Faculty Advisor: Dr. Kevin Egan, Economics

The analysis of big data requires people trained in the social sciences who can effectively develop and utilize the data that they are able to access.  Analysts need to understand how people think and behave, and interpret data in relation to that human element.

Given this, the College of Arts and Letters is able to provide a unique undergraduate program in data analytics through our social science curriculum and faculty strengths. In this major, you will develop the quantitative and methodological skills to employ analytical techniques, work with big data sets, and make sense of analytical results within the framework of social and cognitive behaviors and population trends.

This major calls for specific courses to be taken to fulfill the 18 credit related category. Within that category for DAAN majors, an area of concentration is required in one of the following subjects: Economics, Geography and Planning, Political Science and Public Administration, Psychology, Sociology or Anthropology.  Alternatively, this requirement can also be satisfied through earning a minor in an approved social science. Consult with the program advisor when selecting courses to fulfill this requirement.

• PLO 1. Students will learn and apply skills in multivariate statistical analysis to social science data.
• PLO 2. Students will construct databases and learn to manipulate them with various techniques to use the data to answer their quantitative question of interest.
• PLO 3. Students will describe and evaluate various social and ethical issues related to the use of data analytics.
• PLO 4. Students will summarize and assess the importance of social context in analyzing social data.
• PLO 5. Students will recognize the strengths and limitations of quantitative analysis of social phenomenon.
• PLO 6. Students will effectively communicate the importance of their data analysis through written work and/or oral presentations.