“Data science is perhaps the most exciting area in all of enterprise technology right now, and it’s evolving at a lightning pace,” according to a recent declaration from Tech Crunch magazine.
Recognizing the significance of this industry, Ramapo College of New Jersey and County College of Morris on Thursday said they joined forces to create pathways for aspiring data scientists to earn a master’s in data science in as little as five years.
The presidents of CCM and Ramapo recently signed a data science transfer agreement, the first between a community college and a four-year institution in New Jersey. Known as a 2+2+1 agreement, the partnership will allow students to begin their education at CCM to earn their associate degree in computer science and then seamlessly transfer to Ramapo to earn their bachelor’s degree and then a master’s in data science, if they wish.
Thomas Ortega, of Randolph, a graduate of Morris Hills High School and CCM, is in his fourth year in the 2+2+1 program. Ortega, who also serves as the founder and president of the Ramapo College Data Science Club, shared: “My pathway between County College of Morris and Ramapo College has been a wonderful experience that has provided me with a great start to my data science career. With an engaging faculty, I always feel that I have the support I need to pursue hands-on data science projects.”
By taking a number of graduate courses as an undergraduate at Ramapo, the master’s can be completed in one year. By starting at a community college and then earning a master’s in a year, students can enjoy significant savings on their higher education. Students are not required to earn a master’s and can opt instead to earn a bachelor’s only.
“We’re pleased to be offering this opportunity for CCM students to seamlessly continue their data science higher education at Ramapo College so they can take advantage of a wide range of career opportunities,” Anthony Iacono, president of CCM, said. “We’re proud to enhance our relationship with such a great institution that also builds upon our reputation as the best community college in the state for transfer students.”
Among the first institutions in New Jersey to offer advanced degrees in data science, Ramapo’s Master of Science in data science program is nationally ranked as a Top 30 master’s program by Fortune magazine, making it the No. 1 graduate data science program in New Jersey. According to Fortune’s analysis, data science is one of the fastest-growing fields due to the increasing volume of data generated every day, which is “creating a steep demand for workers that can harness, analyze and create value from the data available.”
Dr. Cindy Jebb, president of Ramapo, said: “Ramapo looks forward to welcoming CCM graduates to our data science programs. Our Center of Data, Mathematical & Computational Sciences, which is home to our data science programs, is at the cutting edge of preparing undergraduate and graduate students to be highly skilled and ethical problem solvers by teaching them how to apply technical and interdisciplinary concepts to real-world challenges.”
