Department of Computer Engineering & Computer Science<\/a>.<\/p>\nComputer Engineering & Computer Science chair Shadnaz Asgari speaks with students in front of a graphic used in the university’s new applied data science program. Health analytics is one of two pathways now offered, although more are expected to follow.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Department chair and professor Shadnaz Asgari said the small number of students was a strategic choice; the plan has always been to get the curriculum locked into place before expanding.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have focused on building a high-quality, rigorous academic foundation first,\u201d she said. \u201cNow that the infrastructure is in place, we are ready to scale.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Unlike traditional data science degrees, CSULB\u2019s new program is designed to connect technical skills with specific fields of study. Excluding the general education requirements, the major’s curriculum is split: Roughly 65% of the coursework is in core computer science, while the remaining 35% is dedicated to a specialized track\u00a0<\/p>\n
We are living in this big data era.<\/p>\n
Right now, the program offers two such tracks \u2014\u00a0computational linguistics and health analytics \u2014\u00a0although Asgari predicts many more will follow.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to give them flexibility, in addition to specific expertise,\u201d Asgari said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In healthcare, for example, data science is already changing how doctors diagnose and treat patients. Instead of relying on trial and error to find the right medication, future systems could analyze genetic data to predict what will work best for each individual.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThings become more personalized,\u201d Asgari said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In language-focused fields, data science powers tools like chatbots, translation systems and voice recognition \u2014 technologies that shape how people communicate every day. All those systems rely on massive datasets and computing power.\u00a0<\/p>\n
AI is a tool. The same way that the calculator was invented, or the knife was invented.<\/p>\n
“You divide the workload into smaller subtasks across different processors,” Asgari explained, describing the distributed computing process. Then, once the tasks are complete, you merge the results to get the final solution.”\u00a0<\/p>\n
That\u2019s the kind of work that excites Jibikilay.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In high school, she worked on a research project analyzing bacteria levels in hand dryers \u2014 collecting samples, tracking patterns and presenting findings.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s definitely a sense of storytelling and pattern recognition,\u201d she said. \u201cYou need to think about the bigger picture.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Now that she knows she\u2019s part of this program\u2019s launch, she\u2019s beginning to appreciate how datasets can be applied across different fields. An avid reader with strong English skills, Jibikilay is leaning toward computational linguistics as her chosen pathway, although applications of AI in other sectors also interest her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt can be used in different places,\u201d she said, \u201clike business.” And that\u2019s exactly the point. In fact, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, jobs in data science are projected to grow 35% over the next decade \u2014 far outpacing most industries.\u00a0<\/p>\n
While AI continues to dominate debate, Asgari tends to view it in practical terms.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAI is a tool,\u201d Asgari said. \u201cThe same way that the calculator was invented, or the knife was invented.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
How it\u2019s used \u2014 and who knows how to use it \u2014 is what comes next. \u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Steffy Jibikilay thought she knew exactly what she was signing up for when she chose data science at…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":248626,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[1818,1820,7,1815,1823,1821,1822,1819,131,133,132,1817,1816],"class_list":["post-248625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-long-beach","tag-49ers","tag-cal-state","tag-california","tag-college","tag-conoley","tag-csu","tag-csulb","tag-dirtbags","tag-long-beach","tag-long-beach-headlines","tag-long-beach-news","tag-long-beach-state","tag-university"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248625","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=248625"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/248625\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/248626"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=248625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=248625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=248625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}