Hi 

Im new to this forum. I am looking for some advice. 

I want to become a Junior Business Analyst. I have a degree in business Computing Systems and have experience in different fields but not in a BA role. I have recently started an internship in IT. 

I am interested in taking BA training courses to get my foot in the door. What is the best training course can I take to gain more insight in the Business analyst field. I also want to take a training course to show my passion and commitment to employers. 

Can someone advice me please. I would appriciate your help and support. I am struggling to get my foot in the door. I have friends who managed to get their foot in the door without taking any training courses.

Please advice. 

Hi Nas,

Many people get experience in BA-type skills without being in an official BA role within IT, so you may have some of those skills already too.  The main competency areas for a junior BA are probably requirements gathering and management, process modeling and data flow modeling, and facilitation. These are probably the main areas to buid your skills.

I agree that training isn't always necessary to get that first BA role. Getting your foot in the door is usually just finding and taking advantage of an opportunity that crops up. Some suggestions to help open this door are to look for ways to build the types of skills mentioned in your current job. For example, many companies have opportunities for employees to get involved in (or to start) internal projects - such as analyzing project or any type of administrative processes for potential improvements. If these types of internal projects are being done within your company, offer to get involved.  If they're not being done, talk to your management about starting one up - since the focus is on increasing company efficiency and effectiveness, it's usually not hard to get managers to agree.  This gives you the chance to do BA work in a role that lets you learn without the pressure of typical IT projects.

Another way to help open the door is to network with other BA's.  Get to know BAs in your company and see if you can find a mentor.  If there is a local chapter of the IIBA near you, that is also a great place to learn about the profession, and to meet BAs who are working in the field.  They often know of companies looking for junior BAs, and may be able to give you some job leads.

As Kimbo suggested, the Agile / SCRUM skillset is definitely growing in demand.  But you probably need the basic BA skillset first.  IIBA certifications (CBAP and CCBA) both require BA experience, so you probably would not yet have the qualifications for those.  But certification is a good longer-term goal.

Best of luck!  And the folks on this forum are always here to answer questions and give advice anytime you need.

Sandy