Never a dull moment

Owing to its interdisciplinary nature between computer science and statistics, data science is one of the most promising and popular subjects to undertake right now. It’s so fun building artificial intelligence models that can recognise and classify images and texts as though they’re building blocks. Plus, there’s often a lot of competition involved in data science, which I absolutely thrive off, where different teams are gathered to work on the same task.

Unlock all potential

I studied the Master of Data Science at Monash University.

The reason I chose Monash to pursue postgraduate study was because it’s the first university in Australia to offer data science as a major. This reassured me of the quality of education I would receive when studying here, and was confirmed when I discovered that other universities only opened data science majors to students with a background in mathematics or physics, whereas Monash gave me more flexibility and welcomed people with diverse academic backgrounds to enrol in its data science courses.

Also it didn’t hurt that Monash is an esteemed university, not just in Australia, but worldwide.

Terrifically turbulent

I’m from China, and acclimatising to Melbourne has been both a wonderful and challenging experience.

When I first arrived here, I found the transportation system extremely confusing. Honestly, it took me around five months to properly understand how to take a train. The empty streets at night also used to frighten me because it’s a rare phenomenon in China.

Some other pesky things include the number of wild kangaroos found on the freeway, the changeable weather (I think Vodafone described it perfectly with their slogan about their internet speeds being faster than the changing weather in Melbourne) and the time difference with China, which made communicating with my parents exceptionally challenging.

On the flip side, here are some wonderful things: I’ve never seen so much blue sky anywhere else in the world! I also like the buildings in Melbourne because they’re very distinctive. And this will sound really weird, but I think the meat, milk and seafood here taste especially good.

Course snapshots

The Master of Data Science is a well-structured course consisting of a good balance of theory and practical work. I found the unit Data Wrangling especially helpful because it covered many areas in machine learning, including outlier detection and data cleaning, while ensuring the tutorials were practical and interesting. I’d safely say that this unit opened the job-hunting gate for me.

I had my first experience with data competition in the unit Applied Data Analysis. The competition was a text classification assignment where I learned a lot about teamwork and communication. I’ll never forget how our team worked overnight to update the model, process the data and look for cutting-edge techniques.

In my second year, I chose to study a minor thesis, which cultivated my research ability and critical thinking.

There was a unit on operating systems that I found especially challenging though.  In order to learn this course well, I asked a senior for help and did additional pre-class preparation and post-class reviews. That is to say, I learned each knowledge point three times. Thankfully, I passed the exam with flying colours.

Say ‘yes’ to opportunities

During my course, I tutored at off-campus institutions where I helped students learn units I had already taken. I was very happy to share my study experience and knowledge with them.

I’ve made many friends in Monash, not just from my country, but also from Malaysia, Korea and India. We often went to the gym together or played badminton. Sometimes we’d even go on excursions around Melbourne. These activities helped us all decompress and are very memorable to me.

Recipe for success

I’m now working as an algorithm engineer at Alibaba. My main job is to use machine learning and big data to fight against gangs that use loopholes in e-commerce platforms to make unfair profits.

In fact, from the moment I graduated, I’d chosen to work in a startup company related to hacker confrontation. I undertook projects in a variety of fields which greatly improved my outlook of the industry.

The competition to get into world-renowned companies is fierce. Therefore, I recommend new graduates to look for jobs at smaller but prominent companies in the fields they're interested in to hone their skills first. At the same time, I’d urge them to pay attention to their mental and physical health because a healthy mindset is crucial for a high-quality personal and professional life.

Pearls of wisdom for future students

Don’t worry about job opportunities. Instead, worry about whether you’re studying your course to the best of your abilities. Be sure to participate during tutorials and regularly communicate with your professors. Doing these things will help you stay on track with your studies while expanding your social and professional networks.