Data Scientist skills employers ask for

The most-asked skills

Share of Data Scientist postings that mention each skill.

1. Pythondistinctive69%
2. Machine learningdistinctive53%
3. SQLdistinctive53%
4. Statisticsdistinctive49%
5. Stakeholder managementdistinctive41%
6. Researchdistinctive35%
7. Leadership34%
8. Data visualizationdistinctive31%
9. LLMsdistinctive29%
10. Data analysisdistinctive29%
11. Communication26%
12. AWSdistinctive19%
13. Training and coaching19%
14. Problem solving18%
15. Marketing18%

“Distinctive” means Data Scientist postings ask for it at least three times as often as jobs overall.

Prove it with a free skill badge:Python,Machine learning,SQL,Statistics,Stakeholder management,Generative AI & LLMs,AWS

Where Data Scientist skills carry over

Roles whose postings ask for the most similar skills. Overlap counts the skills that define each role most.

• Data Analyst72% overlapShared: SQL, Python, Statistics, Data visualizationHow to switch
• Machine Learning Engineer71% overlapShared: Python, Machine learning, LLMs, ResearchHow to switch
• Actuary67% overlapShared: SQL, Statistics, Python, ResearchHow to switch
• Business Intelligence Analyst66% overlapShared: Python, Statistics, SQL, Data visualizationHow to switch

Questions

What skills does a Data Scientist need?

In 1,266 current Data Scientist job postings, the skills asked for most often are Python (69%), Machine learning (53%), SQL (53%), Statistics (49%), Stakeholder management (41%). Percentages are the share of postings that mention each skill.

What jobs can a Data Scientist move into?

Measured by shared skill demand, the closest roles are Data Analyst, Machine Learning Engineer, Actuary, Business Intelligence Analyst. Data Analyst shares skills such as SQL, Python, Statistics.