For many students graduating from college and professionals looking for their long-term career, the Business Analyst path is very inviting.

Many are drawn to the career because of what I like to call the Perfect Career Trifecta; financial stability, professional growth, and personal rewards. 

The biggest challenge to starting your career as a Business Analyst actually isn’t the amount of learning you need to do or working through the process to land your first job, but instead it is knowing where to start.

Due to the rapid growth of Business Analysis, there are many organizations out there vying to set the standards for the Business Analyst profession. While all of this information is great, it can be extremely confusing because you have different organizations pulling you in different directions.

That is the reason I created The BA Guide. Regardless of your professional background (or lack thereof for you recent graduates), The BA Guide is devoted to making a clear path for you to become a Business Analyst.

Here are five steps you can take to become a Business Analyst:

• STEP 1: Validate your Interest – For many of you, this step can be skipped, but if you are not convinced as to why you should explore a career as a Business Analyst, this is the place to start. 

• STEP 2: Learn the Fundamentals – The first key stop on this journey is getting you to learn the fundamentals of Business Analysis. You need to create a foundation of knowledge of what a Business Analyst does, the techniques they utilize, and terminology used. 

• STEP 3: Enhance your Knowledge – Once you have the basics down, it is time to dig deeper into some key areas. There is a laundry list of things you could enhance your knowledge with. These could be anything from visual modeling to software testing, to project management, and beyond. With the broad nature of potential learning, this is the second most common place for aspiring Business Analysts to get stuck. Instead of feeling overwhelmed, pick 2 or 3 topics that really interested you from the fundamentals and dig into those (click here to see potential topics). 

• STEP 4: Enter the Job Market – This is where your hard work pays off! You now have the knowledge necessary to shape your resume and begin applying for Business Analyst positions. You will now utilize what you learned to assist you in starting your career!

• STEP 5: Continue Learning – Your path does not simply end after landing your first job. Instead, continuing to push forward to learn new skills is extremely important to both stay relevant and increase the success of your projects.

I wish you nothing but success!

– Written by Jeremy Aschenbrenner, The BA Guide