CareerHacker Data Analyst Mentorship

A 12-week mentorship that took people with no analytics background into entry-level data analyst roles. It ran from October 2021 to 2024. This page documents what it was and who came through it.

What it was

Ran
October 2021 – 2024
Format
12 weeks, part-time, online, roughly 10 hours per week
Taught
Excel, SQL, and Python — the three skills entry-level analyst roles actually screen for
Also covered
Portfolio projects, résumé and LinkedIn positioning, job search strategy, interview preparation
Price
$4,800, with payment plans
Taught by
Chris Shupe, directly

The design principle was deliberately narrow: teach the least necessary to get hired, then focus hard on actually getting hired. It was not a data science degree and did not try to be. Most people who came in had no technical background — one was working in a factory, another was a recent immigrant with no analytics experience at all.

Why it was retired

The job it prepared people for changed underneath it.

When the program started, the bottleneck for someone breaking into analytics was writing SQL well enough to be trusted with a query. That is no longer the bottleneck. AI writes competent SQL, and the scarce skill has shifted toward knowing which question to ask, understanding what the data actually represents, and being able to tell when an answer is wrong.

A curriculum built around the old bottleneck was going to age badly, and I would rather retire it honestly than keep selling it while the ground moves. The Excel, SQL and Python fundamentals still matter — you cannot check an AI's work without them — but they are no longer the whole job.

Who came through it

These are messages from people who went through the program, sent at the time — somewhere between 2021 and 2024. I haven't attached dates to them individually because I no longer have reliable records of when each arrived, and I'd rather say that than guess. Surnames and employer names are blacked out.

"So I got the job. Background went thru. And it's $80k+ a year."

Eric · first analyst role, no college degree
Message from Eric: he got the job after the final interview, background check cleared, $80k+ a year.

"Filling out all background and onboarding paperwork for my new job offer as junior data analyst."

Jobe · first data analyst role
Message from Jobe: completing onboarding paperwork for a new junior data analyst job offer.

"The position I was interviewing for has given me an offer, and I've accepted it. The role is as a product data specialist … under the terms of contract to hire."

Adam · moved into a data role
Message from Adam: accepted an offer as a product data specialist, contract to hire.

"I was called by my recruiter letting me know that they want to offer me the position for the interview I just had Friday … They offered me $35.09/hr. 40 hours a week. Hybrid role."

Efrain · entry-level analyst role
Message from Efrain: offered an entry-level analyst position at $35.09 per hour, 40 hours a week, hybrid.

"Your insights, advice, and unwavering belief in my potential have been instrumental in helping me navigate the challenges of changing career directions and ultimately securing a job that not only aligns with my passions but also provides the financial stability I've long aspired to achieve."

Alonso · career change into analytics
Email from Alonso thanking Chris for mentorship that helped him change careers and secure a job.

"I finally got the kind of job I have been looking for … I am very excited and want to thank you for the class. I think it was worth it."

A student who asked not to be publicly identified ·

"I sincerely commend and appreciate you for pioneering such a great career-changing program. Honestly, you particularly gave many the confidence that acquiring this vital data-related skills set is do-able — no matter a person's background."

Michael · sent when the program wound down

"Chris Shupe's bootcamp helped me to identify the gaps and the steps needed to move towards my dream job."

John · moved into a data-focused group at his existing employer

About these messages. Every message above is from someone who went through this retired program. None relate to any program I currently offer, and nobody received anything in exchange for what they wrote.

These are individual results. They are not a guarantee, an average, or a projection of what anyone else would experience. Plenty of people who enrolled did not land a role in the timeframe they hoped for, and outcomes depended heavily on the work each person put in and on the job market at the time. I did not track completion or placement rates systematically while the program was running, which in hindsight I should have.

Where the material is now

The full CareerHacker curriculum still exists. It is included at no additional charge inside AI Data Analyst Blueprint, my current program, for anyone who needs the human-side fundamentals before layering AI on top. It is no longer sold separately at any price.

If you paid for CareerHacker while it was running, you keep your access. Nothing changes for you. If you have lost your login, get in touch and I will sort it out.

What I am doing now

I teach analysts and career-changers to build agentic AI systems for data work — designing, operating and quality-controlling AI that does analysis, rather than doing every step by hand.

The complete method is published free, in full, with working templates: How to Build a Fully Automated AI Data Analyst. No email required. Read it, build it yourself, and decide from there whether working through it with a group is worth anything to you.