Turns data into insights: queries, dashboards and analyses that drive decisions.
Entry
Intermediate
Coding
Medium
Key skills
Career overview
The Data Analyst answers business questions with data: writing SQL, building dashboards, running statistical analyses and communicating findings to stakeholders. They sit between the data platform and the business. The role leads to Senior Data Analyst, BI Analyst or Data Engineer positions.
Main responsibilities
- Create data visualisations and stories
- Model and query relational databases
- Guarantee data quality, freshness and lineage
- Keep technical documentation up to date
- Prepare and execute change requests in production
- Analyse application logs to identify root causes
- Mentor junior team members and review their work
- Automate recurring tasks with scripts
- Model and maintain the data warehouse
- Build reliable data ingestion pipelines
Technical skills
Technologies
Education level
Education requirements vary depending on the company, country and experience. Professional experience, certifications and technical skills can sometimes compensate for formal education.
High School / Bac
Less common
Bac+2 (2-year degree)
Less common
Bac+3 (Bachelor)
Common entry point
Bac+5 (Master / Engineering)
Common entry point
Experience & coding level
Experience level
Coding level
Useful certifications
Certifications are never mandatory. They are one way among others to prove a skill.
- Microsoft PL-300 Power BI Data Analyst
- Google Data Analytics Certificate
- Tableau Desktop Certified Analyst
Where can this career take you?
Multiple paths are possible. Click a role to open its profile.
Direct progression
Possible branches
Where can you go next?
Realistic next career moves, with compatibility and a transition roadmap for each.
Overlap: 56% · Difficulty: Easy
Skills to learn: Advanced SQL, Dashboard architecture, Mentoring
View roadmapOverlap: 74% · Difficulty: Easy
Skills to learn: KPI definition, ETL basics
View roadmapOverlap: 46% · Difficulty: Medium
Skills to learn: dbt, Version control (Git), Metric layer / semantics
View roadmapOverlap: 52% · Difficulty: Medium
Skills to learn: Orchestration (Airflow), Spark / distributed processing, Streaming (Kafka)
View roadmapOverlap: 68% · Difficulty: Hard
Skills to learn: Machine learning, Feature engineering
View roadmapWhere can you go from here?
A typical progression built from real career relationships. Click any role to open its profile.
Soft skills
- Analytical thinking
- Clear communication
- Technical curiosity
- Rigour and attention to detail
- Teamwork
Common previous careers
Roles that frequently lead into this career.
Related resources
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Data AnalystSenior Data Analyst
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