Meet the Data Analyst Using His Creativity to Tell Visual Stories

Like many new college graduates, Andre King wanted to find a job related to his degree when he completed his bachelor’s in IT, with a concentration in multimedia, over seven years ago. His IT program had emphasized web development and thanks to his additional studies in multimedia, King set out to find a role in digital marketing. But time and again, employers turned him down. “The number one response was that I didn't have enough experience,” King says.  

King ended up taking what he could find. “I've worked quite a few jobs over the past six or seven years,” he says. He spent a stretch of time at an auto body shop, before transitioning to a beverage import company. But none of those positions had anything to do with his true interests. 

The reality of underemployment

King’s challenge wasn’t unemployment but underemployment—the broad phrase that refers, in part, to anyone overqualified for their current role, including graduates in jobs that don’t require a degree [1, 2]. A 2024 study found that 52 percent of recent college graduates were underemployed one year after completing their degree [2]. 

Thinking he could solve the problem with more formal education, King went back to school. This time, he earned his master’s degree in media design, but once again he graduated into a difficult job market. He cobbled together three jobs, working in an auto body shop, at a restaurant, and in an Amazon warehouse. He began pondering a second master’s degree but paused at the expense. That’s when he discovered Coursera. 

A way forward with data

King saw an opportunity to connect his past education with the in-demand field of data analytics and enrolled in the Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate on Coursera, where he learned how to clean, organize, and visualize data. “After that, I wanted to focus less on the creative side of digital marketing and more on the analytical side of it,” he explains.”That's where the transition started.”  

It turned out that his creative eye—his background in design and multimedia—fit the needs of data visualization well. Day-to-day, King is able to craft better visualizations thanks to his knowledge of color theory and the effective use of space. “To be able to use my creative background to share what the data says and be able to explain why things are the way they are using that data, I really enjoy that,” he says.

It wasn’t long after finishing his first Professional Certificate that King was hired to be a data analyst—a role that required the technical skills and education he’d acquired.* “That's what helped me get this job,” he says. At long last, he was doing something related to all of his hard work. “I’m very happy. I’m very excited for that.”

Even though data analysis wasn’t what King initially set out to do, he’s beyond satisfied because he’s finally able to use the full breadth of his talents. “The reward of just being in that position,” he says, is enough unto itself. But there are lots of other perks, too, including the pay, the office culture, his coworkers, and how much he enjoys what he does. 

Expanding his skill set on Coursera

King could have stopped once he landed his dream job, but he considers himself a lifelong learner. Thanks to his Coursera Plus subscription, he’s continued enrolling in different programs, leapfrogging from one skill to another and building out his wheelhouse. He’s currently taking the Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst Professional Certificate. 

 There’s no strict learning plan in place, and that’s just fine with King. When he begins a new Professional Certificate or Specialization, he’s not sure where he’ll go after that. “I just take it because I want to, and it's something I'll put in my skill set,” he says. “But I don't know where it's gonna take me.” He may not know, but his goal is to grow. Between his current job and what he continues to learn, King would like to advance. “I can actually use it to propel to a more seasoned, mid-level data analyst role,” he says. 

King’s natural curiosity keeps him exploring Coursera’s offerings, knowing that even though experience is a valuable thing to have, so is education. “I don't want to feel stagnant because the brain is actually made to learn and to grow, and if you're not constantly feeding it, then it just doesn't feel right to me,” he says. “I want to grow.” 

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*Individual experiences and outcomes can vary and Coursera does not guarantee job interviews or job placements upon completion of its courses.