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Data Science Major, B.A.

The bachelor of arts (B.A.) in data science provides students with high-level development of competencies in mathematics, statistics, computational foundations, ethics, and communication. The curriculum aims to go beyond basic competencies, providing opportunities to integrate analytic techniques across a broad variety of coursework, and allow students to customize the application of data science knowledge according to discipline-specific domain specializations.

The degree coursework is organized by five competencies and a domain specialization.

Competencies

You can explore the competencies below by clicking each box.

For a full list of course descriptions and requirements, please see the UNC Course Catalog.

Specializations

In addition to the courses above, students must choose a domain specialization.

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Sociology

The sociology specialization enables students to understand how data, the analysis of data, and social scientific methodological approaches can be used to study people in society, including interpersonal dynamics, inequality, social structures, and cultural systems.

Courses

  • SOCI 251: Research Methods

Select three courses from the following list:

  • MNGT 345: Public Policy Toward Business
  • MNGT 380: The Economics of Labor Relations
  • SOCI 121: Population Problems
  • SOCI 172: Introduction to Population Health in the United States
  • SOCI 252: Data Analysis
  • SOCI 277: Societies and Genomics
  • SOCI 302: Fieldwork in Entrepreneurship
  • SOCI 427: The Labor Force
  • SOCI 429: Religion and Society
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Data and Society

This specialization equips students to understand the social, cultural, historical, and political dimensions and impacts of data-driven technologies. Students will learn critical capacities to engage with and evaluate contemporary technologies, understand their histories, and map their social impacts.

Courses

Select four courses from the following list:

  • COMM 83: First-Year Seminar: Networked Societies (first-year students only)
  • COMM 86: First-Year Seminar: Surveillance and Society (fist-year students only)
  • COMM 249: Introduction to Communication Technology, Culture, and Society
  • COMM 348: Algorithms and Society
  • COMM 360: Social Media and Society
  • COMM 453: The History of New Media Technology in Everyday Life
  • COMP 380: Technology, Ethics, & Culture H
  • MEJO 242: From Gutenberg to Google: A History of Media
  • HIST 322: Technology and American Culture
  • HIST 328: History of the Computer
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Geographic Information Science

This specialization equips students to understand fundamentals of GIScience concepts and build expert knowledge in the use of geospatial technologies such as GIS, remote sensing, spatial analysis and modeling, database development and management, programming, Web GIS, and geovisualization.

Courses

  • GEOG 215: Introduction to Spatial Data Science
  • GEOG 370: Introduction to Geographic Information

Select two courses from the following list:

  • GEOG 391: Quantitative Methods in Geography
  • GEOG 410: Modeling of Environmental Systems
  • GEOG 456: Geovisualizing Change
  • GEOG 477: Introduction to Remote Sensing of the Environment
  • GEOG 491: Introduction to GIS
  • GEOG 541: GIS in Public Health
  • GEOG 544: Geographic Information Systems for Impact Evaluation and Health Studies
  • GEOG 555: Cartography of the Global South
  • GEOG 567: Geospatial Data Analysis with Google Earth Engine
  • GEOG 577: Advanced Remote Sensing
  • GEOG 591: Applied Issues in Geographic Information Systems
  • GEOG 592: Geographic Information Science Programming

Additional specializations under development.