In this digital age, nearly every individual leaves behind a data trail as valuable as gold.
With this amount of data generation, there is also an increased demand for specialists who can structure, analyze and process it.
Memorial University’s Department of Mathematics and Statistics aims to equip undergraduate students with the tools to enter this field by introducing an undergraduate Data Science Degree Program this September.
Program development
The Data Science Program development committee, chaired by Dr. Yildiz Yilmaz, structured and developed the program during the past year.
It includes a significant number of new statistics courses.
Committee members Drs. Candemir Cigsar, Zhaozhi Fan and Hong Wang from the Department of Mathematics and Statistics, along with department head Dr. JC Loredo-Osti, contributed to the program’s development.
“I think the Data Science Program should be more comprehensive and the courses should be more interdisciplinary.”
Dr. Loredo-Osti says data science is as much an art as a science, but opinions can vary.
“Like any new discipline, there are many views on how it should be,” said Dr. Loredo-Osti. “Some people think it should be computing-oriented, statistically oriented or mathematically oriented. I am in the middle. I think it should be more comprehensive and the courses should be more interdisciplinary. This major program achieves this balance.”
The committee received support from Dr. Ivan Booth, deputy head of Mathematics, Dr. Shannon Sullivan, SDr. Suzanne Dufour and the Faculty of Science’s interim dean, Dr. Travis Fridgen.
Dr. Fridgen says that data science is becoming increasingly important as researchers find new and unique data collection methods.
“This program offers undergraduate students the opportunity to establish fundamental knowledge, shaping them into experts in the data field that can be applied to many different sectors, industries and academic disciplines,” he said.
New major, new possibilities
Dr. Yimaz says the Department of Mathematics and Statistics’ undergraduate programs have a high reputation nationally and internationally and that Memorial’s program is comparable to other highly reputable universities’ programs.
“It aims to teach statistical and computational thinking, mathematical and statistical foundations, model building and assessment, algorithms and software foundation, data curation and knowledge transference,” she said.
The new major will offer higher-level courses with smaller class sizes, giving more opportunities to connect with instructors and for hands-on learning.
Dr. Yilmaz believes that her department’s breadth of experience in the field of data science sets the program apart.
“Our faculty members have a wide range of research areas in the foundations of data science and research interests in applications in the biomedicine, business, economics, environment, epidemiology, finance, fisheries, genetics, industry and medicine fields,” she said.
This broad spectrum of experience will allow future program graduates to apply their knowledge in real-world settings.
In demand
Dr. Yilmaz says there is a high demand for data scientists in the marketplace.
“Many companies see the importance of data use for decision-making and statistical predictions,” she said. “They need data scientists who make accurate inferences and meaningful conclusions from complex data sets.”
Graduates of the program will be able to do all of this and more, including completing sampling and study designs, and will have the tools to employ computational and statistical methods, machine and statistical learning algorithms, neural networks and deep learning.
Future growth
Dr. Fridgen says there are plans to grow the program in other departments.
He says data science provides valuable insights for students across all disciplines engaged in research.
“Naturally, there are ample opportunities to foster a broader data science community within virtually all departments and faculties at Memorial,” he said. “I’m eager to see this program grow into several interdisciplinary programs and witness how these skills enhance research in every field.”
“I recommend prospective students to take the first-year mathematics, statistics and computer science courses required by the program in their first year or as soon as possible, and keep their mathematical, statistical and computational background strong,” said Dr. Yilmaz.
Apply today
Applications to declare a major in the Data Science Degree Program are being accepted for the fall 2024 semester from students who have completed the core degree requirements.
Prospective students may also be admitted during the winter and spring semesters once they complete the required courses.
