On my YouTube channel, I see the same comments on almost every video I make. They’re from people who dream of becoming Machine Learning Engineers or Data Scientists, but doubts are holding them back:
“I never studied computer science.”
“My math skills aren’t great.”
“I don’t have a Master’s degree.”
If you’ve ever had these doubts, this post is for you.
To sum it up, the short answer is, yes, you can do it.
But of course, exactly why or how depends on your situation. Let’s break it down, starting with education.
“I don’t have a Computer Science degree”
Neither do I! I am an Applied Scientist at Twitch/Amazon, and both my Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees are in social science. I’m self-taught in terms of math and software engineering. While having a CS background can definitely be helpful, especially for ML roles, most practical skills can be self-taught through project-based learning.
“I don’t have a Master’s or PhD”
This one’s trickier. Many roles use resume scanning tools that might filter you out before a human even sees your application. But don’t get disheartened — there are ways around this. Focus on building an impressive portfolio and creating direct connections with recruiters and hiring managers. I personally know Senior Data Scientists and Data Science Managers with no advanced degree. Plus, these days there are also affordable online Master’s programs like Georgia Tech if you decide a degree would help your chances.
“My degree is in a completely unrelated field”
Welcome to the club! This is actually pretty common because many of us graduated before DS or ML degrees even existed. Yes, you’ll need to do more self-study, but your background could actually be an advantage in some ways. For example, English majors often excel at writing and presenting, both of which can be super helpful for getting a job and making your impact known once you’re in the role. As a social scientist, I find I’m better at…
