Your 90-Day Plan: Learning Roadmap, Job Search Strategy and Growing in Your First Role
Turn this handbook into a job. A week-by-week 90-day study and project plan for analyst, data science and GenAI tracks, a weekly routine, a job-search funnel with referrals and outreach messages, salary research and negotiation basics, and habits that help you grow in the first 6 months on the job.
- Follow a realistic 90-day roadmap with weekly goals
- Run a job-search funnel with referrals and targeted applications
- Prepare for salary discussions with market data
- Build habits for success in the first months of a data role
90-day roadmap
| Weeks | Analyst track | Data science / ML track | GenAI track |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1–2 | Excel lessons 1–6 | Python 1–10 | Python 1–12 |
| 3–4 | Excel 7–12 + SQL 1–5 | Python 15–22 (NumPy, pandas, EDA) | Python 15–19, 23–24 (APIs) |
| 5–6 | SQL 6–15 + SQL case study | Stats ML 1–6 (statistics, A/B) | GenAI 1–4 (LLMs, prompts, APIs, embeddings) |
| 7–8 | Power BI 1–6 + dashboard project | ML 7–15 (workflow, regression, metrics, CV) | GenAI 5–8 (RAG, tools, agents, MCP) |
| 9–10 | Python 1–16, 20–22 | ML 16–25 + one capstone | GenAI 9–12 + capstone app |
| 11–12 | AI analytics 1–4, portfolio polish | ML 26–28, portfolio polish | Portfolio, deployment, write-ups |
| 13 | Interview prep (Career 2) and applications | Interview prep (Career 3) | Interview prep (Career 3) |
Job-search funnel
| Stage | Target per week | Tips |
|---|---|---|
| Research companies and roles | 15 | Match your projects to their domain |
| Referral / recruiter outreach | 10 | Personalised messages; alumni and community contacts |
| Applications | 10–15 | Tailor resume keywords; apply within 3 days of posting |
| Screens and tests | 2–4 | Track results; review mistakes |
| Interviews | 1–3 | Prepare company-specific cases |
Referral message template:
Hi <Name>, I'm a data analyst (SQL, Power BI, Python) who built <project link> on <domain>.
I saw the <role> opening at <company> (job id). Could you refer me or share what the team values most?
Happy to send my one-page resume. Thank you!Track everything in a simple sheet: company, role, date, source, status, next step, notes.
Salary and offers
Research ranges on AmbitionBox, Glassdoor, LinkedIn Salary and peers for your city and experience. Ask for the full CTC breakdown (fixed, variable, joining bonus, benefits), negotiate on evidence (skills, competing offers, market data), and compare learning opportunities, team quality and growth, not only salary.
First 90 days in the job
- Learn the business: products, customers, key metrics and their definitions.
- Find the data: sources, owners, known quality issues; document as you go.
- Deliver a small, useful win in the first month.
- Communicate: weekly updates, clear charts with insight titles, assumptions stated.
- Automate repetitive reports; share reusable SQL and notebooks.
- Keep learning: one new skill per quarter (dbt, cloud, experimentation, GenAI).
- Follow the 90-day roadmap with a weekly routine of learn, build, share, practise and apply.
- Run the job search as a funnel with referrals, tailored applications and tracking.
- Negotiate with market data and evaluate the whole offer.
- In the new role, learn the business, deliver early wins, communicate clearly and keep learning.
1. What should each week of the plan produce?
2. Which outreach is most effective?
3. What matters when comparing offers?
Write your personal 13-week plan with weekly goals, choose your capstone, create your job-tracker sheet, and send three referral messages this week.
Show solution
A good plan names the lessons, the project deliverable and the job-search target for every week, with time blocked in your calendar.
Practise more online
Free, trusted places to test yourself on this topic. Links open the original site in a new tab.