After 12 weeks of intensive training and projects focused on data wrangling and machine learning, nine newly hired engineers and four EPAMers from our Shenzhen and Suzhou offices graduated from the first Data Science Academy (DSA) in Shenzhen, China. In cooperation with Green Fox Academy in Hungary, the academy was held for new university graduates who had little or no experience, but had strong math and analytical skills. Experts from EPAM APAC taught Agile and Scrum training sessions, as well as lessons to help improve presentation, team work and communication skills. 

The participants found the intensive training very rewarding. Haoxiang, Junior Software Engineer, EPAM Shenzhen, shared that the major benefit of the program was its emphasis on real-world experience. “During the 12-week program, I not only learned a lot of new things, but also refreshed many useful techniques that I’ve learned before. The instructors were patient and helpful. Unlike school courses, DSA provided opportunities that allowed us to gain real-world experience. While we have solid skills to solve most data science problems, we previously lacked real-world experiences.”

Another participant, Angela, Software Engineer, EPAM Suzhou, noted, “After the three-month DSA training, I learned python and machine learning basics, which is exciting since machine learning is needed in more and more fields. I’m glad that I had this opportunity. I was challenged by certain areas, such as how to clean data, extract features, make data visualization and choose models. But after a few projects, finally I got over these obstacles.”

Ke, Junior Software Engineer EPAM Shenzhen, said that “the training was absolutely superb and I genuinely enjoyed every moment. The lessons were informative and combined theory with practice. During this training, we not only discussed data science and projects, but also shared ideas in a collaborative setting. EPAM provides a great environment for new employees to grow and I am very happy to be one of them.”

At the end of their three-month journey, the participants presented their final project demos at a festive graduation ceremony in Shenzhen. It’s just the start of their professional careers, but their successful project demos have demonstrated that they can brilliantly handle data processing assignments based on complex recognition algorithms.               

As we continue to embrace data analytics tools to analyze consumers’ experiences and better anticipate their needs, it’s important for us to have a workforce trained in these skills. We are grateful to all EPAM APAC stakeholders, the stellar team of trainers and contributors, and to EPAM’s Big Data Competency Center for providing professional consultations and mentoring to this program.