There are already more than 300 areas of study available at Boston University, and in the fall of 2021, we added another to the mix.

The latest addition is designed to equip students with the analytical and computational skills necessary to succeed in almost every field these days, from science and engineering to arts and humanities.

Say hello to the BS in data science, offered by the Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences (CDS). Drawing on topics in traditional STEM disciplines, the new degree program provides students with the foundational knowledge and practical training in algorithmic and statistical data analysis, machine learning, and software engineering—crucial competencies in a world increasingly defined by computation, big data, and artificial intelligence.

CDS was founded in 2019 and will be housed in the iconic 19-story Center for Computing & Data Sciences, scheduled to be completed in 2022. CDS complements and connects various academic disciplines through the language of computation and data. Free from the limits of traditional academic structure, it is a truly interdisciplinary academic unit.

In addition to the new major, plans are underway to launch an undergraduate minor in data science. And at the graduate level, students have been accepted in the PhD program in CDS, with an inaugural group of students starting in September 2021. And a master’s degree program in data science is in the offing.

BU’s investment in the world of computing and data sciences comes at a time when companies large and small are gobbling up unfathomable amounts of data every day and finding new ways to study, analyze, and use it.

“The program puts students in front of real data and big questions,” says Azer Bestavros, associate provost for computing and data sciences and a College of Arts & Sciences professor of computer science. “The major is really about students gaining the tools to make a bigger impact in whatever career they choose to pursue.”