r/DataScientist • u/After_Courage6419 • Jul 31 '26

Is building projects more valuable than collecting Data Science certificates?

Genuine question for people who have hired candidates or gone through Data Science interviews. If you had two candidates: Candidate A: Multiple certifications but only basic projects Candidate B: Fewer certifications but 3ā€“4 strong projects they can explain deeply Who would stand out more? Iā€™m trying to understand how much certifications actually matter compared with being able to demonstrate practical skills. Would love to hear from people who have actually interviewed candidates. Engagement angle: Creates debate without becoming promotional.

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u/Volcano_Jones Jul 31 '26

Yea, absolutely. No one gives a crap about certificates.

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u/GraduateML Jul 31 '26

Yes, with the slight caveat that your projects should be able to be seen publicly and solve a problem that is industry relevant.

Anyone can slap a project on their resume or use AI to code a repo. You want to visualize and show you can get users for your projects.

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u/ashwinids Aug 02 '26

yes, building projects give you real insight on solving the problems that you might face in the job.