Data Science Program

What is Data Science?

Data Science sits at the intersection of mathematics and computer science and is applied to a boundless set of disciplines – including health, physical sciences, business, environmental studies, sociology, and political science.

Data Scientists collect, synthesize, and analyze big data to drive scientific discovery and business opportunities. Data Scientists are skilled in programming languages like R and Python and leverage advanced knowledge in statistics, machine learning, and data visualization to meet the demands of modern business and science.

Who Hires Data Scientists?

In short… everyone! Companies in almost every business sector imaginable recognize the need to leverage data to predict trends, inform decisions, and make breakthroughs. Data Scientists are employed by hospitals, pharmaceutical manufacturers, financial and trading firms, sports teams, marketing agencies, and of course tech companies.

Data Scientists entering the job market with skills in programming, statistics, machine learning, and data visualization have their pick of high paying, high quality jobs at some of the most prestigious and exciting companies in the country.

• Average annual salary for data analysts: $59,732/year (source)
• Average annual salary for data scientists: $95,998/year (source)
• Job outlook: from 2013 to 2018, the number of data science job postings grew by 256% (source)
• Data scientist job: #1 in list of best 50 jobs in America (source)

The LinkedIn August 2018 workforce report found a 150,000+ labor shortage for Data Scientists, with particularly elevated demand in NJ/NY, SF, and LA metro areas. Glassdoor ranked Data Scientist as the #1 job in America in 2019, with a median base salary of 108K/year, and has been ranked the #1 best paying job out of college in 2019. Pricewaterhouse Coopers has estimated that 27% of employers are looking for a Master’s degree when filling Data Science positions. That same study identifies New Jersey and New York as the #1 region in terms of number of job postings.

Want to see who is hiring Data Scientists now? Take a look at the following job boards that focus on data science jobs:

• AnalyticTalent.com
• DataJobs.com
• Kaggle
• KDnuggets
• icrunchdata

Learn more about Ramapo’s undergraduate and graduate programs in Data Science.

Data Science News

August 22, 2020Convolutional Neural Networks for Face Recognition

We are happy to announce that Dr. Ausif Mahmood has rescheduled his talk on Convolutional Neural Networks this fall virtually. Dr. Mahmood is the Director of The School of Engineering at the University of Bridgeport in Bridgeport, CT. His research areas involve Artificial Intelligence, Computer Vision, Machine Learning, and Deep Learning - bridging ties between Computer Science and Data Science. Please join us virtually on September 17th at 1:00pm - 2:00pm. Registration is required, registrants will receive web conferencing information a few days prior to the event. You'll also have the opportunity to learn more about Ramapo's new Data Science ... Read More

August 6, 2020MSDS - Fall 2020 Course Delivery Update

As we look forward to the start of our Fall 2020 semester, we wanted to share with you our plans for course delivery starting in September. As you hopefully know, Ramapo College is required to adhere with the State of New Jersey’s phased reopening plan. This plan identifies which activities and classes colleges and universities may conduct on campus, and the precautions we must take. Based on current public health conditions as of August 3rd, NJ is currently still in Phase 2 - which prohibits on-campus meetings for all courses other than laboratory (i.e. biology labs) and studio (i.e. theatre) ... Read More

April 25, 2020MSDS Fall course delivery options related to COVID-19

With uncertainty surrounding the upcoming Fall semester due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we want you to know our contingency plans in case of disruption. All MSDS courses for the Fall 2020 semester are scheduled to be delivered as hybrid courses. This means a large portion of course content will be delivered online, however the course will meet once a week on campus. We’ve scheduled all three MSDS courses to meet on Thursday evenings. There are two scenarios that could alter these plans: Ramapo College converts the Fall 2020 semester to online-only / remote delivery. In the unlikely event this happens, ... Read More

February 10, 2020Ramapo adds new Mathematics faculty to support Data Science

Ramapo College is excited to welcome Matthew Jobrack to our Mathematics faculty. Matthew Jobrack holds a B.S. in mathematics from Longwood University with a concentration in secondary education, a M.A. in mathematics from Appalachian State University, and a M.S in Statistics from Washington State University. He is currently a doctoral candidate in mathematics at Washington State University specializing in analytic number theory, with additional research interests in statistical wildlife population models. He has coauthored peer-reviewed publications in both mathematics and math education. He currently lives with his wife, daughter, 2 cats and 1 dog. Read More

January 13, 2020Ramapo welcomes new Data Science faculty member

Ramapo College is excited to welcome new Data Science faculty member Dr. Debbie Yuster. Dr. Yuster holds a B.A. in Mathematics with a concentration in Computer Science from Cornell, and a Ph.D. in Mathematics from Columbia, specializing in the field of Combinatorics. Dr. Yuster joins us from SUNY Maritime College, where she has been a math professor for over a decade, earning accolades such as the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching. Dr. Yuster served as a Visiting Data Science Scholar at the Wall Street Journal, and has cultivated industry partnerships leading to student research projects. She has authored ... Read More

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RCNJ Data Science Contacts