From Accounting Graduate to Data Analyst: Amaka's Story

The Problem With a Good Degree and No Opportunity

Amaka Okonkwo graduated with a Second Class Upper in Accounting from the University of Lagos in 2022. She spent the next year and a half applying for accounting and finance roles, attending interviews, and receiving polite rejections. "I was doing everything right on paper," she says. "But the market was saturated and the roles that did come up were paying salaries I could not live on in Lagos."

The Pivot Decision

A conversation with a friend who had recently transitioned into data analysis planted the first seed. "She showed me her dashboard work and I thought, I can do this. I understand numbers. I understand business. I just need to learn the tools." Amaka spent two months researching before enrolling in LeadarX's 10-week Data Analysis program. "I was nervous about the money and the time commitment but I had been losing both for 18 months already."

The Program Experience

"Week one was uncomfortable. I had never touched SQL in my life and Power BI felt overwhelming. But the instructors were genuinely good and the cohort model meant I was doing this with other people who were also figuring it out. By week four it started to click." Amaka completed her final project, a churn analysis dashboard for a hypothetical subscription business, in week nine. "I stayed up three nights in a row finishing it. I was proud of it."

The Outcome

Three weeks after graduating, Amaka had her first data analyst interview. She was hired on her second attempt, at a Lagos-based fintech company, at a salary of N280,000 per month. "My accounting classmates who got banking roles are earning less than me. I send that dashboard to anyone who asks if the program is worth it."