Here are some stories of
Surfalytics mentees

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Kseniia L.

Junior Analytics Engineer, Canada

Nov 4, 2024

I wanted to take a moment to express my gratitude and share my excitement. I've received an offer for the position of Junior Analytics Engineer and I can hardly believe it. For me, this is the best possible start — something I couldn't have even imagined! I had been seeking a Data Analyst position in Canada, and job hunting felt like a nightmare at times. The entire process took six months, during which I received four offers — three didn't align with my goals. That was incredibly challenging, especially being in a new country. Many people suggested that if I wasn't prepared to take any opportunity, North America might not be the place for me. But thanks to Dmitry, I found exactly what I was looking for. He always told me it was all about mindset, and now I completely agree. No matter who you are — if you work hard, keep learning, and surround yourself with people who encourage you to aim higher, you'll make it.

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Kirill Roginskii

Data Engineer at Best Buy Canada

Jan 12, 2023

Before 2022, I spent a decade working for one of the top three banks in Russia, leading a team of three departments with around 50 people. I arrived in Vancouver in March 2022 and immediately started applying for Data Engineering roles. My biggest gap was hands-on experience with cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure). I tried various courses — AWS, Microsoft, Coursera, Udemy — but none were right. Either too superficial or too complex. Then I came across the Surfalytics course. It was exactly what I needed: a balanced mix of theory and hands-on practice. After two weeks of dedicated effort, I gained a solid understanding of cloud technology and data solution architecture. By May 1st 2022, I had secured my first full-time remote position. Huge thanks to the creators of Surfalytics — I couldn't have done it without their support!

After relocating to Canada, I decided to change careers from risk analytics after 10 years in the field. I applied to 220 data analyst jobs, went through 16 interviews, but kept getting rejections. I then set my sights on data engineering. With the support of the data community — especially Dmitry, who guided me on what tools to learn and how to improve my resume — I began to feel more confident. Within three months, I applied to 45 jobs, attended 8 interviews, and finally landed an offer. My experience taught me that job searching is a marathon — persistence and support from the right people make all the difference.

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Aizhan Askarbayeva

BI Analyst at Global Benefits Group

Oct 30, 2024

Upon graduating, I joined a U.S. company as a BI Analyst. In December 2023 I had to leave when my work permit expired and the company declared bankruptcy. I was unemployed and felt lost. Finding the Surfalytics community was a game-changer. I felt a sense of community with like-minded professionals. When Dmitry launched the English-speaking branch, I found mock interviews, live projects, and theme-based channels that were invaluable. Practicing SQL interviews helped me handle stress during live coding tasks. The weekly updates and job-search progress shared by other members kept me motivated and focused. In Surfalytics, any question finds an answer, and the support you receive fosters both personal and professional growth. I'm grateful to Dmitry and the community for helping me advance my career in ways I hadn't imagined!

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Max Zdor

Product Manager / Business Analyst

Oct 24, 2024

When I moved to Canada, I initially worked in marketing at an EdTech company while learning English. After a year, I decided to transition into data analytics within a Canadian IT company. It was a challenging time with savings slowly depleting and job opportunities scarce. The bright spot was Surfalytics. It's an amazing community of positive, driven people. They say you should aim to be in a room where you feel like the least knowledgeable one — that's exactly how I felt during our analyst and engineer meetups. Surfalytics helped me build connections, get strong references, and improve my resume and skills. Having a supportive network, where I could always turn for advice, feedback, or training, was invaluable. Being part of this community made a significant difference in my job search journey.

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Maksym I.

Localization Quality Analyst at EA

Oct 30, 2024

I genuinely love sharing cool, useful, and most importantly free educational stuff. Best thing is, you can totally master most of the things without spending a dime. I know what it's like not being able to afford a course or a bootcamp. Today it's SurfalyticsTV by Dmitry Anoshin. It's honestly baffling to me why it only has 1k subs given the quality and quantity of the content. I would highly recommend checking it all out — the mock interviews, the first two modules of the free course, and the shorts.

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Ivan Alekseev

Systems Analyst → Data role

Oct 19, 2023

I discovered Surfalytics and quickly became hooked. Right from the start, one of the most valuable takeaways was understanding the role of analytics and data as a whole. Some of the webinars were incredibly engaging and impactful! A while later, I landed my first job as a systems analyst working on product development in retail. After seven months of experience and self-learning (~10 hours per week), I received an offer with a salary approximately 2.5× higher. Interestingly, I wasn't actively looking to change jobs, but networking opened up an opportunity. With skills in SQL and Tableau/Power BI, finding a job can be faster than Thanos snapping his fingers. Add Python to the mix and opportunities will come looking for you! To anyone starting out: stay determined and never give up. Success will follow.

Huge thanks to the Surfalytics team! Though I got my first rejection as a Data Engineer today, I'm optimistic — it feels like the start of my journey after making it through two interview stages. Surfalytics provides structured, unique insights across technologies. Before this, I worked as an SEO specialist, marketing analyst, and project manager. While I used tools like BigQuery, I lacked proper data management practices. I now work as an Analytics Engineer, managing everything from ELT scripts in Python to Power BI and dbt. The course helped me connect the dots, turning scattered knowledge into a clear picture. I'm currently junior-to-mid-level but feel ready to grow further.

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Alexey Dmitriev

Data Analyst at Dodo Brands

Jan 20, 2022

I transitioned from sales to data analytics and recently received a Data Engineer offer from X5 while continuing my studies. The journey took 9–12 months: the first few were slow and filled with doubt, but the last 5 months were intense and focused. Surfalytics free YouTube content is an amazing resource to understand the roles of analysts, data scientists, and engineers. The structured program starts with the basics. The first three modules helped me clarify my direction. The webinars were a highlight — engaging speakers explained complex topics in simple terms. After 1.5 years, I now earn more than I did with 5 years of experience in sales. I have a clear vision of my career path.

I'd like to thank Dmitry for the course! It played a huge role in helping me land an offer as an ETL developer at a major bank. My main stack now includes Informatica, Oracle, Python, and Power BI. Before I had 6 months of experience in tech support. As Dmitry advised, I went through about 15 interviews, which helped me understand the typical questions. Despite my background as a physical education teacher, interviewers were impressed that I understood DWH architecture and could articulate the value of Data Engineers — thanks to the course! A special thanks to Anatoly for the SQL course — the explanation of window functions was the best I've seen!

Surfalytics course gave me the technical skills I needed to work as a Data Engineer in the European market. I previously worked as a systems analyst on financial projects but lacked hands-on experience with modern ETL tools. After moving to Finland, I realized that working as a BI analyst required fluency in the local language, while developers didn't face this barrier. Surfalytics helped me quickly improve my skills in ETL tools and cloud technologies. Every company I've encountered here has already completed cloud migration. I highly recommend this course to anyone looking to master modern tools and work on projects with European companies.

When I started the SQL for Beginners course on Surfalytics, I already had some SQL experience. Big thanks to Anatoly for such a structured and complete SQL course — strong focus on practical exercises, all clearly explained! Beyond DML and DDL operations, the course covered CTEs, window functions, and even dived under the hood of databases. Funny story: in a technical interview for a new job, I had to use window functions for the first time based solely on what I'd learned from Anatoly's course — and I nailed it! Now I've started the Data Engineering course. I made it a priority because I wanted a comprehensive view of the field — and that's exactly what it's providing.

I was a telecom engineer and worked in that field before taking a break for maternity leave. I didn't want to return to my previous job — I'd always wanted to become an analyst but had no relevant experience or education. While on leave, I started the Surfalytics course. Although the first three modules were challenging and required extra research, I kept going, applied for jobs, and got some test assignments. Finally, I landed a junior analyst role at a financial reporting company! My starting salary was modest, but over time I've been promoted and even moved into a bank position. Thanks to Dmitry for such a wonderful and accessible course!

It's been almost a month since I started my new job, and I'm really enjoying it. The role involves data processing and storage, which is exactly what I wanted. The salary is great too! When I joined Surfalytics I barely knew anything about SQL beyond a basic SELECT query. Terms like data warehouse and Kimball were completely foreign to me. But thanks to clear explanations, I finally understood the big picture — how everything works together in data teams. Advice: decide early whether you want BI, data engineering, analytics, or data science and stick with it. Start applying as soon as possible. Create a GitHub or Tableau Public portfolio. Thanks again — don't give up!

In June 2020, I discovered Surfalytics, and it became a game-changer for me. Early on I realized the importance of data analytics, and some webinars were incredibly useful. After some time, I landed a job as a systems analyst in retail product development. With 7 months of experience and self-study (~10 hours a week), I secured a new offer with a salary about 2.5× higher. The Surfalytics SQL course — one of the best out there — helped refine my skills. Networking played a big role too — I wasn't even planning to change jobs, but the opportunity found me. For anyone starting out: with SQL and Tableau or Power BI you can land a job quickly. Add Python and jobs will come to you!

I worked in internet marketing for a long time, but eventually realized it was time for a change. Data analytics had always intrigued me. I stumbled upon this course and found it invaluable. It clarified the roles in the field, the skills needed, and helped me choose my direction. I started with web analytics, closely related to my previous field, while also learning Python, SQL, Tableau, and ETL processes. These skills gave me an edge during interviews — employers were more interested in them than in tools like Google Analytics or GTM. Advice: create a GitHub and upload everything — course practices, SQL and Python exercises, even with errors. Include the link in your resume. Ask detailed questions during interviews to avoid disorganized companies.