Interview with former Data Science student, Lorenzo Verstraeten

Could you introduce yourself? What were you doing before you joined Constructor Academy’s Data Science Bootcamp?

“Hi, I'm Lorenzo. I'm originally from Italy, even though my surname is Belgian ;). I have a background in economics and worked as a researcher in Florence in the economics department before I moved to Switzerland in 2019 and joined Constructor Academy in the fall of the same year.”

Why did you choose to do the Data Science Bootcamp at Constructor Academy?

“The first time I heard about Constructor Academy was at a Google event. After that I attended a presentation of final projects by students who completed the Bootcamp. I must admit that I was really impressed by what they managed to achieve in such a short period of time. Since I just moved to a new country, I wanted to be prepared for the Swiss job market. Constructor Academy was in my opinion the best way to get started with some practical, hands-on experience which I could use apart from academic background.”

What topic did you enjoy studying the most and how was your overall experience at Constructor Academy?

“If I had to choose one specific topic, I would probably go with Deep Learning. Why? Because it was the newest, most exciting for me since I had quite a bit of prior knowledge in other topics. What surprised me was that it's not as complicated as many people think, but really powerful! The hands-on approach at Constructor Academy was the thing I liked the most. We managed to create really useful and fun applications in a very short time and the teachers were also really helpful.”

What did you do after the Bootcamp? Was it easy to find a job?

“Immediately after the Bootcamp, I worked on a couple of small projects. At that time I unfortunately failed some interviews I got invited to. But after some time I started at my current job at Credit Suisse, where I'm employed as a Data Analyst in the Risk and Compliance department. The tasks include mostly building pipelines to serve our internal and external stakeholders. We sometimes work on the frontend, but most of the tasks are on the backend. I started the job being perfectly prepared on both the technical side and the understanding of how this type of work is organized when it comes to coding and deployment of a project – thanks to the Bootcamp. Constructor Academy really provides you with solid preparation to thrive in your first Data Science position.”

Do you have any advice for people who also want to do a Data Science Bootcamp?

“In my opinion, it’s rather difficult to transition directly from academia to industry. Doing a Bootcamp is a really good way to do that step. Another suggestion is to start the Bootcamp full of energy. It will be demanding but it's always up to you to decide how much effort you put in and that typically correlates with the final outcome.”