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Data Analyst

Stable

Technology

Turns data into decisions across banking, telco, retail and government. A common pivot from many degree backgrounds.

Data ScienceComputer ScienceBusiness

Picture the job

Where you'd usually workA data and analysis desk

  • Mostly indoors
  • Sitting for most of the day
  • Rarely dealing with the public
  • Regular working hours

An illustration of a typical workplace, not a photo. The work-style notes come from US O*NET data, so read them as a guide.

Pay in the private market

Monthly pay from fresh grad to mid-career, from the salary guide cited on this page.

Entry

Private
RM3,200 – RM4,800

Mid-career

Private
RM6,000 – RM10,000

Government pay isn't shown: we haven't yet sourced the SSPA civil-service salary tables, and we won't estimate them.

Job demand outlook

Stable

Steady, reliable demand: a consistent number of openings.

Your readiness

How your current SPM subjects line up with this career.

Add your SPM grades to see how ready you are for this career.

Add my grades

How far is this from you?

Roughly how much preparation this job usually takes. In Malaysia your UPU route and the programme's syarat still decide entry, so treat this as a guide, not a gate.

  1. 1

    Entry straight after SPM

  2. 2

    SPM + sijil / short TVET course

  3. 3

    Diploma / TVET (sijil–diploma)

  4. Typical entry

    Degree (ijazah sarjana muda)

  5. 5

    Postgrad (sarjana / PhD) or professional route

Typical educationBachelor's degree
The full route to this careerThe steps from school, UPU programmes and sourced costs, read against your answers.

How to get here

Post-SPM pathways with programmes in this career's fields. Tap one to see real programmes and entry requirements.

Asasi / Foundation

One-year runway into a specific university: public via UPU or private direct entry.

12 months

Diploma

Skill-first qualification. Work after, or enter degree Year 2. Polytechnics keep it affordable.

2.5–3 years
Compare routes against your results and interests

Programmes that lead here

Programmes from the official UPU (KPT) and MQA catalogues whose field of study typically leads to this career. Matched by field, not a job guarantee.

Search the programme catalogue

Check what you may qualify for

Enter your SPM grades and see which routes and programmes you may qualify for. An estimate to plan with, not an offer.

Check my eligibility Not sure yet? Take the quiz

Quick answers

How do you become a Data Analyst in Malaysia?

Routes after SPM that lead here include Asasi / Foundation and Diploma.

What should I study to become a Data Analyst?

Related fields of study: Data Science, Computer Science and Business. SPM subjects that help most: Computer Science / ICT, Electrical & Electronic Eng. Studies, Additional Mathematics and Mathematics.

How much does a Data Analyst earn in Malaysia?

Published figures put starting pay at RM3,200 – RM4,800 a month, and RM6,000 – RM10,000 with experience (source: JobStreet Salary Guide, Jan 2026).

Biotechnology & STEM · Career guide

Data Analyst

Analyses data to find patterns and help people understand decisions.

Work overview based on O*NET occupation sources; Malaysian study examples and context are linked below. Actual requirements depend on the programme and post.

What does the work involve?
  • Organise and examine data.
  • Identify patterns and relationships.
  • Explain findings through reports or visualisations.
O*NET — Business Intelligence Analysts (work overview; US occupation data) ↗
Work settings and skills

Analytical work in organisations or projects; application areas depend on the employer.

  • Reading Comprehension
  • Active Listening
  • Speaking
O*NET — Business Intelligence Analysts (work overview; US occupation data) ↗
Study areas and planning after SPM

Data analytics, statistics, computer science or a related quantitative field.

Planning example: SPM → suitable pre-university or diploma → computing or quantitative study → projects, industrial training and relevant applications. Check each programme's requirements.

UM's curriculum covers software requirements, design and quality; UTM also lists computing and data-engineering programmes.

These are study areas to explore, not verified admission rules for every programme. Check special requirements, recognition and curriculum directly with the institution.

Further study and professional checks

Choose further study according to the area you want to deepen and the post's requirements. Compare coursework and research modes and read the university's admission criteria.

Check the actual vacancy before treating a qualification as sufficient. Study or training does not guarantee admission or employment.

Sources and checked date

Checked: 2026-11-10

What you'd do all day

The tasks that matter most in this job, most important first.

  1. 1Generate standard or custom reports summarizing business, financial, or economic data for review by executives, managers, clients, and other stakeholders.
  2. 2Maintain or update business intelligence tools, databases, dashboards, systems, or methods.
  3. 3Manage timely flow of business intelligence information to users.
  4. 4Provide technical support for existing reports, dashboards, or other tools.
  5. 5Identify and analyze industry or geographic trends with business strategy implications.
  6. 6Document specifications for business intelligence or information technology reports, dashboards, or other outputs.
  7. 7Create business intelligence tools or systems, including design of related databases, spreadsheets, or outputs.
  8. 8Collect business intelligence data from available industry reports, public information, field reports, or purchased sources.
  9. 9Disseminate information regarding tools, reports, or metadata enhancements.
  10. 10Conduct or coordinate tests to ensure that intelligence is consistent with defined needs.
  11. 11Synthesize current business intelligence or trend data to support recommendations for action.
  12. 12Analyze competitive market strategies through analysis of related product, market, or share trends.
  13. 13Identify or monitor current and potential customers, using business intelligence tools.
  14. 14Communicate with customers, competitors, suppliers, professional organizations, or others to stay abreast of industry or business trends.
  15. 15Maintain library of model documents, templates, or other reusable knowledge assets.
  16. 16Create or review technical design documentation to ensure the accurate development of reporting solutions.
  17. 17Analyze technology trends to identify markets for future product development or to improve sales of existing products.

Also known as

What this job is called on JobStreet, LinkedIn and in job ads. Search these too.

  • BI Analyst
  • EDI Analyst
  • Data Analyst
  • BI Consultant
  • BI Specialist
  • BI Coordinator
  • Reports Analyst
  • Business Analyst
  • Reporting Analyst
  • Business Consultant

Subjects that matter here

The SPM subjects worth your effort for this career, with the reason for each.

Computer Science / ICTDraws directly on Computers and Electronics — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
Electrical & Electronic Eng. StudiesDraws directly on Computers and Electronics — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
Additional MathematicsDraws directly on Mathematics — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
MathematicsDraws directly on Mathematics — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
EnglishDraws directly on English Language — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).

What you'd need to know

The subject areas this job leans on most, and the SPM subjects that build them.

  • Computers and Electronics86%

    Computer Science / ICTElectrical & Electronic Eng. Studies

  • Mathematics76%

    Additional MathematicsMathematics

  • English Language75%

    English

  • Administration and Management63%

    BusinessEconomics

  • Customer and Personal Service62%
  • Economics and Accounting60%

    Principles of AccountingEconomics

Skills to build

Problem-solvingSelf-learningAttention to detail

Tools you'd use

Software and equipment that show up in this job, worth learning early.

Where to learn these, free

Scholarships & funding

What the work feels like

Day-to-day working conditions, so you can tell whether the job suits how you like to work.

  • Face-to-face discussionsOften
  • Dealing with customers or the publicNot at all
  • Indoors, air-conditionedEvery day
  • Outdoors, in all weatherAlmost never
  • Noisy environmentAlmost never
  • Time spent sittingAlmost all the time
  • Time spent standingA little
  • Time walking or movingAlmost none

AI and demand for this job

A few real, dated data points, not a single score. AI making some tasks faster usually means a job changes, not that it disappears.

21%

Share of everyday tasks today's AI can already help with (2023)

This estimate is from 2023, already out of date, since AI moves fast. Treat it as a rough, aging starting point, not the current picture.

0.56%

Of Malaysian Claude conversations, about this kind of work

Measures how much people use Claude for this work, not how many Malaysians do this job, and more AI use can mean people relying on it, not that it's replacing them.

Growing role in the US

US Bureau of Labor Statistics data, not Malaysian. Shown because it's the only forward-looking demand estimate we have for this job.

On Malaysia's official shortage list

TalentCorp and ILMIA's Critical Occupations List, evidence of a real hiring shortage in Malaysia right now.

Data Professionals · Shortage indicators met: INSUFFICIENT DATA

What beginner adverts asked for

We read 120 internship and fresh-graduate adverts in related fields (August 2026). A small sample from one job site, not every vacancy.

90 of 120 were internships

Allowance or pay, when stated

RM800 – RM2,500

57 of 120 adverts printed an amount: usually between RM800 and RM2,500 a month. Many print none.

Minimum CGPA asked

2.00 to 3.50

Stated in 13 adverts. Others did not state one.

Languages named

Bahasa Malaysia, Mandarin

An empty line means the adverts did not say, not that employers have no requirement. Check each employer's own advert before you plan around it.

Related careers

If this interests you, these are worth a look too.

About this information

This describes what the job involves. Pay, demand and entry routes differ in Malaysia, so check the Pathways and Programmes pages for local requirements.

O*NET occupation: Business Intelligence Analysts

Source: JobStreet Salary Guide · as of Jan 2026

Check the salary figures yourself:JobStreet

Job responsibilities, knowledge areas and work context from O*NET 30.3, US Department of Labor, used under CC BY 4.0. onetcenter.org