von Jemima G.
Statista is a global statistics platform based in Hamburg, that gathers statistics from thousands of sources, packages them into charts, and publishes short analyses in several languages. Since January 2024 I’ve been part of its Data and Research team as a working student. My title, writing research assistant, sums up the job: I help lead researchers finish their projects and write new articles for the platform. I work about twenty hours a week, mostly from home, so I can freely choose my working hours between my KSM classes. When I want face-to-face time I book a desk in the office and catch up with the team.
Monday starts with a short video call where the researchers set priorities and hand out tasks with firm deadlines. If I update an existing piece, I first check earlier reports and confirm that every figure is still current. Fresh data means fresh visuals, so I redo the graph and rewrite the short text that explains the trend. When the team wants a new topic, one of the lead researchers will work with me, and we will look for angles that fit the Statista audience, gather solid sources, select the topic wanted and, once we have everything in place, turn the numbers into a clean graphic with a clear description.
Most of our day-to-day talk happens in English because the team is international. I switch to German mainly when dealing with human resources, and Spanish comes in whenever a Latin-American data set lands on my desk. The platform publishes in all three languages (among many), and I’m trusted to handle content in each one, under the researcher who’s leading the project that week.
Deadlines matter. I break each assignment into smaller steps, set checkpoints, and flag problems early if a key source disappears or two statistics don’t line up. The habit keeps projects on track and makes status updates short and useful.
Feedback is fast and steady. After most submissions the researcher leaves notes, sometimes minor tweaks, sometimes a bigger rewrite, so the piece is ready for publication. Twice a year my team lead reviews my overall progress, points out growth, and sets fresh goals. Knowing that feedback is built into the job helps me test new approaches without worrying that mistakes will slip through.
After roughly thirteen hundred hours in the role, I’m quicker at spotting solid data, sharper at turning numbers into stories, and calmer when the clock is ticking. The mix of research, multilingual writing, and constant feedback has given me skills I use daily in my master’s work and will carry into future projects.