Research Analyst Online Courses & Certifications

A research analyst is a professional who does research, analysis, interpretation and prepares investigative reports. Research analysts are analytical and quantitative by profession. Those who plan to build a career as a research analyst must be trained in accounting, excel and financial analysis. 

Those who plan on going into research analysis can opt for online courses that can give a boost to their career. These courses are taught by experts who have experience in the field of research for a number of years. 

Popular Research Analyst Positions

Almost all industries require the assistance of a research analyst. There are some of the popular positions for research analysts:

1. Financial Analyst 

A financial analyst performs financial forecasting, analyses financial data and also creates financial models. Based on the reports of financial analysts, companies can take better decisions to improve their financial performance of a company. 

These professionals create reports based on past results and variance analysis. Based on their research, they provide trend analysis and forecasts. They also recommend actions for optimizations.  

Educational qualification: A financial analyst must have one of the following educational qualifications:

1. Bachelor's in either accounting, economics or finance
2. Master's degree in Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA)
3. FINRA license

The following skill sets are important for financial analysts:

1. Investment analysis
2. Financial modelling techniques 
3. Advance knowledge of Excel

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Market Research Analyst:

These professionals assess the preferences of consumers. According to their research, they guide organizations in developing and marketing their products. There are different responsibilities of a market research analyst. These include the following:

1. Performing surveys, questions and opinion polls to collect data.
2. Analysing the collected data through statistical software. 
3. Interpreting the data through statistical reports.
4. Presenting findings through charts and graphs

Educational qualification: Those who plan to become market research analysts should have a bachelor's degree in one of the following:

1. Marketing 
2. Market research
3. Statistics
4. Computer science
5. Mathematics
6. Social sciences
7. Business administration

Operations Research Analyst

Operation research analysts help in solving complex issues through mathematical and analytical methods. These professionals interpret data to solve business-related problems so that it can be operated more efficiently. There are different responsibilities of an operation analyst. These include:

1. Researching topics for business development
2. Identifying problems in business operations
3. Developing plans and implementing solutions
4. Tracking relevant metrics and writing reports on data analysis
5. Evaluating the implementing strategies for their effectiveness

Educational qualification: You can hold a degree in quantitative subjects such as analytics, mathematics, computer science and industrial engineering. These professionals can have skills related to Psychology, Engineering and Statistics.

Financial and insurance companies and government organizations hire such professionals.

4. Economic Research analyst

An economic research analyst performs research to deal with production and distribution-related economic problems. These professionals supervise research projects and offer litigation support through reports and testimony. JPMorgan Chase & Co, Goldman Sachs, Analysis Group, Milliman and Zillow are some of the top recruiters for this profile. 

Educational qualification: These professionals must have skills related to statistics, analytics and research. 

Those who plan to pursue this profession can have an undergraduate degree in economics, business and finance. Some employers prefer a postgraduate degree in this field. 

Equity Research Analyst

These professionals work on reports, projections and recommendations on stocks of companies. These analysts monitor the market data to work on their research. These professionals work for both buy-side and sell-side firms in the securities industry. 

An equity analyst who works in the buy-side firm offers recommendations to the investment managers and oversees investment portfolios. They also decide on securities that should be held. 

If such analysts work for sell-side firms, they develop reports and recommendations for sales agents in the firm. They use the information to sell investments to clients. 

Educational qualification: Those who have a bachelor's degree in accounting, economics, finance and business administration can plan for a career in this field. Those who have quantitative degrees such as mathematics, engineering and statistics can also go into this field.

In terms of certifications, those who have done CFA or have a license from FINRA can plan further in this profession.

Companies That Hire Research Analysts

There are different companies that require research assistants:

1. Banking and insurance companies
2. Research departments
3. Marketing agencies
4. Pharmaceutical companies
5. Manufacturing companies