Pathways in Data Science
Course Description
Learn how to glean insights and meaning from complex sets of data in this overview of a field with growing importance in business, government, and scientific research. You will learn to use the transformational tools of data science and machine learning, and see how researchers are applying them in various scientific and social science fields. You will study how data is collected and stored and then how it is explored, visualized, and communicated. Using Python, you will learn techniques for classification, prediction, inference, and regression. Through group projects, you will use these techniques to study a data science problem of your own choice. Visiting guest lecturers will broaden your perspectives by sharing how data science is used in their diverse fields, ranging from business applications to biology.
Course Criteria
Students should have experience with programming (preferably Python), and ideally calculus through single variable calculus (AP Calculus AB or equivalent). Students without programming experience must complete a free online Python course before the beginning of the course; information will be available from instructors in the weeks before the course begins.
Academic Interest
Examining Culture and Society, Math and Computer Science
Application Materials
A complete application includes a transcript, two short essays, a letter of recommendation, writing sample, application fee, and a submitted parent confirmation. If you are seeking need-based financial aid, you must indicate that in your application before it is submitted. Please refer to the Application Instructions for complete details.
Instructor(s)
Melissa Adrian, Jimmy Lederman
Cost
$8,900
Other Courses to Consider
These courses might also be of interest.
Mathematical and Computational Research in Biological SciencesWhat can a person’s genome reveal? Could it predict the diseases they may develop? Modern biology produces vast amounts of data, and analyzing this data requires mathematical and computational approaches. In this hands-on exploration of the computational biology techniques, students will learn how macromolecules, such as DNA, RNA, and proteins, perform their functions and how to visualize and quantify their behavior. This course will provide an introduction to the basics of computer coding for biological data analysis, and how to apply cutting-edge high performance computation to biological questions using the super computers at the University of Chicago Research Computing Center (RCC).
Students will be instructed on how to do literature searches and how to prepare a scientific poster to effectively communicate their research findings and data analyses.
Residential
How Societies Work (or Don't)How do societies work? Why do they so often seem to break down and fail? Should we even expect societies to “work” as cohesive entities, or should we assume that they are always rife with conflict, inequality and power struggles? In in this class, we will address these and other questions by taking a deep dive into different schools of social thought: materialism, which sees the production of goods and services as the force that shapes social organization; structural functionalism, which argues that society’s various parts work together to strengthen social cohesion; social action theory, which argues values, worldviews and social institutions (e.g. religion and family) shape individual activities; symbolic interactionism, which focuses on micro-relationships; and, finally, post-modernism, which avoids any over-arching theory of society. Through these explorations, we will also address topics such as race, class, gender, technology, capitalism and modernity. Our readings will include works by Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim, Max Weber, George Herbert Meade Michel Foucault, Pierre Bourdieu, Judith Butler and others.
Residential
Career Insight: Technology and InnovationMove future-forward in pursuits like AI, human-computer interface, nanotechnology, and climate engineering. Your journey begins here at UChicago, home of cutting-edge innovation hubs in all of these areas and more.
In the morning, UChicago professors, lecturers, and researchers will introduce you to key concepts and practices in molecular engineering, computer science, and the physical sciences through lectures, discussions, readings, and hands-on activities designed to reveal a range of possible pursuits. In the afternoon, connect with practitioners through presentations, informational interviews, and career treks around the city, and with Career Advancement staff who will help you consider what various career paths you might follow and cultivate the skills you need to begin to pursue those opportunities. You will keep a response journal and complete other assignments that will become a part of a final portfolio that you will submit at the end of the program.
Residential