On Saturday, December 17, 2016, degree candidates, faculty, and staff assembled in the Moody Coliseum for the all-University Commencement Convocation. The ceremony brought together disciplines from SMU’s seven degree-granting schools. Among them were fourteen graduates of the inaugural Master of Science in Data Science class.

Q&A with Chad Maybin, DataScience@SMU student. Between work and scheduling trips with his family to as many water parks as possible, Maybin knows how to stay busy. Chad disscusses why a data science program delivered online was the best option. 

Around the world, the airline industry is continually seeking new methods to improve operations and enhance the customer experience. And increasingly, it’s using big data and data analytics to do it. For Immersion 2016, DataScience@SMU invited Steve Shaffer, CIO of Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), to share his thoughts on ways to find meaning in data in relation to the airline industry. Here, we’ll highlight the opportunities and advantages for big data and analytics in airport optimization that Shaffer sees — as well as how other players in the industry are aligning with such efforts.

Students in the Master of Science in Data Science program at Southern Methodist University are required to take the Data and Network Security course as part of their core coursework. This course focuses on the fundamental concepts, mechanisms and protocols for data and network security. We asked our students to reflect on the topics covered in this course and how the course has impacted the development of their data science skills. 

When people think of data science they correctly associate it with big data and usually think of Silicon Valley. But the alternatives to “The Valley” are surprising, and trends in this field (like many others) are skewing to disruption. Smart students and motivated professionals of all ages are finding that earning a master’s degree in data science allows them to transition into a new field, or grow in their current one, in many different parts of the United States.

Q&A with Carrie Garcia, DataScience@SMU student. Balancing school with her professional and growing family life, Garcia has little time to spare in her schedule. Carrie disscusses how an online data science program is helping her to make more data-driven decisions in the world of marketing.