Top 5 Data Analytics Certifications That Will Get You a Great Job in 2020!

Over the past few years, the explosion of interest in technologies like the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are increasing the demand for data scientists and analysts.

According to David Foote, Co-founder, Chief Analyst and Chief Research Officer of Foote Partners (an IT analyst firm and independent benchmark research organization), “Advanced data analytics capabilities are just too critical for staying competitive. They’ve expanded in popularity from a few industries to nearly every industry and market.”

With data analytics, organizations are able to examine information relevant to them and understand what’s working and what’s not. By carefully collating, sorting and analyzing important data, companies are better equipped to set up future goals, and design strategies and tactics to successfully meet them.

Still, individuals with the right mix of data analytics experience and skills are relatively rare and this is why they can demand high salaries.

If you are interested in pursuing a Data Analytics career and want to get an edge over your peers, certification is a great option. By enrolling for a certification course, you can gain the knowledge and skills you need to succeed in this growing field.

Here is our guide to the Top 5 Data Analytics and Big Data certifications which will give you the key capabilities to work in the real world and help you attract the attention of recruiters.

1. Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert (MCSE): Data Management and Analytics

The MCSE Data Management and Analytics credential will prepare you for SQL database administration, Machine Learning, building enterprise-scale data solutions and leveraging Business Intelligence (BI) data in on-premise and cloud-based environments.

With the MCSE certificate, you will be qualified for jobs like:

• Database analyst
• Database designer
• Business Intelligence analyst

To earn the certification, candidates must pass one of 12 exams.

Organization: Microsoft

Price: $165 per exam or INR 11,700 approx (training cost is separate and depends on the academy)

Language: English

To pursue MCSE: you must first earn 1 of 7 Microsoft Certified Solutions Associate (MSCA) Certifications:

1. MSCA SQL Server 2012/2014
2. MCSA SQL 2016 Database Administration
3. MCSA SQL 2016 Database Development
4. MCSA SQL 2016 BI Development
5. MCSA Machine Learning;
6. MCSA BI Reporting
7. MCSA Data Engineering with Azure

Microsoft also offers preparation tools for each of the 12 exams.

2. Cloudera Certified Associate (CCA) Data Analyst

SQL developers with a Cloudera Certified Data (CCA) Analyst credential can perform core competencies required to pull and generate reports in Cloudera’s CDH environment using Impala and Hive.

CCA certification requires passing the CCA Data Analyst Exam (CCA159), a remote-proctored set of 8-12 performance-based (hands-on tasks) on a Cloudera Enterprise cluster. For each task, you get 120 minutes to analyze the problem and implement a technical solution with a high degree of precision that meets all the requirements.

Organization: Cloudera

Passing score: 70%

Language: English

Price: USD $295 or INR 21,000 approx

To pursue CCA: Cloudera recommends that you take the Cloudera Data Analyst Training course which has the same objectives as the exam

3. Certified Analytics Professional (CAP)

The Certified Analytics Professional (CAP) credential from INFORMS certifies that a holder has an end-to-end understanding of the analytics process, right from framing business and analytic problems to data acquisition, methodology, model building, deployment and model lifecycle management. It is designed for early- to mid-career analytics professionals and is good for three years, after which it must be renewed.

Applicants need at least a bachelor’s degree plus 5 years of professional analytics experience OR a master’s degree with 3 years of experience. They must also sign an ethics code.

Since exams are computer-based, candidates all over the world can take the CAP exam.

Organization: INFORMS

Language: English

Price: $495 (INR 35,000 approx) for INFORMS members, $695 (INR 49,000 approx) for non-members

To pursue CAP: you can take the CAP Prep Online course (cost $450). You could also review the Analytics Job Task Analysis (JTA), the Candidate Handbook and a free, downloadable CAP® study guide

4. SAS Certified Data Scientist Using SAS® 9

A SAS® Certified Data Scientist can analyze and gain insights from Big Data using a variety of SAS and open source tools. He can also use complex machine learning models to make business recommendations and then deploy models at scale using the flexible, robust SAS environment.

To earn a SAS Certified Data Scientist credential, you must pass all 5 exams from the SAS Certified Big Data Professional credential (2 exams) and SAS Certified Advanced Analytics Professional credential (3 exams).

The exams are:

i. SAS Certified Big Data Professional:

1. SAS Big Data Preparation, Statistics and Visual Exploration
2. SAS Big Data Programming and Loading

 
ii. SAS Certified Advanced Analytics Professional Using SAS®9:

1. Predictive Modeling Using SAS Enterprise Miner 7, 13, or 14
2. SAS Advanced Predictive Modeling
3. SAS Text Analytics, Time Series, Experimentation and Optimization

 
Organization: SAS

Language: English

Price: $180  (INR 12,800 approx) for each exam except Predictive Modeling Using SAS Enterprise Miner which costs $250 (INR 17,750 approx)

To pursue this credential: SAS recommends that you take a practice exam before taking your exam. You can also join the SAS Academy for Data Science. It costs $4,400 (INR 3,12,000 approx) for self-paced e-learning courses

5. EMC Proven Professional Data Scientist Associate (EMCDSA)

With an EMCDSA certification, you can prove your ability to make valuable contributions as a data science team member on big data and other analytics projects. These competencies include:

• Deploying the data analytics lifecycle
• Reframing business challenges as analytics challenges
• Applying analytic techniques and tools to analyze big data and create statistical models
• Select appropriate data visualizations to communicate insights
• Understand how advanced analytics can help create a competitive advantage for your firm

 
Organization: Dell EMC

Language: English

Required exams: E20-007 Data Science and Big Data Analytics

Pre-requisites: Experience with a scripting language (Java, Perl, Python), experience with SQL

Price: $600 (INR 42,000 approx) for video-ILT streaming; $5,000 (INR 3,55,000 approx) for instructor-led

Wrapping up

Data and big data analytics are the lifeblood of any successful organization, so if this is the career path you want to pursue, you have plenty of scope for learning and growth. Certifications measure your knowledge and skills against specific benchmarks to prove to potential employers that you have what it takes to work in the field of Data Analytics.

We hope our guide to data analytics and big data certifications can help you decide which credential is right for you and your career!

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