Alex @ Dubit

About the placement

Working at Dubit was the first time I had ever worked on a longitudinal survey. This opportunity rarely pops up for data analysts due to limited funding and time. However, through the SMI PlaceME scheme, I was able to do so. I worked within the research department of Dubit, mainly focusing on Dubit Trends, which is their longitudinal survey which collects data biannually. This focused on how children consume media, potential implications, worries for parents, and how new technology is changing how children interact with media. They collected data from across the globe, catering to the needs of their clients.

I mostly helped to visualise their exhaustive data, which was used to help companies understand their markets and ultimately focus their products and services into a more fine-tuned version. It was also used to provide a pilot run for new products to gauge interest and decide whether to further invest.

My experience with Dubit, a private company, was very different compared to university research"

Alex

Dubit intern

Deep dive project

During my time at Dubit, I also worked on a deep dive project. Within the survey are many areas which are questioned. I focused on one particular set of questions and used their many waves of data through multiple countries in order to find correlations and disparities. I found how different countries have different rates of adoption of new technology, and how between countries, demographics can alter the reception of media massively.

For example, when it comes to adopting new technology, central Europe cares very little about technology (the early majority) compared to the UK (early adopters) and even more so the Americans (innovators). This project was used to provide supplementary quantitative analysis to other projects and help reinforce Dubit’s findings.

Reflecting on the placement

My experience with Dubit, a private company, was very different compared to university research. Academic research has mostly been one where I took the lead in all aspects, with direction from supervisors. Private research heavily relies on teamwork to meet tight deadlines, where coordination is the key to success. This is the first time I have ever been treated this way in the workplace.

Adam, my supervisor, was present during the beginning in order to guide me and answer questions but also placed trust in me once I had got to grips with the work required of me. It was the first time I had been held accountable in a work office environment and contributed to the output of a company. This was a perfect learning curve to ready me for a world beyond university.