Amid financial losses due to the novel coronavirus crisis, many companies are already undergoing layoffs, pay cuts, and furloughs.

There is no denying fact that the economy is under an attack in the wake of COVID-19. Thus, affecting millions of lives directly and indirectly. The United States alone has experienced a loss of nearly 10 million in the past two weeks.

Event, conferences, webinars, meetups, concerts, cultural events, and classes have all been postponed, moved, or canceled. However, online classes in the tech domains remain intact. The data science jobs, AI jobs, IoT jobs, data analytics jobs, machine learning jobs are likely to be in-demand even post the pandemic recession.

Despite the amount of job loss, hiring in the AI and the data science sector are supposed to stay positive and show resilience even during the pandemic. According to Forbes and WSJ, job titles that included the term AI (Artificial Intelligence) is set to increase by 11 percent at a time when other job occupations were going through a downfall.

The reports also mentioned, during the first quarter of 2020 the number of AI jobs across the globe reached 16 percent that amounts to a total count of 969,000.

Let’s delve deeper and put together things a data science professional or other tech professionals could do to start getting ready for a data scientist job.

• Revamp your portfolio

For someone working in the technology domain, there’s always room to improve. New technologies keep rising and changing from time to time. Honing your tech skills and pitching it toward the hired version will keep you on your toes. For tech jobs such as data science or AI, portfolios, and resumes are factors that creates the first impression on the employer. Your resume tells the hiring manager a lot about your current career accomplishments, passion, skills, and education.

Simply put, your resume and portfolio should reflect why you’re different from the rest of the other applicants. Why your skill stands different and unique from the other crowd? Employers should see your dedication and skills through your resume. While applying for jobs, make sure your skills match the job description given by the employer.

Acquire new skills with the help of the best data science certifications available online or brush up the old ones, work on the latest projects, and solve real-world problems to remain in sync with the current industry.

• Start building connections

Building connections is one crucial step you can take during the lockdown. Start investing time in getting connected to prominent people in your field of interest such as data teams at companies that are looking for new hires or data leads, etc. Spare at least one or two hours on LinkedIn to make connections with people on a professional level.

Referrals work well, however, before making that approach ensure you take a moment and understand everything about the company – understanding the work culture, how do the future look like the expectations, and job requirements, etc.

• Look for like-minded professionals who’ve been an inspiration to you and start making conversations about possible job opportunities or events.
• Participate in online events or workshops, you never know when and how this might lead to an opportunity for an interview.
• Keep a check on your known connections and their connections and find if they know anybody who’s hiring or looking to hire with open job roles.

• Start engaging with your network

As a data science professional, perhaps you must have built a great network of professionals. Staying engaged with them is an ideal way to look for job opportunities. Ask them if they would be willing to approach companies they’re acquainted with on your behalf. Or even better get connected with the hiring manager. Getting involved in a professional network is a good way to stay intact with happenings taking place around the tech world. Having people on your team send a cover letter or a referral can do wonders.

Times are tough, therefore do not hesitate to stay connected to your ex-colleagues or ex-bosses if you come across a job opening at their firms. Most likely they might just hire you rather than going through a series of interviews.

• Take up a freelance project

Taking up freelancing in the data science industry can be a challenging concept. There’s a lot of things you might need to know to be taking up freelance gigs. Upwork is a good platform to start with given the fact you have in-depth knowledge and skills in data science. Other platforms include names like Fiverr, Toptal, and PeoplePerHour.com.

Consider work from home becoming the new normal, taking up freelancing projects is the best way to start developing your portfolio.

• Start customizing your application for every job you apply

Every job description has a different requirement of skills. Having said that, you might be having vast knowledge in data science. Therefore, this can be your best chance to fetch the right type of job. Spend time in framing the right cover letter for the specific job requirements and expectations.

Doing this ensures you meet the requirements set by the hiring manager.