Tech Talent

MTSU’s undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral Data Science programs create much-needed problem-solvers

by Jimmy Hart and Drew Ruble

Technological advances are leading to an exponential increase in the amount of data being generated and collected across many industries. In fields such as medicine and manufacturing, data helps businesses understand where they have been so they can make informed decisions and develop strategies about the present and the future.

What those industries need is people who know how to work with data and analyze it.

MTSU began offering data science-related courses 13 years ago. More recently, the University transitioned to offering Data Science as a full undergraduate degree program. In fall 2022, the University’s Data Science program added a master’s degree. That development meshed seamlessly with the 2021 incorporation of Data Science into MTSU’s doctoral program in Computational Science and the graduate certificate program launched back in 2020.

Students earning bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in Data Science at MTSU take courses in programming, statistics, analytics, databases, and machine learning. Undergraduates select a cognate in inferential thinking, business intelligence, or machine learning. Students also put those skills to use through real world projects, earning degrees that truly make them career ready.

They enter a job market where entry-level salaries average $70,000–$85,000 for “data scientists” skilled at analyzing and interpreting data. The Bureau of Labor’s employment statistics project an increase in Tennessee’s data science-related employment growth greater than the national average. In addition, the Tennessee Higher Education Commission has been working with postsecondary institutions since 2020 to increase the number of computer science and data analytics degrees by 20% over a five-year period.

Data Science programs at MTSU:

• B.S. in Data Science

• M.S. in Data Science

• Graduate certificate in Data Science

• Ph.D. in Computational and Data Science

The Data Science program has grown exponentially over the past three years. The Spring 2023 semester had:

• 81 undergraduate majors

• 15 earning B.S. degrees in May 2023

• 6 of those receiving CBAS Honor Certificates

• 46 undergraduate minors

• 47 master’s level students enrolled

• 17 of those working toward a graduate certificate

• 30 pursuing their M.S. degrees

• 33 Ph.D. students in the Computational and Data Science program

The doctoral program began in 2010 as a Computational Science Ph.D. but was upgraded in 2021 to a Computational and Data Science Ph.D. Today the program has:

• 40+ faculty members representing 8 CBAS departments

• 45 Ph.D. graduates

• Graduates working at world-renowned employers such as St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Johns Hopkins University, to name a few

• 4 graduates who are now MTSU tenure-track faculty members in Computer Science or Mathematical Sciences

• Produced research in areas including machine learning, computational chemistry, computational neuroscience, and the COVID-19 epidemic

• Doctoral students supporting the University’s teaching and research mission

• Doctoral students employed in graduate teaching assistantships across CBAS departments

• Doctoral students who have worked with professors to develop and publish research papers and submit grant applications

About the program

Visit mtsu.edu/datascience or email datascience@mtsu.edu