Can a commerce student become a data analyst in India?

A commerce student can become a data analyst in India, and hiring surveys suggest skills carry real weight. The World Economic Forum's Future of Jobs Report 2025 found that 30% of employers operating in India expect to remove degree requirements, and a NASSCOM and Indeed report from 19 May 2026 found 40% of employers prefer demonstrable AI skills or certifications over a degree.

Do analyst employers require an engineering degree?

WEF's survey found 30% of employers operating in India expecting to adopt skills-based hiring by removing degree requirements, against 19% globally. The rest do not expect to remove them, and the 30% is an expectation, not a statement that degrees no longer matter.

NASSCOM's report with Indeed found 40% of employers preferring demonstrable AI skills or certifications over a degree, and CXOToday's coverage of it says 32% weigh skills, certifications and degrees equally. The 40% concerns AI skills specifically, not data work in general, and the report page does not state the sample size. Read together, the two surveys describe employers moving towards skills evidence while degrees still count for many.

Tech-sector employers add a second signal. The NASSCOM-Deloitte compensation survey for 2025 lists strategic thinking and analytical skills among the top skills sought and says campus-hire proficiency is shifting towards advanced data analytics, AI/ML and DevOps. In practice, a commerce student should plan to finish the degree and treat projects and an internship as the evidence that separates one applicant from the next. A wider guide to becoming a data analyst in India covers the general route.

Can a student who took commerce without maths still become a data analyst?

The surveys list abilities rather than a maths requirement. In LinkedIn's Skills on the Rise 2026 for India, as reported by Storyboard18 on 24 February 2026, the data and analytics cluster covers querying, database optimisation, data storytelling and data-driven decision-making, and CXOToday's coverage of the NASSCOM and Indeed report in May 2026 lists analytical skills, Microsoft Excel and Python among internship skills in demand. In WEF's India profile, 79% of surveyed employers list analytical thinking as a core skill.

In practice, entry-level analyst work leans on applied statistics rather than advanced mathematics: averages and percentages, distributions, sampling and the reasoning behind a test of whether a change worked. A commerce student already handles ratios, margins and growth rates, so the gap is mostly statistics for decisions, which can be learnt after school. Data science and machine learning roles lean harder on mathematics, which is one reason the analyst role is the nearer target.

Coding follows the same pattern. SQL, the main language of analyst work, is a query language rather than a programming discipline in the software-engineering sense, and Python is the usual second step. A student with little appetite for deep coding is not ruled out on this evidence, but should expect to lean on the parts of analyst work that concern decisions: framing a question, reading a dashboard and explaining a result.

Why does business context from commerce count as an asset?

Commerce training supplies the context that makes an analysis worth reading. LinkedIn's Skills on the Rise 2026 for India names data-driven decision-making and data storytelling in its data and analytics cluster, and the NASSCOM-Deloitte survey lists strategic thinking beside analytical skills. Both describe the ability to connect a number to a business decision, which accounting, finance, economics and marketing coursework gives a head start on.

Sectors matter too. Naukri's September 2026 JobSpeak showed fresher hiring in banking and financial services up 14% and in oil and gas up 21%, against 1% for fresher hiring overall, and foundit's June 2026 snapshot listed data analysts and BI developers up 26% in banking and financial services GCCs. A finance-literate graduate who can also query data has an obvious pitch to those employers, though sector readings swing from month to month and do not count analyst roles alone.

How do commerce graduates get a first analyst role, and what does it pay?

Internships are one visible entry route. CXOToday's coverage of the NASSCOM and Indeed report says internship postings in India have risen 103% over the past three years, with analytical skills, Microsoft Excel and Python among the skills in demand. The article does not state the period basis, so the figure shows direction rather than a precise count, and an internship does not by itself lead to a job offer.

The wider entry market is tight. In June 2026, foundit's experience-level view showed demand for 0-3 years of experience down 6% after companies pulled back on bulk graduate intake, and Naukri's September 2026 reading for fresher hiring was up only 1%. NASSCOM with Indeed found 58% of employers citing low applicant volume as a key hiring challenge and 50% citing skills mismatch, which suggests that the scarce resource is applicants who match the role, not applicants as such. The broader picture is in a post on analyst demand by sector, GCC and city.

The table gathers the entry signals from employer surveys, trackers and pay data in one place.

On pay, AmbitionBox's 2026 page shows data analysts in India averaging Rs 4.3 lakh a year at 0-1 year of experience and Rs 5.5 lakh at 1-3 years, rising to Rs 7.6 lakh at 3-6 years. It draws on 1.5 lakh employee-reported salaries, so it reflects what respondents say they earn, not an offer or a promise.

Indeed India's page, updated 19 October 2026, puts the average base salary for data analysts at Rs 6,25,285 a year across all experience levels, from 526 salaries taken from job postings. A HAN Digital outlook, reported by CXOToday on 28 October 2026, says AI-ready skills carry a pay premium in data analytics roles too, without giving a range.

What is a sensible plan from Class 12 or BCom to a first analyst role?

A reasonable order, offered as a judgement and not a surveyed finding, starts with tools a commerce student already half-knows. Spreadsheets come first: pivot tables, lookups and clean layouts. SQL is next, because foundit's December 2025 early-career table lists SQL/Databases at an 18% share and Python at 22%, and LinkedIn's 2026 India data and analytics cluster, as reported by Storyboard18, names querying and database optimisation. Statistics for decisions and a BI tool follow, with Python after them, and the comparison of SQL and Python for analysts sets out the reasoning.

Take a hypothetical BCom student in Jaipur with an accounting background. Before the final year, the student builds a spreadsheet model on public company results; in the first internship, the student asks for reporting tasks and learns how the firm's data is stored. SQL queries on a public retail or bank dataset, a dashboard and a short written summary then go into a portfolio, and fifteen beginner project ideas can seed it.

For a Class 12 student choosing a degree, no single course qualifies a graduate for analyst work. WEF's and NASSCOM's surveys describe skills expectations rather than degree titles, and admission rules for any bachelor's programme in data science or analytics differ by institution and are set on that institution's own page. Whether a certification adds anything beyond projects is weighed in a post on whether an analytics certification is worth it.

Where a structured programme fits

Some candidates prefer a taught route. Analytics in the Age of AI is a live online programme by "Vishlesan i-Hub Foundation, IIT Patna", with Masai as its ed-tech and implementation partner and an optional campus immersion at IIT Patna. It covers SQL, Python, BI tools, applied machine learning, generative AI workflows and agentic analytics through hands-on projects and a capstone, and its modules include Business Problem Solving & Data Foundations and SQL & Working with Real Data.

Frequently asked questions

Can a student become a data analyst after Class 12 commerce?

Yes, through a degree and a skills build running in parallel. WEF's January 2025 survey found 30% of employers operating in India expect to drop degree requirements, so the other 70% do not expect to drop them. The practical route is to complete a degree such as BCom, learn spreadsheets, SQL and a BI tool alongside it, and add an internship or project that shows the work.

Can a commerce student pursue data science after BCom?

Admission rules differ by institution and are set on each institution's own page. On hiring, WEF's India profile projects 54% net growth to 2030 for data analysts and scientists as one group. Data science roles generally lean harder on statistics and programming, so many graduates start with analyst skills, as a comparison of analytics and AI/ML careers discusses.

Do data analysts need maths or deep coding?

Employer sources list applied skills first. In WEF's India profile, 79% of surveyed employers list analytical thinking as a core skill, and the NASSCOM-Deloitte compensation survey for 2025 puts strategic thinking and analytical skills among the top skills sought. SQL and some Python are the usual coding needs for analyst roles, and statistics for decisions matter more than advanced mathematics.

Which skills should a commerce graduate learn first?

Spreadsheets, then SQL, then a BI tool, with statistics for decisions alongside and Python after. CXOToday's coverage of a NASSCOM and Indeed report lists analytical skills, Microsoft Excel and Python among internship skills, and foundit's December 2025 table puts Python (22%), SQL/Databases (18%) and Data Analysis (10%) at the top for 0-3 years of experience.

Can a BCom graduate get an analyst job in banking and finance?

Naukri's September 2026 JobSpeak showed fresher hiring in banking and financial services up 14%, against 1% for fresher hiring overall, and foundit's June 2026 snapshot listed data analysts and BI developers up 26% in banking and financial services GCCs. Those readings point to openings, though sector readings swing month to month and do not count analyst roles alone.

Next step

The Analytics in the Age of AI, Vishlesan i-Hub IIT Patna page sets out the curriculum and how to apply.