How many years does it take to become a data analyst?

It takes between one and six years to become a data analyst. Through certifications and self-directed learning, you can become a data analyst in as little as 8 to 11 months. It can take up to 4 years with a bachelor's degree or 5 to 6 years with a master's.

How much do reporting analysts make?

Reporting analysts make an average salary of $69,977 a year, or $33.64 an hour. Top earning reporting analysts make $93,000 a year, on average, with the lowest earners making $52,000. Reporting analyst salaries are fairly constant, with a bit of variation depending on industry and location.

Is it hard to become a data analyst?

No, it is not hard to become a data analyst. Everything you need to learn about how to be a data analyst you can learn online. Becoming a data analyst is not difficult if you are tech-savvy, skilled at statistics and numeracy, and have an understanding of business processes.

How To Become A Data And Reporting Analyst: What It Is and Career Path

What is a data and reporting analyst and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Erik Johnson Ph.D.

A Data And Reporting Analyst collects, processes, and formats data into a report or a spreadsheet of some sort that makes it easily understandable by fellow analysts, clients, and other members of the company.

Working with so much data and a strong understanding of mathematics and coding are key to making it in this position. A number of reporting and analysis software exist, and someone trying to make it in this position ought to understand the key ones, such as SSRS.

Typically, a candidate for this position will need a minimum of a Bachelor's in Computer Science or IT.

What general advice would you give to a data and reporting analyst?

Erik Johnson Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Economics, Carthage College

Economics gives you a set of tools to analyze a variety of policy and business problems. However, determining which tools to apply in which situation requires that you learn the industry, you are working from top to bottom. When you begin a new job in a new field, be sure to do everything you can to understand how the organization and the industry work to understand the primary incentives that everyone faces. One right way to do this is to make as many connections within the company you are working for as possible, and always be on the lookout for new opportunities within the company and how they can help you learn more. Moreover, do your best to ensure that a significant portion of your job involves some creative endeavors, such as economic modeling or building tools for yourself or others to use. As computing power continues to become cheaper, and artificial intelligence becomes more advanced, relatively repetitive tasks become more comfortable and easier to automate. Therefore, you will have less job security. Creative tasks, such as modeling and tool building, are difficult to automate and are more likely to provide you with more satisfaction.

ScoreData And Reporting AnalystUS Average

Salary

6.0

Avg. Salary $76,196

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.8

Growth rate 11%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.9

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.16%

Asian 14.20%

Black or African American 7.38%

Hispanic or Latino 8.41%

Unknown 4.44%

White 65.41%

Gender

female 44.61%

male 55.39%

Age - 43

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 43

Stress level

6.8

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.7

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

2.2

Work life balance is very poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a data and reporting analyst

Explore data and reporting analyst education requirements

Most common data and reporting analyst degrees

Bachelor's

64.8 %

Master's

18.4 %

Associate

9.9 %

Start to develop specific data and reporting analyst skills

Skills	Percentages
Power Bi	13.49%
Data Analysis	10.63%
Dashboards	7.60%
Visualization	6.03%
BI	4.99%

Complete relevant data and reporting analyst training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New data and reporting analysts learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a data and reporting analyst based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real data and reporting analyst resumes.

Research data and reporting analyst duties and responsibilities

Gather business requirements and deliver business analytics base solutions using structured/unstructure business data to help achieve measurable business outcomes for clients.
Prepare files and reports by performing ETL, data extraction, and data validation.
Report creation using PL/SQL, PROC/SQL, and T/SQL, and SAS programming language.
Extract customer information from databases and employ SAS to generate reports that meet business requirements.

Prepare your data and reporting analyst resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your data and reporting analyst resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a data and reporting analyst resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable data and reporting analyst resume templates

Build a professional data and reporting analyst resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your data and reporting analyst resume.