A 5th year PhD student asks- 

“How do you decide whether it is worth your time to apply for a job you’ve never done before? I’m in the Epidemiology program, but I’m pretty sure I don’t want to continue doing research. So, I want to look for data scientist roles once I graduate, ideally for a big firm like Google, Microsoft, etc. I’ve been to a few networking events, and all the data scientists I meet have a much stronger background. It seems like everyone studied computer science, but I studied public health in undergrad and only started learning data science techniques in grad school. I know it might be a stretch- do I even bother sending in applications, or should I be looking for internships and taking additional classes first?”

It’s great that you’re going to networking events! You’re meeting people who can help you better understand the landscape and position yourself for the jobs you want. You’re also getting relevant information on what types of experience are valuable at the firms you’re interested in. All of this information will be really helpful positioning you for jobs you want. 

However, we’d recommend being careful when comparing yourself to other people this way. 

Remember: You are interested in getting the job these people have, not in becoming who they are. It may be more useful to look at specific job descriptions rather than compare yourself to the experience of people already in the field. There are a few reasons for this: 

• The people you are meeting may have gained valuable experience on the job. In fact, it is reasonable to expect some amount of on-the-job training. The expectations for the job you’d apply for may be different than the experience these people have developed. 
• Employers are usually not looking for applicants who fulfill 100% of the listed job requirements at the time of hire. If you meet 80% of them, we consider you a good fit for the position and it’s worth applying. Being able to demonstrate how you would be able to meet the other required skills once hired is also of value (ie, you’ve demonstrated you can learn quickly, you’ve already identified the course you would take, etc). 
• You may be overlooking other important value-adds that you have and they may not. For example, your public health background might be needed on a team that’s working with health data or related applications. You may also have other non-technical skills like leadership, collaboration, or communication that are less common among people with a different background. 
• You can follow up with the people you met to learn more about the experience that was most important for them getting hired. Is there a level of competency or experience you need to be able to show in order to even be considered? The answer to this question may differ across companies and this may help you find places that would be a better fit for you. 

Ultimately, the cost of applying is the time and effort you put into preparing your application. Keeping in mind these factors and everything you’ve got on your plate right now as a 5th year, you can then calibrate your effort accordingly. 

-Ray Care, Program Director, Career Development Team for Researchers