Struggling to get a Data Science internship without a CS degree – is this normal?

Career Advice
1

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for some honest advice.

I have solid skills in Data Science, Machine Learning, and Deep Learning. However, neither my Bachelor’s nor my Master’s degree is in Computer Science. My academic background is in engineering, but my Master’s thesis was fully focused on Deep Learning and Machine Learning applications in my field.

Despite this, I’ve been applying to many Data Science internship positions, and I don’t even get shortlisted. I recently spoke with my professor, and he mentioned that companies usually prefer candidates whose degrees are directly related to Computer Science.

Is this generally true?
Do companies filter candidates based mainly on their degree title?

If not, what would you recommend I do to improve my chances?

Also, I was wondering:
If I complete a Data Science course on freeCodeCamp and get their certificate, would that help? Do they offer a recognized Data Science certification that could strengthen my profile?

I’d really appreciate any advice from people who’ve been in a similar situation.

Thank you!

2

They could, but generally don’t if you have a data science background and are applying to a data science job. Its unclear what your degree’s are in beyond “engineering”. Assuming your master’s thesis is in data science realm, you could apply to a data science job.

But that doesn’t mean you instantly get hired. Data science, machine learning and anything related to AI is the currently somewhat saturated due to so much interest.

If you are still in school see if you can leverage any resources for job placement. Any experience is better than no experience, even if it doesn’t directly relate to data science. You can always try to leverage your data science background in whatever that job is and then use that to get a data science focused job.

Good luck, keep learning, keep growing, and keep asking questions!