Academics
Academics
Dual Focus on Theory and Practice
Curriculum
From Classroom to Real-World
The MDS curriculum at UCI’s Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Science focuses on building a strong foundation in modern data science. The program distinguishes itself by incorporating both statistical and computational approaches to deepen students’ understanding of analytics and modeling, data engineering, deep neural networks, machine learning, and artificial intelligence.
Taught by industry-leading faculty and researchers, students in the program will be part of a unique computational-focused school within the UC system and benefit from hands-on experience through the program’s industry-partnered capstone project.
Ready to advance your skills? Get a closer look at each course by clicking here.
Pathways
The Master of Data Science program offers a full-time and a part-time pathway suitable for your academic and professional needs. Both options offer students the equal access to the comprehensive curriculum and knowledgeable faculty. To earn the Master of Data Science (MDS) degree, students must complete 52 units, consisting of ten core courses, three electives, and one capstone project. Upon graduation, you’ll possess technical expertise and professional abilities, priming you for a successful career path.
Why the full-time program?
- Jump start your career in applicable data science fields
- Focus solely on your studies while taking advantage of on-campus amenities and networking opportunities
- Advance your professional development
Why the part-time program?
- Continue earning an income while pursuing your degree
- Network with other professionals coming from various backgrounds and industries
- Accelerate your professional development by applying your acquired knowledge to real-life situations
Program details:
- Location: Irvine
- When you start: Fall Quarter
- Time to complete: 15-months
- Courses per quarter: 3-4 courses
Program details:
- Location: Irvine
- When you start: Fall Quarter
- Time to complete: 24-months
- Courses per quarter: 2 courses
Courses
Capstone Project
The Capstone Project is the culmination of the Master of Data Science program, providing students with the opportunity to work on real-life data science problems with industry partners. The projects are comprehensive in scope, allowing students to demonstrate the breadth and depth of their knowledge in data science. The project is designed to develop an empirically-driven solution to sponsoring organizations and covers the full spectrum of the analytic process, including data gathering, manipulation, visualization, analysis, and interpretation of results. Students work in small groups to put concepts and techniques together and put them into action.
A successful capstone project involves several key elements, including clearly defining the problem to be solved or the question to be answered, conducting exploratory data analysis, data cleaning, and data visualization to gain insights into the dataset, and describing the methods and techniques used to analyze the data and address the problem or question. This may include machine learning models or statistical analyses.
Additionally, a successful capstone project should present the results of the data analysis, including any visualizations or graphs that help to convey the findings, and discuss the implications of the findings and how they relate to the original problem or question. This should include a discussion of any limitations or areas for future research. Students should also provide the code used for data analysis and modeling, along with detailed documentation that explains the code and how it was used.
Finally, students create a final presentation or report that effectively communicates the findings to a non-technical audience. The ability to effectively communicate technical findings to non-technical audiences is a crucial skill for data scientists in industry.
Career Development
At the Master of Data Science program, career development is a central part of the MDS experience, and we prioritize the career outcomes of our students. Our Career Services team works with each student to prepare them for successful career paths, with a philosophy of focusing on the individual.
Our Career Services team provides comprehensive career coaching services that take into account each student’s unique skills, experiences, and career goals. We offer personalized attention to assist students in identifying career direction and paving their career paths. This includes one-on-one career coaching, resume and cover letter reviews, and job search strategies tailored to each student’s needs.
To ensure our students’ career competitiveness, we offer a range of professional development opportunities to help them build the skills that are valued by employers. Our team has industry expertise and knowledge of current trends in the job market, including building relationships with employers and keeping up-to-date with job market trends to help students prepare for successful job searches. We provide opportunities to enhance their marketability and career readiness competencies via real-world experiences such as internships and capstone projects. We also facilitate networking opportunities, such as career fairs and alumni events, to help students build relationships with professionals in their field.
Frequently Asked Questions
Data Science and Business Analytics are unique fields, with the biggest difference being the scope of the problems addressed. The science of data that uses algorithms, statistics, and technology is known as Data Science. It provides actionable insights on a range of structured and unstructured data solving a broader perspective such as customer behavior.
On the other hand, the statistical study of mostly structured business data is known as Business Analytics. It provides solutions to specific business problems and roadblocks.
Yes. International students with an F-1 visa can extend their post-graduation time in the U.S. beyond the regular optional practical training (OPT) of 12 months by an additional 24 months, for a total of 36 months of OPT. This allows international students to gain additional work experience in the U.S. in their chosen field of study.
The MDS Program is an 15-month (Five-quarter) full-time program. It requires ten core courses and 3 electives, for a total of 52 units to complete the program. All MDS students are expected to complete the program within five consecutive quarters during a consecutive 15-month period.
Students complete a group experiential Capstone Project in the last quarter of the program. The project would be drawn from industry and would involve applying Statistical and Computational methods for a company, typically based in Southern California.
We are looking for students that want to become “data scientists” or “Machine learning engineers”; i.e.professionals with the training and skill set to handle big data and gain intelligence from it in order to create value at companies across a range of industries. We evaluate and take into account a number of criteria including test scores, academic performance, essays, resume, work experience, and letters of recommendation. An Admissions Committee will balance the diversity of education, work experience, background, and leadership potential to build a diverse and high quality classroom environment. We encourage you to apply if you have a genuine interest in the program.
No. Our program staff handles all transcript evaluations and do not accept WES evaluations. WES services are non-binding, meaning they do not have the authority to overrule the evaluations conducted by UCI’s Graduate Division. WES is considered a suggested guide and is not considered an official evaluation of your credentials.
