Learn about Data Science and why you should study it at St. Kate’s!
Sections:
- What is Data Science?
- Why Should Students Learn About Data Science?
- Data Science Organizations and Events At St. Kate’s
- Student Experiences
What is Data Science?
Data science is one of the newest majors at St. Kate’s! According to IBM, “Data science combines math and statistics, specialized programming, advanced analytics, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning with specific subject matter expertise to uncover actionable insights hidden in an organization’s data. These insights can be used to guide decision making and strategic planning.”
Why Should Students Learn About Data Science?
It’s Interdisciplinary! 📚
Data science can be applied to several different disciplines, such as biology, psychology, and economics.
- Biology
- Biology and data science work together in many areas of study. Bioinformatics is a field of technology that utilizes computational tools like machine learning and statistics to analyze biological data. Genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics all use data science methods to study DNA, RNA, proteins, and metabolites, respectively.
- Psychology
- Psychological studies can benefit from implementing data science. Data science methods can be applied to study the mind, brain, and behavior. For example, data analyses can be designed to utilize machine learning to extract insights from human psychology.
- Economics
- Economics and data science have a lot in common. They both use algorithms to create analyses and make decisions. By combining these two disciplines, you can better understand economic events and develop business and organizational strategies.
Stay Informed About AI and Machine Learning! 🖥️
AI and machine learning play crucial roles in the world of data science. These technologies are transforming how we analyze data and solve problems. These changes can be kind of confusing, but taking a data science course can help you better understand what’s going on in the field and reduce potential worries surrounding the topic.
Career Prospects 💰
Data science is a very bustling field right now, with hundreds of career opportunities and very competitive salaries. Here are some data science-related roles and their median salaries:
- Data Scientist – Median salary of $103,500 (2022)
- Database Administrator – Median salary of $99,890 (2022)
Even if you’re not planning on working directly in data science, the skills you learn can also be used in other fields. Here are some roles that utilize data science in another field:
- Business Analyst – Average salary of $98,662 (2024)
- Marketing Data Manager – Average salary of $82,094 (2024)
- Medical Records Manager – Average salary of $68,182 (2024)
To find out more about labor market salaries in different industries, you can check out this Katie Career resource: https://katiecareervc.stkate.edu/resources/labor-market-tool/. Additionally, if you’d like to see how you can use data science skills across different industries, check out “What Can I Do With This Major?”: https://katiecareervc.stkate.edu/resources/what-can-i-do-with-this-major/
Data Science Organizations and Events At St. Kate’s
Katies in Data Science and Computer Science
“Data and computer science can provide a variety of new skill sets to your resume regardless if you are a tech major. Whether coding or creating easy-to-read datasets, find out how these skills can make a difference in the efficiency of your assignments, work, or everyday life. Not only can these skills help expand your resume to employers, but they can also serve as a great hobby! Katies in Data and Computer Science has opportunities to teach you more about the technology industry, beginner coding projects, and much more!”
“This club is open to everyone regardless of major or experience! We would love to show others basic tech skills and create a safe space to learn new things.”
Interested in learning more? You can contact the club at: dsclub@stkate.edu
Check out their Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katies_ds_club?igsh=MnJzaGpjZjJmZ3Bi&utm_source=qr
Data Fest
Every year the St. Kate’s Economics & Political Science and Data Science Departments host Data Fest, a hackathon-style event where students of all disciplines are invited to use data analytics tools to create visualizations on various topics. Data Fest also partners with the Center for Indian Country Development (CICD) to use their data and reports their findings back to CICD.
Past Data Fest Flyers
Interested in learning more? Contact MN Center for Diversity in Economics: mcde@stkate.edu
Student Experiences
Raida Ismail – Senior – Data Science Major
- What made you decide to become a data science major? What sparked your interest in the field?:
- “I decided to become a data science major because it was a major that fit all my interests and could be applied in any setting. I started out as a freshman with a psychology major but then changed my major many times throughout the years. I tried out majors like social work, public health, computer science, and data science. My interest in the Data Science field stemmed from my interest in mathematical patterns, coding, and social justice activism. As I thought more about what my future would look like as a post-grad, it became clear to me that becoming a Data Scientist would fit my personal and career goals.”
- What classes have been the most impactful so far?:
- “I took a course last semester (Spring ’24) called Analyzing Social Issues with Data, which impacted me on what my future goals are as an aspiring Data Scientist. In the course, I learned about how social justice issues can be investigated using Data Science in the real world. I learned a lot about the entire process of Data Science, from data collection to visualizations and dissemination.”
- What are your career goals post-graduation?:
- “After graduating from St. Kate’s with my Data Science degree I would like to gain some technical and real-world experience with the concepts and skills I have picked up from my different classes. My long-term goal is to work in the nonprofit sector and use data to support and advocate for marginalized communities.”
- Would you recommend students to study data science?
- “Yes! Data Science is technical but can also be very intuitive and personal. A Data Science degree can apply to many fields and job sectors in the real world. What you learn in data science classes will help you better navigate this new technological age, even if you go into a non-computing field.”
Maria Ngangsic-Asongu – Senior – International Business and Economics Major
- What data science classes have you taken?
- “I’ve taken two Data Science courses, “DSCI 1000 – Telling Stories with Data – Introduction to Data Visualization” and “DSCI 3100 – Database Management”. I really enjoyed these classes because they taught me how to use new technologies and gave me unique opportunities to showcase my new skills.”
- What class has been the most impactful to you?
- “In DSCI 1000 our class partnered with the Mapping Prejudice team from the University of Minnesota and created data visualizations for their “Welcoming the Dear Neighbor?” research project. My group worked together to create data visualizations in Tableau and ArcGIS to show the various ways racial covenants have impacted Hennepin County. This year “Welcoming The Dear Neighbor?” received the 2024 Uniservitate Global Service-Learning Award and St. Kate’s was just one of two North American first-prize winners!”
- How have the skills you’ve learned in your data science classes benefit your career?
- “The skills I’ve learned from my data science classes have also been extremely valuable to my professional career. Over the past two summers, I have worked at JPMorgan Chase and both times I have utilized data analytics to complete different tasks. Some of the software used by my teams were Microsoft Excel and Tableau, both of which were taught in my data science classes. Even if you don’t see yourself becoming a data scientist, the skills and software you learn in data science classes are versatile and can be used in several different fields.”
Sources
https://www.ibm.com/topics/data-science
https://www.simplilearn.com/bioinformatics-where-biology-and-data-science-meet-article
https://pdc.wisc.edu/degrees/psychology-data-science-in-human-behavior-ms/
https://www.iit.edu/academics/programs/economics-and-data-science-bs
https://money.usnews.com/careers/best-jobs/data-scientist
https://money.usnews.com/careers/best-jobs/database-administrator
https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Business-Analyst-Salary#Yearly
https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Marketing-Data-Manager-Salary
https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Medical-Records-Manager-Salary
