all these interesting insights or new things. Being able to go back to them and translate that, and present effectively, is really important.
I can say, "Hey, I think this is something else we should think about, or this is another thing that's important to look at." Being able to take that work back and communicate it is crucial. So being able to work on those soft skills is definitely incredibly important.