Sept 14, 2020

Mix of disciplines

What is Data Science?

  • Data Science is an umbrella term that encompasses skills and knowledge that are traditionally separated as Statistics and Computer Science.
  • Data Science considers:
    • Acquiring data: e.g. Web Scraping, experimental design, population/sample misalignment.
    • Data Wrangling: Manipulating raw data into a usable format.
    • Data Maintenance: Data base design and storage.
    • Analysis: Inferential and predictive analyses.
    • Communication: Data reporting and visualization.

Work Flow

Data Science is done in Context

  • Almost always requires subject domain knowledge:

    • Microbiology, economics, ecology, actuarial science, finance, transportation, etc.

  • Requires asking the right question and answering it with the right data.

  • Because data science can mix with nearly any field, it doesn’t make sense to pair with any one particular subject area.

Lots of jobs:

  • Big Tech: Amazon, IBM, Intel, Carvana, …
  • Targeted Advertising: Albertsons, Safeway, Petsmart, …
  • Financial Services: USAA, Wells Fargo, American Express, …
  • Government agencies: State of AZ Healthcare, …
  • 547 jobs in Arizona on glassdoor.com (8/19/2019)

Required Courses - Computer Science (17 credits)

  • CS 126 & 126L – Computer Science I & Lab
  • CS 136 & 136L – Computer Science II & Lab
  • CS 200 – Introduction to Computer Organization
  • CS 249 – Data Structures
  • CS 345 – Principles of Database Systems

Required Courses - Statistics (18 credits)

  • STA 141 – Data Visualization
  • STA 275 – Introduction to Statistical Analysis (with Calc)
  • STA 371 – Intermediate Statistics
  • STA 444, 445 - Data Wrangling
  • STA 471 – Regression Analysis
  • STA 486 - Senior Capstone (Engineering Style!)

Other

  • Math Courses
    • 136 - Calculus I
    • 226 - Discrete Mathematics
    • 216 - Matrix Algebra
  • English 305W
  • Electives (9 credits)
    • Essentially any upper division Math, Statistics, or Computer Science course.
  • We encourage students to also get a minor in any field that is of interest to them.