Data Science

Ideal preparation for information technology careers

The demand for professionals with knowledge and skills in computer technology continues to grow. Elon’s data science curriculum is designed to give students the knowledge they need to step into any computing environment and thrive. Whether your career path takes you to a Fortune 500 company, government service or graduate school, Elon data science minors are prepared for the future of the information technology field.

What is Data Science?

The data science discipline centers on using technology to solve a wide-range of complex problems that involve capturing, analyzing, visualizing and managing large sets of data. Every day more than 15 petabytes (15 quadrillion bytes) of data are generated around the world. Data scientists are concerned with creating intelligence from the data that can be used to solve complex problems like mapping the shrinking polar ice sheets, tracking the spread of infectious disease, understanding customer buying patterns and helping people manage their health.

Why Data Science at Elon?

The data science minor at Elon teaches students to apply state-of-the-art tools and techniques for transforming a barrage of data to consistent, trusted and relevant information that can provide insight and support decision making. The hands-on program provides a solid foundation in programming, data, interface design, and statistics. Because of its interdisciplinary nature, data science complements a variety of majors and minors.

Outstanding facilities and equipment

The Department of Computing Sciences offers students the latest in computer hardware and software to enhance their learning. Because computing sciences classes at Elon are small — averaging 15 students per class — hands-on learning begins on day one. The department prides itself on having a balanced teaching approach between theory and practical application.

Computer labs are easily accessible and located throughout campus. To ensure students use the latest in hardware and software, Elon replaces about a quarter of its computers each year with the latest models. This ensures that every computer used by a student is less than four years old. Also, software on each computer is updated twice annually with the latest releases from vendors. All computers are connected to the campus network and can access department servers and Elon servers.

The Department of Computing Sciences has two labs exclusively reserved for its majors. One lab has 12 MacPro desktops with dual monitors, dual operating systems of Apple Leopard and Microsoft Vista, and is available 24 hours a day. The other lab is a specialized network lab with 16 computers for building prototype networks. Both labs are close to faculty offices to facilitate collaboration and learning.

The department has a server room housing a grid computing cluster of eight machines and four multiprocessor server machines. Each machine in the cluster has dual processors and more than a gigabyte of memory. The servers include a Linux server, an Oracle 11 server for database and enterprise application development, and two Web application servers that run both IIS and Apache for Web development classes.

Current software programs include a variety of professional development, web, and database tools.

Active faculty scholars

Students regularly cite close collaboration with talented, dedicated faculty as one of their most meaningful experiences at Elon. As a data science minor, you will work closely with faculty mentors such as Megan Squire, an experienced Web-based systems and data mining professional; Duke Hutchings, an expert in human computer interaction; and Scott Spurlock, an expert in machine learning and computer vision. Faculty members are active scholars conducting research with students related to Internet communities, disaster recovery planning, network broadcasting and data mining.

Learning outside the classroom

Data Science minors are encouraged to participate in the many opportunities for hands-on learning at Elon, including study abroad, internships and research. Approximately 73 percent of Elon’s graduates have spent an academic term abroad while at Elon, ranking the university first in the nation among master’s level institutions for the percentage of students who study abroad. Additionally, about 80 percent of Elon students participate in internships and more than 15 percent of students conduct research each year.

Attractive career options

Careers in the computing and information technology fields have been in demand for decades, and the trend shows no signs of slowing. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects software-related careers (computer science and information science) to be some of the fastest-growing occupations over the next decade, and it is expected to grow between 30-34 percent by 2018.