Sparsh - Data Science

I’m Sparsh, I completed my MSc in Data Science from Queen Mary University of London in 2024. For my final project, I worked with Assentian Limited, where I focused on using AI and computer vision to track and assess construction progress in buildings. The project involved working with image and video data (CCTV footage) from construction sites, building models to analyse progress, and exploring how this could be automated to support real-world decision-making.

The project came through the university’s industry collaboration programme. Different companies shared problem statements, and this one stood out to me because it was very practical and something I hadn’t worked on before. After the project, I continued working with the company for around a year.

The biggest difference between working with a real organisation compared to a purely academic project was dealing with real data and real expectations. The data wasn’t clean like in assignments, so a lot of time went into understanding and preparing it. I also worked closely with the CTO, which helped me understand how business decisions are made and how to communicate technical work in a simple way.

The industry project definitely helped me when applying for jobs because I could talk about actual work instead of just theory. During my time there, I also got the chance to build data pipelines using Azure as part of a paid engagement. That experience made me more confident in interviews, helped me connect my skills to real job requirements, and also played a big part in me landing a Data Engineering role at Hastings Direct.

This is the closest you can get to real industry experience whilst still studying. It helped me understand how things actually work in a company and gave me practical exposure that you don’t get from classroom projects alone.