Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto

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Learning by doing: Teaching data analytics concepts to my family - Devashree, MMA Class of 2021

February is the month that was driven towards acquiring certifications, preparing for the practicum intensive in March, term-end finals, and gearing up for finding a suitable job. The faculty, program services team, and my fellow teammates have been extremely helpful in helping with managing the workload and making the learning efficient.

Someone who has no experience or background in Python can write long codes for neural networks, and perform varied data analytics using programming languages like Python and R in a matter of 6 months, that’s how exponential the learning has been in the MMA program.

Every day is a new day when it comes to the lessons learned, exposure to data, and real-life problems, and every case or problem we get an opportunity to work on is completely different from the previous problems/cases.

Preparing for the exams

The exams are the perfect platform to test what you have learned and how much have you absorbed from doing multiple assignments, lectures, textbooks, and additional readings. To be able to perform well, it is of utmost importance that you understand the concepts clearly and thoroughly.

The best way to test whether you have understood those concepts is by trying to explain what you learned to someone, not from the data analytics/data science field.

It could be your brother/sister, the parent or even your friend who is studying fashion. If you have managed to convey what it is that you were trying to explain, you have understood the concepts covered in class. This technique is also important when presenting the models which you will employ during the practicum project or giving an interview.

Being the Student Academic Representative, it is my responsibility to help the students better manage the workload or convey to program services in case of any issues faced by the students.

Program services have been our pillars and extremely approachable for academic or personal advice/suggestions. Being on the online platform, giving exams can be overwhelming. But with the help of our faculty and program services, the journey so far has been extremely enriching and enjoyable.

Taking time off studies

During Covid and everything being online, it is extremely hard to relax and time some find for yourself. But what I have learned from my experience is that burnout can be very high and quick, leading to you not being able to concentrate or be productive for group or individual assignments.

The key is to decide on a day and not work on any course-related stuff on that day. Go for a walk, a run, watch a movie or cook a nice dinner. Do what you enjoy and take the time off to relax and decompress. A walk by the lake, (I really like Etobicoke Point!) listening to audible has been my go-to activity when there is a lot of pressure or stress and you need some time for yourself.

Towards the end of an intense tools term, the learning curve in the MMA program has been exponential. Even though the program is intense, there are ample opportunities to practice the skills acquired.

The Master of Management Analytics is designed to give students the advanced data management, analytics, and communication skills needed to become an analytics professional. 

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