system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
Can a Statistician using only R get a DS job not having a strong CS background?

Hello, I’m majoring in applied statistics in a Ph.D. program and mainly using R and SAS. I want to get a DS job after graduation, but when I saw the job qualifications, it felt the world wants a CS programmer with a bit of Statistics like Python+SQL+Hadoop+TensorFlow..etc. However, I believe that I can do something with my Statistics background, especially for ML (I just skimmed some textbooks about ML, and I don’t think it is far from what I’m studying), but not sure I can get a decent DS job dealing with ML. I tried to do Python, but every time I realized that I didn’t like it and wanted to hone my R skills. Sorry for the not clear question, but the point is I’m curious whether the statistician only using R can get a DS job dealing with ML or it is not the most cases.
gpt
Most data-related job descriptions in this area are written to look for the *most* qualified candidate conceivable. Sometimes you'll even see descriptions that ask for more experience with a particular tool than the developers of that tool (e.g. 10 years experience with a thing that has only been around for 5 years). Apply to the things that interest you.

But R is basically computer science, and don't let any gatekeeper tell you otherwise. You code in R, just like any other programmer. So, if you're good at R, you're probably pretty good at CS. So, yes.

Having said that, knowing other CS stuff will help you. Python is not as stats-focused as R, but it is much more flexible. And knowing more than one programming language makes you more versatile, and able to take advantage of more opportunities.