From Data Science Minor to Data Science Master's
We recently sat down with Connor Nickol who started the M.S. in Data Science Residential program this summer. He is a graduate of the University of Virginia with a bachelor's degree in statistics and economics, minoring in data science. A native of Yorktown, VA, Connor was a member of the sport's analytics club and was a student equipment manager for the UVA football team. He currently serves as a multimedia intern with the School of Data Science.
Q. How did you first get interested in data science?
Nickol: The first time I heard about data science at the University of Virginia was when my parents showed me an article about a student from the master’s in data science program landing a job working with the Green Bay Packers doing sports analytics. I thought that just sounded like something I would love to do which led me to choosing to major in statistics and minor in data science.
Q. How did the data science minor complement your statistics and economics degree?
Nickol: I thought that the data science minor was a great complement to my majors because it would take some of the concepts I learned in my statistics classes and carry them a step farther by applying those concepts in projects that used real world data. That was something we generally didn’t have time for in my statistics classes.
Q. Why did you decide to pursue a master’s in data science?
Nickol: I decided to pursue a master’s degree to both further my skills in programming and data science but also because of the connections the School of Data Science has with potential employers. The School has a dedicated student affairs team with a career counselor that helps students explore possible career paths and hiring companies.
Q. What do you enjoy about the program so far?
Nickol: So far, I have really enjoyed the atmosphere of the master's program. The professors have been awesome, and you can really tell they care about your learning. I also think the cohort structure of the residential program is great because everyone gets to do everything together. This creates a unique experience.
Q. What advice would you have for someone interested in data science?
Nickol: I would recommend to take an introductory data science course to see if you like it. Data science is going to be involved in some aspect of almost every career so it can’t hurt to have some experience with it. If you can’t take an actual class, then there are some great free courses online in topics like data science, coding, and machine learning.