Students celebrate graduation in MS data science program

Eighteen graduating master’s students from the Goergen Institute for Data Science at the University of Rochester were congratulated recently for choosing “one of the most dynamic, exciting fields in the world today.”

“Data science is an exploding area,” said Bob Maybee, vice president of customer loyalty and insights for Wegmans Food Market Inc., a founding partner of the Goergen Institute’s Data Science Consortium. Maybee was keynote speaker at the graduation celebration. 

“Every day over 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are produced,” he said. “Every industry – whether medicine and health, economics, agriculture, business, security - is increasingly both reliant on and overwhelmed by information today.”

“The world needs your new skills, your new thinking, your problem solving to help it harness all of this data to serve the world better,” Maybee told the graduates, many of whom have secured jobs or will be pursuing doctoral programs.

The Institute’s master’s program, which can be completed in either two or three semesters of full-time study, provides a strong background in both the fundamentals and applications of data science.

The Master of Science in Data Science program is designed for students with a background in any field of science, engineering, mathematics, or business. Mid-career applicants are welcomed as well as students fresh out of college. Prospective students should have experience in programming and should be comfortable with first-year college mathematics.

Maybee’s advice to this year’s graduates: “Communicate simply, be humble and bring your passion every day!”