Dr. Dale Hamilton
208.467.8769
dhamilton@nnu.edu
COMPUTER SCIENCE: Data Science
Bachelor of Science
NNU’s Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science provides the skills you need to enter into today’s technology-driven workforce. This degree will give you a strong foundation in software development, networking, graphics, and the various applications of modern computing, giving you the competitive edge.
- Gain a strong foundation in software development, networking, graphics, and the various applications of modern computing
- Choose a concentration in data science or cybersecurity
- Hands-on experience and cutting-edge research in interdisciplinary data science and artificial intelligence analytics in collaboration with NASA, NIH, and the USDA
About Computer Science: Data Science
In computer science, there are many different paths you can take to specialize in your education. One concentration that has grown in popularity in recent years is data science, sometimes referred to as artificial intelligence. At NNU, you’ll have the unique opportunity to enroll in the first data science major in the Northwest.
With extensive hands-on experience and groundbreaking research opportunities, NNU undergraduates are making strides in interdisciplinary data science and artificial intelligence analytics. Collaborating with prestigious organizations such as NASA, National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, NNU students are at the forefront of innovation and discovery. Plus, with the potential for an average annual salary of $108,000 for data scientists with a computer science degree, this field offers a promising future for those who pursue it.
degree details
Bachelor of Science
Offered On Campus
NNU is proud to offer the only data science major in the Northwest
NNU is proud to offer the only data science major in the Northwest outside of the big Pac12 research institutions in Washington and Oregon, and the first among Christian liberal arts universities in the Western U.S. Here, undergraduate students don’t have to wait until they pursue an advanced degree to participate in research; hands-on experience and cutting-edge research is being done by undergraduates every day in the development of interdisciplinary data science and artificial intelligence analytics in collaboration with NASA, NIH and the USDA.
Related Career Paths
Metropolitan and nonmetropolitan area occupational employment and wage estimates for the Boise area are sourced from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Computer and Information Systems Managers
Data Scientist
Computer and Mathematical Occupations
Computer Systems Analysts
Meet Our Faculty
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Frequently Asked Questions About Studying Data Science at NNU
If you’re considering studying in the data science field at NNU, you’ll join a community of tech enthusiasts passionate about innovative solutions. Don’t hesitate to contact us to learn more about the exciting opportunities ahead!
Why data science?
Data science is a multidisciplinary field that combines techniques, algorithms and principles from Computer Science, Statistics and domain-specific knowledge to extract insights and knowledge from large amounts of structured and unstructured data (Big Data). It involves collecting, organizing, analyzing and interpreting large volumes of data to uncover patterns, trends, correlations and other valuable information.
Data science encompasses a wide range of tasks, including data cleaning, preprocessing, exploratory data analysis, predictive modeling, machine learning, artificial intelligence, data visualization and interpretation of results.
The applications of data science are diverse and span across various industries including finance, healthcare, marketing, e-commerce, social media and more. Some common applications include artificial intelligence, customer segmentation, fraud detection, recommendation systems, predictive maintenance, sentiment analysis and personalized marketing.
Overall, data science plays a crucial role in helping organizations make data-driven decisions, optimize processes, improve products and services and gain a competitive advantage in the modern data-driven world.
Data Science vs. Artificial Intelligence vs. Data Analytics
Data Science, Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics are relatively new academic disciplines and are still evolving. While there are slight differences between each of these related fields, at their core, they are very similar, involving many of the same topics, such as Machine Learning.
- Data Science is the interdisciplinary study of data to extract valuable and actionable knowledge from voluminous data available in a variety of forms (Big Data), relying on Data Engineering, Analysis, Machine Learning and Data Visualization. (https://aws.amazon.com/what-is/data-science)
- Artificial intelligence (AI) is technology that enables computers and digital devices to learn, read, write, talk, see, create, play, analyze, make recommendations and do other things humans do. AI is a field that combines computer science and robust datasets to enable problem-solving. It also encompasses sub-fields of machine learning and deep learning, which are frequently mentioned in conjunction with artificial intelligence. These disciplines are comprised of AI algorithms that seek to create expert systems to make predictions or classifications based on input data. (Sounds pretty similar to Data Science).(https://www.ibm.com/topics/artificial-intelligence)
- Data analytics converts raw data into actionable insights. It includes a range of tools, technologies and processes used to find trends and solve problems by using data. Data analytics can shape business processes, improve decision-making and foster business growth. Again, this sounds very similar to Data Science (https://aws.amazon.com/what-is/data-analytics/)
While there are differences between the three disciplines, they are so similar that at the undergraduate level, they are nearly indistinguishable with majors in each degree comprising of classes from the other disciplines. For example, NNU Data Science majors take an Artificial Intelligence class and conduct mapping analytics research in collaboration with NASA and the U.S. Forest Service.
An NNU Data Science degree will be your launch pad for an exciting career in either Artificial Intelligence or Data Analytics as well as Data Science.