Data Science & Analytics

Focus Track - Data Science & Analytics logo

Students interested in the MS focus on Data Science & Analytics are recommended to take all of the MSS core first year courses, with a particular focus on those emphasizing modeling (STA 521L, STA 610L) and computation (STA 523L, STA 663L). It is also strongly recommended that students complete the machine learning sequence by taking STA 561D (Probabilistic Machine Learning) and STA 571 (Advanced Scholastic Models and Machine Learning).

In their second year, students should further specialize by taking applied modeling focused elective courses. In particular, STA 522 (Experimental Design), STA 623 (Statistical Decision Theory), and STA 841 (Categorical Data Analysis) are all excellent options that should help students develop relevant knowledge and skills. Finally, it is critical that students develop strong programming skills in various languages. The core courses provide an introduction to both R (STA 523L) and Python (STA 663). Beyond this, students are encouraged to learn at least one compiled language (e.g. C or C++) as well as being familiar with SQL and at least one distributed computing platform (e.g. Spark).
 

Courses offered by the computer science and the electrical and computer engineering departments are particularly relevant for developing these skills. ECE 685 and COMPSCI 675 (Introduction to Deep Learning), COMPSCI 572 and ECE 684 (Natural Langage processing), and COMPSCI 516 (Database Systems) are popular courses taken by students in this track.

Selected Past Employers:
  • Meta
  • Amazon
  • Twitter
  • McKinsey & Company
  • Goldman Sachs
  • QuaEra Insights
  • Liberty Mutual
  • Google, Inc.
  • Tesla
  • Uber
  • IBM
  • Wayfair
  • Indeed
  • Dell Technologies
  • Autodesk
  • Oracle
  • ESPN
  • Bloomberg