Data Analyst Interview Questions
Data Analyst Interview Questions
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Home Resources Data Science & Business Analytics Data Analytics Tutorial for Beginners: A Step-By-
Step Guide 66 Data Analyst Interview Questions to Ace Your Interview
66 Data Analyst Interview Questions to Ace Your Interview
Lesson 8 of 12 By Shruti M
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Data analytics is widely used in every sector in the 21st century. A career in the field of data
analytics is highly lucrative in today's times, with its career potential increasing by the day. Out of
the many job roles in this field, a data analyst's job role is widely popular globally. A data analyst
collects and processes data; he/she analyzes large datasets to derive meaningful insights from
raw data.
If you have plans to apply for a data analyst's post, then there are a set of data analyst interview
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questions that you have to be prepared for. In this article, you will be acquainted with the top data
analyst interview questions, which will guide you in your interview process. So, let’s start with our
generic data analyst interview questions.
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In an interview, these questions are more likely to appear early in the process and cover data
analysis at a high level.
In data mining, raw data is converted into valuable It cannot identify inaccurate or incorrect data
information. values.
Data Wrangling is the process wherein raw data is cleaned, structured, and enriched into a
desired usable format for better decision making. It involves discovering, structuring, cleaning,
enriching, validating, and analyzing data. This process can turn and map out large amounts of
data extracted from various sources into a more useful format Techniques such as merging
data extracted from various sources into a more useful format. Techniques such as merging,
grouping, concatenating, joining, and sorting are used to analyze the data. Thereafter it gets
ready to be used with another dataset.
This is one of the most basic data analyst interview questions. The various steps involved in any
common analytics projects are as follows:
Understand the business problem, define the organizational goals, and plan for a lucrative
solution.
Collecting Data
Gather the right data from various sources and other information based on your priorities.
Cleaning Data
Clean the data to remove unwanted, redundant, and missing values, and make it ready for
analysis.
Use data visualization and business intelligence tools, data mining techniques, and predictive
modeling to analyze data.
Interpret the results to find out hidden patterns, future trends, and gain insights.
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4. What are the common problems that data analysts encounter during analysis?
Handling duplicate
5. Which are the technical tools that you have used for analysis and presentation purposes?
As a data analyst, you are expected to know the tools mentioned below for analysis and
presentation purposes. Some of the popular tools you should know are:
MS Excel, Tableau
Python, R, SPSS
MS PowerPoint
Create a data cleaning plan by understanding where the common errors take place and keep
all the communications open.
Before working with the data, identify and remove the duplicates. This will lead to an easy and
effective data analysis process.
Focus on the accuracy of the data. Set cross-field validation, maintain the value types of data,
and provide mandatory constraints.
Normalize the data at the entry point so that it is less chaotic. You will be able to ensure that
all information is standardized, leading to fewer errors on entry.
It helps you obtain confidence in your data to a point where you’re ready to engage a machine
learning algorithm.
It allows you to refine your selection of feature variables that will be used later for model
building.
You can discover hidden trends and insights from the data.
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9. What are the different types of sampling techniques used by data analysts?
Sampling is a statistical method to select a subset of data from an entire dataset (population) to
estimate the characteristics of the whole population.
Systematic sampling
Cluster sampling
Stratified sampling
Univariate analysis is the simplest and easiest form of data analysis where the data being
analyzed contains only one variable.
Univariate analysis can be described using Central Tendency, Dispersion, Quartiles, Bar charts,
Histograms, Pie charts, and Frequency distribution tables.
The bivariate analysis involves the analysis of two variables to find causes, relationships, and
correlations between the variables.
Example – Analyzing the sale of ice creams based on the temperature outside.
The bivariate analysis can be explained using Correlation coefficients, Linear regression, Logistic
regression, Scatter plots, and Box plots.
The multivariate analysis involves the analysis of three or more variables to understand the
relationship of each variable with the other variables.
Multivariate analysis can be performed using Multiple regression, Factor analysis, Classification
& regression trees, Cluster analysis, Principal component analysis, Dual-axis charts, etc.
The answer to this question may vary from a case to case basis. However, some general
strengths of a data analyst may include strong analytical skills, attention to detail, proficiency in
data manipulation and visualization, and the ability to derive insights from complex datasets.
Weaknesses could include limited domain knowledge, lack of experience with certain data
analysis tools or techniques, or challenges in effectively communicating technical findings to
non-technical stakeholders.
Privacy: Safeguarding the privacy and confidentiality of individuals' data, ensuring compliance
with applicable privacy laws and regulations.
Informed Consent: Obtaining informed consent from individuals whose data is being analyzed,
explaining the purpose and potential implications of the analysis.
Data Security: Implementing robust security measures to protect data from unauthorized
access, breaches, or misuse.
Data Bias: Being mindful of potential biases in data collection, processing, or interpretation
that may lead to unfair or discriminatory outcomes.
Transparency: Being transparent about the data analysis methodologies, algorithms, and
models used, enabling stakeholders to understand and assess the results.
Data Ownership and Rights: Respecting data ownership rights and intellectual property, using
data only within the boundaries of legal permissions or agreements
data only within the boundaries of legal permissions or agreements.
Accountability: Taking responsibility for the consequences of data analysis, ensuring that
actions based on the analysis are fair, just, and beneficial to individuals and society.
Data Quality and Integrity: Ensuring the accuracy, completeness, and reliability of data used in
the analysis to avoid misleading or incorrect conclusions.
Social Impact: Considering the potential social impact of data analysis results, including
potential unintended consequences or negative effects on marginalized groups.
Compliance: Adhering to legal and regulatory requirements related to data analysis, such as
data protection laws, industry standards, and ethical guidelines.
13. What are some common data visualization tools you have used?
You should name the tools you have used personally, however here’s a list of the commonly used
data visualization tools in the industry:
Tableau
Microsoft Power BI
QlikView
Plotly
SAP Lumira
This is one of the most frequently asked data analyst interview questions, and the interviewer
expects you to give a detailed answer here, and not just the name of the methods. There are four
methods to handle missing values in a dataset.
Listwise Deletion
In the listwise deletion method, an entire record is excluded from analysis if any single value is
missing.
Average Imputation
Take the average value of the other participants' responses and fill in the missing value.
Regression Substitution
Multiple Imputations
It creates plausible values based on the correlations for the missing data and then averages the
simulated datasets by incorporating random errors in your predictions.
Normal Distribution refers to a continuous probability distribution that is symmetric about the
mean. In a graph, normal distribution will appear as a bell curve.
68% of the data falls within one standard deviation of the mean
95% of the data lies between two standard deviations of the mean
99.7% of the data lies between three standard deviations of the mean
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This is another frequently asked data analyst interview question, and you are expected to cover
all the given differences!
Overfitting Underfitting
The model trains the data well using the Here, the model neither trains the data well nor can
training set. generalize to new data.
An outlier is a data point that is distant from other similar points. They may be due to variability in
the measurement or may indicate experimental errors.
The graph depicted below shows there are three outliers in the dataset.
To deal with outliers, you can use the following four methods:
Hypothesis testing is the procedure used by statisticians and scientists to accept or reject
statistical hypotheses. There are mainly two types of hypothesis testing:
Null hypothesis: It states that there is no relation between the predictor and outcome variables
in the population. H0 denoted it.
Alternative hypothesis: It states that there is some relation between the predictor and
outcome variables in the population. It is denoted by H1.
In Hypothesis testing, a Type I error occurs when the null hypothesis is rejected even if it is true. It
is also known as a false positive.
A Type II error occurs when the null hypothesis is not rejected, even if it is false. It is also known
as a false negative.
Ans: The choice of handling technique depends on factors such as the amount and nature of
missing data, the underlying analysis, and the assumptions made. It's crucial to exercise caution
and carefully consider the implications of the chosen approach to ensure the integrity and
reliability of the data analysis. However, a few solutions could be:
imputation methods including, mean imputation (replacing missing values with the mean of
the available data), median imputation (replacing missing values with the median), or
regression imputation (predicting missing values based on regression models)
sensitivity analysis
22. Explain the concept of outlier detection and how you would identify outliers in a dataset.
Outlier detection is the process of identifying observations or data points that significantly
deviate from the expected or normal behavior of a dataset. Outliers can be valuable sources of
information or indications of anomalies, errors, or rare events.
It's important to note that outlier detection is not a definitive process, and the identified outliers
should be further investigated to determine their validity and potential impact on the analysis or
model. Outliers can be due to various reasons, including data entry errors, measurement errors,
or genuinely anomalous observations, and each case requires careful consideration and
interpretation.
23. In Microsoft Excel, a numeric value can be treated as a text value if it precedes with what?
24. What is the difference between COUNT, COUNTA, COUNTBLANK, and COUNTIF in Excel?
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25. How do you make a dropdown list in MS Excel?
26. Can you provide a dynamic range in “Data Source” for a Pivot table?
Yes, you can provide a dynamic range in the “Data Source” of Pivot tables. To do that, you need to
create a named range using the offset function and base the pivot table using a named range
constructed in the first step.
27. What is the function to find the day of the week for a particular date value?
The get the day of the week, you can use the WEEKDAY() function.
The above function will return 6 as the result, i.e., 17th December is a Saturday.
AND() is a logical function that checks multiple conditions and returns TRUE or FALSE based on
whether the conditions are met.
Syntax: AND(logica1,[logical2],[logical3]....)
In the below example, we are checking if the marks are greater than 45. The result will be true if
the mark is >45, else it will be false.
29. Explain how VLOOKUP works in Excel?
VLOOKUP is used when you need to find things in a table or a range by row.
If you wanted to find the department to which Stuart belongs to, you could use the VLOOKUP
function as shown below:
Here, A11 cell has the lookup value, A2:E7 is the table array, 3 is the column index number with
information about departments, and 0 is the range lookup.
p , g p
If you hit enter, it will return “Marketing”, indicating that Stuart is from the marketing department.
30. What function would you use to get the current date and time in Excel?
In Excel, you can use the TODAY() and NOW() function to get the current date and time.
31. Using the below sales table, calculate the total quantity sold by sales representatives whose
name starts with A, and the cost of each item they have sold is greater than 10.
You can use the SUMIFS() function to find the total quantity.
For the Sales Rep column, you need to give the criteria as “A*” - meaning the name should start
with the letter “A”. For the Cost each column, the criteria should be “>10” - meaning the cost of
each item is greater than 10.
The result is 13.
33. Using the data given below, create a pivot table to find the total sales made by each sales
representative for each item. Display the sales as % of the grand total.
Select the entire table range, click on the Insert tab and choose PivotTable
Select the table range and the worksheet where you want to place the pivot table
Drag Sale total on to Values, and Sales Rep and Item on to Row Labels. It will give the sum of
sales made by each representative for every item they have sold.
Right-click on “Sum of Sale Total’ and expand Show Values As to select % of Grand Total.
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Using this table, let’s find the records for movies that were directed by Brad Bird.
Now, let’s filter the table for directors whose movies have an average duration greater than 115
minutes.
35. What is the difference between a WHERE clause and a HAVING clause in SQL?
Answer all of the given differences when this data analyst interview question is asked, and also
give out the syntax for each to prove your thorough knowledge to the interviewer.
WHERE HAVING
In the WHERE clause, the filter occurs before any HAVING is used to filter values from a
groupings are made. group.
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE condition
GROUP BY column_name(s)
HAVING condition
ORDER BY column_name(s);
36. Is the below SQL query correct? If not, how will you rectify it?
The query stated above is incorrect as we cannot use the alias name while filtering data using the
WHERE clause. It will throw an error.
The Union operator combines the output of two or more SELECT statements.
Syntax:
Let’s consider the following example, where there are two tables - Region 1 and Region 2.
Syntax:
The Except operator returns the uncommon records that are the results of 2 or more SELECT
statements.
Syntax:
A Subquery in SQL is a query within another query. It is also known as a nested query or an inner
query. Subqueries are used to enhance the data to be queried by the main query.
Below is an example of a subquery that returns the name, email id, and phone number of an
employee from Texas city.
FROM employee
WHERE emp_id IN (
SELECT emp_id
FROM employee
39. Using the product_price table, write an SQL query to find the record with the fourth-highest
market price.
Now, select the top one from the above result that is in ascending order of mkt_price.
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40. From the product_price table, write an SQL query to find the total and average market price
for each currency where the average market price is greater than 100, and the currency is in INR
or AUD.
The SQL query is as follows:
41. Using the product and sales order detail table, find the products with total units sold greater
than 1.5 million.
We can use an inner join to get records from both the tables. We’ll join the tables based on a
k l i P d tID
common key column, i.e., ProductID.
You must be prepared for this question thoroughly before your next data analyst interview. The
stored procedure is an SQL script that is used to run a task several times.
Let’s look at an example to create a stored procedure to find the sum of the first N natural
numbers' squares.
Output: Display the sum of the square for the first four natural numbers
43. Write an SQL stored procedure to find the total even number between two users given
numbers.
Here is the output to print all even numbers between 30 and 45.
Data joining can only be carried out when the Data blending is used when the data is from two
data comes from the same source. or more different sources.
LOD in Tableau stands for Level of Detail. It is an expression that is used to execute complex
queries involving many dimensions at the data sourcing level. Using LOD expression, you can find
duplicate values, synchronize chart axes and create bins on aggregated data.
46. Can you discuss the process of feature selection and its importance in data analysis?
Feature selection is the process of selecting a subset of relevant features from a larger set of
variables or predictors in a dataset. It aims to improve model performance, reduce overfitting,
enhance interpretability, and optimize computational efficiency. Here's an overview of the process
and its importance:
Extract: Extract is an image of the data that will be extracted from the data source and placed
into the Tableau repository. This image(snapshot) can be refreshed periodically, fully, or
incrementally.
Live: The live connection makes a direct connection to the data source. The data will be fetched
straight from tables. So, data is always up to date and consistent.
Joins in Tableau work similarly to the SQL join statement. Below are the types of joins that
Tableau supports:
Inner Join
A Gantt chart in Tableau depicts the progress of value over the period, i.e., it shows the duration
of events. It consists of bars along with the time axis. The Gantt chart is mostly used as a project
management tool where each bar is a measure of a task in the project.
Elevate Your Data Analytics Career in 2024
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50. Using the Sample Superstore dataset, create a view in Tableau to analyze the sales, profit,
and quantity sold across different subcategories of items present under each category.
Drag Category and Subcategory columns into Rows, and Sales on to Columns. It will result in a
horizontal bar chart.
Drag Profit on to Colour, and Quantity on to Label. Sort the Sales axis in descending order of
the sum of sales within each sub-category.
51. Create a dual-axis chart in Tableau to present Sales and Profit across different years using
the Sample Superstore dataset.
Drag the Order Date field from Dimensions on to Columns, and convert it into continuous
Month.
Drag Sales on to Rows, and Profits to the right corner of the view until you see a light green
rectangle.
Synchronize the right axis by right-clicking on the profit axis.
Under the Marks card, change SUM(Sales) to Bar and SUM(Profit) to Line and adjust the size.
52. Design a view in Tableau to show State-wise Sales and Profit using the Sample Superstore
dataset.
Drag the Country field on to the view section and expand it to see the States.
Drag the Sales field on to Size, and Profit on to Colour.
Increase the size of the bubbles, add a border, and halo color.
From the above map, it is clear that states like Washington, California, and New York have the
highest sales and profits. While Texas, Pennsylvania, and Ohio have good amounts of sales but
the least profits.
53. What is the difference between Treemaps and Heatmaps in Tableau?
Treemaps Heatmaps
54. Using the Sample Superstore dataset, display the top 5 and bottom 5 customers based on
their profit.
Drag Customer Name field on to Rows, and Profit on to Columns.
Give a name to the set and select the top tab to choose the top 5 customers by sum(profit)
Similarly, create a set for the bottom five customers by sum(profit)
Select both the sets, right-click to create a combined set. Give a name to the set and choose
All members in both sets.
Drag top and bottom customers set on to Filters, and Profit field on to Colour to get the desired
result.
Data Analyst Interview Questions On Python
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56. What are the different ways to create a data frame in Pandas?
By initializing a list
By initializing a dictionary
57. Write the Python code to create an employee’s data frame from the “emp.csv” file and
display the head and summary.
To create a DataFrame in Python, you need to import the Pandas library and use the read_csv
function to load the .csv file. Give the right location where the file name and its extension follow
the dataset.
58. How will you select the Department and Age columns from an Employee data frame?
You can use the column names to extract the desired columns.
60. Suppose there is an array that has values [0,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9]. How will you display the
following values from the array - [1,3,5,7,9]?
Since we only want the odd number from 0 to 9, you can perform the modulus operation and
check if the remainder is equal to 1.
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61. There are two arrays, ‘a’ and ‘b’. Stack the arrays a and b horizontally using the NumPy library
in Python.
You can either use the concatenate() or the hstack() function to stack the arrays.
Suppose there is an emp data frame that has information about a few employees. Let’s add an
Address column to that data frame.
64. From the below DataFrame, how will you find each column's unique values and subset the
data for Age<35 and Height>6?
To find the unique values and number of unique elements, use the unique() and nunique()
function.
Now, subset the data for Age<35 and Height>6.
65. Plot a sine graph using NumPy and Matplotlib library in Python.
66. Using the below Pandas data frame, find the company with the highest average sales. Derive
the summary statistics for the sales column and transpose the statistics.
Group the company column and use the mean function to find the average sales
Apply the transpose() function over the describe() method to transpose the statistics
So, those were the 65+ data analyst interview questions that can help you crack your next data
analyst interview and help you become a data analyst.
Conclusion
Now that you know the different data analyst interview questions that can be asked in an
interview, it is easier for you to crack for your coming interviews. Here, you looked at various data
analyst interview questions based on the difficulty levels. And we hope this article on data
analyst interview questions is useful to you.
On the other hand, if you wish to add another star to your resume before you step into your next
data analyst interview, enroll in Simplilearn’s Data Analyst Master’s program, and master data
analytics like a pro!
Unleash your potential with Simplilearn's Data Analytics Bootcamp. Master essential skills, tackle
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FAQs
To prepare for a data analyst interview, review key concepts like statistics, data analysis
methods, SQL, and Excel. Practice with real datasets and data visualization tools. Be ready to
discuss your experiences and how you approach problem-solving. Stay updated on industry
trends and emerging tools to demonstrate your enthusiasm for the role.
Data analyst interviews often include questions about handling missing data, challenges faced
during previous projects, and data visualization tool proficiency. You might also be asked about
analyzing A/B test results, creating data reports, and effectively collaborating with non-technical
team members.
Yes, data analyst interviews often include a coding component. You may be asked to
demonstrate your coding skills in SQL or Python to manipulate and analyze data effectively.
Preparing for coding exercises and practicing data-related challenges will help you succeed in
this part of the interview.
The level of stress in a data analyst role can vary depending on factors such as company culture,
project workload, and deadlines. While it can be demanding at times, many find the job rewarding
as they contribute to data-driven decision-making and problem-solving. Effective time
management, organization, and teamwork can help manage stress, fostering a healthier work-life
balance.
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Shruti M
Shruti is an engineer and a technophile. She works on several trending technologies. Her hobbies
include reading, dancing and learning new languages. Currently, she is learning the Ja…
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PMP, PMI, PMBOK, CAPM, PgMP, PfMP, ACP, PBA, RMP, SP, and OPM3 are registered marks of the Project Management Institute, Inc.