Jess Ramos ⚡️

I truly feel bad for new graduates who are entering the job market right now because they're 100% set up to fail. Unemployment for new grads is 6.6% right now (and even almost 6% for those a few years out from college).

The irony is that students did the "right" thing by going to college and getting degrees. Many even chose "safe" degrees like business and computer science and they're being met with one of the worst job markets in modern history.

Hiring in tech and business has slowed down tremendously, people are being laid off and quiet fired, and many people of retirement age are holding onto their jobs a little longer.

Gone are the days of truly entry level jobs because nowadays companies are hiring 3+ years experience as their bottom level. This has led to underemployment-- where students are getting jobs that don't even need a degree to pay their bills. And they have side hustles which they're further penalized for in the workplace...

People will blame it on "kids these days..." and the Gen Z stare, but we all should have some empathy for younger generations. Yes, I know the walk to school was uphill both directions for you but at least your $1 could buy 4 times as much.

Most people are waiting until 2026 to start their data journey.

But 88% of New Year’s resolutions FAIL in the first 2 weeks.

If you’re not motivated enough now to learn and grow your career, what makes you think it’ll be different in 2 months?

Stop saying “tomorrow” and get it done!!!

Here’s how you can start 2026 with momentum:

November (SQL basics):
↳ basics
↳ sorting
↳ filtering
↳ aggregating / grouping
↳ string manipulation
↳ date manipulation
↳ data cleaning

December (intermediate SQL):
↳ joins
↳ CTEs
↳ subqueries
↳ set operations
↳ window functions

January (portfolio & job search prep):
↳ case studies
↳ business application
↳ full projects
↳ portfolio building
↳ networking

February
↳ apply, apply, apply

Imagine landing your dream job in February or March because you invested in your skills starting NOW!

Free intro to SQL course: https://lnkd.in/e3Ye8M92

♻️ reshare with your network!

PLEASE STOP using the Titanic and Iris datasets when you can build the PERFECT datasets w/ ChatGPT!

Not only do those datasets make you look like a complete NOOB but it's also really embarrassing to use those in the age of AI.

Like please use your resources and have an ounce of creativity.

Here’s how I do it (save this for later):

↳ Step 1: Decide the size & shape of your dataset (rows/columns).

↳ Step 2: Define each column and its data type. Strings, integers, dates, whatever you need

↳ Step 3: Set primary and foreign keys so your tables connect properly

↳ Step 4: Add realistic variation & randomness, don’t make everything evenly distributed.

↳ Step 5: Ask for missing or edge cases to simulate real-world scenarios

↳ Step 6: Make it downloadable as CSV so you can share or analyze publicly

And now you have free, anonymized, and perfect data for your next portfolio project.

🏷️ Save this for later and ♻️ repost for your network!

I hate to tell you this but employers don't care about your certificates especially if it's a completion/participation certificate. Everyone has one and they prove nothing.

People always ask me if my SQL course comes with a certificate upon completion and I'm like... why? What are you gonna do with it? It's not going to serve you much on the job market.

A piece of paper proves nothing.

What's going to help you ACTUALLY get a good job in data is:

- The applied skills you learn in the course
- The projects you build and struggle through
- The portfolio you use to display and sell your knowledge

No one asks very much about those things.

I guess certificates sound cooler.

Many courses and bootcamps even use them as a selling tactic because people believe they have more power than they really do.

Please don't take my course JUST for the certificate.