SAS UKI BLOGS
Melissa Torgbi
Deciding on a career path and role can be difficult. So, we thought we’d make it slightly easier by giving you an insight into what it’s really like to work at SAS. But don’t just take it from us, we’ll let our lovely employees fill in the important info… but we can’t promise they won’t be biased. Curiosity is at the core of our company so if you have any questions keep reading to find out what #SASlife is all about.
Melissa Torgbi - Data Scientist at SAS UKI
Melissa joined SAS in September 2019 as part of a graduate apprenticeship programme after graduating from University with an Electronic Engineering degree. Melissa is committed to helping customers solve business problems using Machine Learning and AI. She works across multiple sectors and has a particular interest in Natural Language Processing and Text Analytics
Melissa is a member of the data science team in customer Advisory at SAS UKI. One of her favourite things about her role is the variety.
I get to work across multiple different industries in all areas of data, analytics and AI. I do however have a soft spot for Natural Language Processing and Responsible AI.
A fun project that Melissa worked on as part of her apprenticeship involved placing sensors on the onsite beehives we have in our Marlow offices. The sensors were used to collect data about the honeybee colonies and SAS’ Analytics tools were used to process and visualise the data.
“One of the best things about working at SAS is the people. I get to work in a great team and it is evident that people are a priority for SAS. Diversity, equity and Inclusion (DEI) is something that is close to my heart. In my spare time, I work with the Women in Data Podcast team and I am an Ambassador for Women in Data Science London. At SAS I am a member of the Black Initiative Group (BIG) Leadership council, one of SAS’ many Employee Inclusion Groups (EIGs).”
For Melissa, at its core, Data Science is a way of solving problems using data. That could be through adding value to companies by helping them make better business decisions, supporting social change using data for good, or even figuring out what TV show to watch next. The realm of data science is seemingly exponential in its growth and application. A lot of opportunities are becoming available, putting you at the heart of any company’s decision-making process.
“My knowledge of data science was not very apparent when I was younger. However, my ambition to solve problems and change the world around me was. As I got older, I decided that I wanted to make a positive difference in the world using technology – sounds cheesy, I know but it’s true! I decided to study electronic engineering at university, and during my final year I ended up taking a computer science module called The Foundations of Machine Learning. This opened my eyes to the power of machine learning algorithms and their range of potential applications.”
It was a combination of this module and an electronics module on signal and image processing that inspired Melissa to explore computer vision for her third-year project. At the end of that year, Melissa graduated with a bachelor’s degree and started as a Data Scientist at SAS UK & Ireland.
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