Data is the “New Oil”. Data is everywhere and almost every business uses Data Science, Engineering, and Analytics in one way or another. According to Forbes and many other leading websites, a full-time Masters in Data Science (or related subject) will be a very important degree in the next 10 years. Masters in Data Science, Data Engineering, or Analytics has become one of the highly sought-after degrees for Indians at present.
When it comes to Masters Data Science, Machine Learning, and Business Analytics in Europe, several Indian applicants have some concerns regarding internships and jobs.
In this post, Nandan Mishra, currently working as a data engineer at Uniper in Germany and completed MSc in Data Engineering from Jacobs Bremen University in Germany, talks about his data science career path and study abroad journey.
Nandan had offers from Singapore, UK, and Ireland; but he opted for Germany. During his Masters in Germany, Nandan worked as a Teaching Assistant and also did three internships.
Nandan finished his Master Thesis project at Microsoft in Munich. Earlier, Nandan did his Bachelors from Siksha ‘O’​ Anusandhan University (SOA) in Bhubaneshwar and later worked with TCS and Cognizant.
Nandan had approached me for Online Career Advice and Admissions Counselling back in 2016 after reading a few of my blogs on Data Science and Big Data Analytics.
I hope this Q&A article will provide a few tips to the folks looking at to go for a Masters in Germany and abroad in general.
Masters in Data Engineering in Germany with Scholarship
Q&A with Nandan Mishra, Data Engineer at Uniper (Germany)
MSc Data Engineering (Jacobs Bremen) | Ex Microsoft (Germany), Cognizant & TCS (India)
Tanmoy: You pursued graduation in Electrical Engineering. What made you interested in Data Engineering?
Nandan:Â I was involved in research during my B.Tech in the field of Computational Intelligence and AI which resulted in 4 IEEE and 1 Springer publication. I wanted to carry out in this domain, so I took up the Masters in Data Engineering.
Tanmoy: You had a stellar academic record in your Bachelors. How about extracurricular activities in College?
Nandan:Â I had been involved as Student Ambassador and also founded a club, the Comedy Club. Regarding my co-curricular activity, I was also interested in quizzing.
Tanmoy: You had almost 4 years of work-ex in the IT domain (TCS and Cognizant). Why did you go for MSc in Data Engineering rather than an MBA?
Nandan: I had my work experience in the more technical domain and I wanted to increase my technical knowledge at this phase of career. I would plan to take up an MBA when I’m at more senior and decision making phase of my career.
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Tanmoy: How (or why) did you choose Germany and Jacobs Bremen University?
Nandan:Â Although I had admission offers from NUS (Singapore), many UK & Irish universities, I felt studying in Germany is more prestigious than most other places. Additionally, the program curriculum and the faculty members were big factors for me. Another important fact was the international outlook of the university.
More importantly, I am from an Electrical Engineering background. The majority of German universities demand a Bachelors degree in Computer Science or IT. Jacobs Bremen, a private university, is more flexible when it comes to Bachelor majors. More importantly, Jacobs gave me a good scholarship. So, it was kind of a no-brainer for me.
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Tanmoy: How was your experience with the application process?
Nandan: Pretty simple and straight forward. Just be ready with your IELTS results and show your real motivation behind pursuing the program.
Tanmoy:Â You worked as a Graduate Teaching Assistant during your Masters in Germany? Was it a paid position? How was the overall experience?
Nandan:Â That happened in my 1st semester and also during my 3rd semester as I was certified with Google Analytics certification. Yes, all the Teaching Assistant jobs are paid well in Germany. It was like you are a dummy professor, gave me the experience of being a teacher, and look at things from the Admin side, as well.
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Tanmoy:Â You had three internships during your Masters. How did you end up with those intern positions?
Nandan: I started applying in the mid of my first semester when I thought that I’ve learned a few things and would like to apply them to various industries. Although, looking for Student jobs and Internships can be tough in Germany with Deutsche language skills, but anyhow if I have had made it, others will definitely.
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Tanmoy: You are doing your Master’s Thesis at Microsoft. Could you please tell us a little bit about your thesis project?
Nandan: It’s about building a Recommender System using machine learning to optimize a business problem.
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Tanmoy: You have done quite a few certifications (Microsoft and LinkedIn) while pursuing a full-time Master’s program. What was your objective behind that?
Nandan: I looked across various profiles in my domain and try to be as updated as others in my fraternity. This motivates me to take all the courses (most of them are free courses). Even before applying for Masters in Germany, though I had working experience with the languages, I was doing many courses sidewise.
Tanmoy: How has been your overall experience as an international student in Germany? According to you, what are the key differences between the education system in India and Germany?
Nandan:Â It has been a better experience than being studies in India; mainly due to the quality of education. The assignments and project work are truly important in Germany and they tend to make you more creative and more practical.
Tanmoy: What would be your advice to the folks looking at to do Masters in Germany?
Nandan:Â Do your masters if you really are interested in studying further and not because of peer pressure or enjoying foreign lands.
Tanmoy: What are your thoughts on Data Science vs Data Engineering vs Data Analytics?
Nandan: They are extremely inter-related. I would advise prospective students to look at the Masters of Data Engineering course at Jacobs Bremen.
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