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Accelerated Data Science Program

Take your career prospects to the next level. Pair a master’s degree in data science with any undergraduate major to build powerful analytical skills and prepare for a wide range of career opportunities.

Program Snapshot

Accelerated Degree

4.5 Years

Salem, Portland

Two data science students working on a problem with a professor

Our Accelerated MS in Data Science Program

The accelerated MS in Data Science is designed to help Willamette undergraduates of any major add advanced data, analytics, and AI skills to their undergraduate education. Earn your bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in just four years and a summer, combining the breadth of your undergraduate major with graduate level data science training that can help you stand out in an increasingly data driven job market.

Why pursue an accelerated bachelor's/MS degree in Data Science at Willamette?

  • Add data science to any undergraduate major. Whether you study business, biology, politics, psychology, the arts, environmental science, or another field, you can pair your undergraduate degree with advanced skills in data analysis, analytics, and AI.
  • Strengthen your career opportunities. Data plays an increasingly important role across industries. An advanced degree can help you distinguish yourself in a competitive job market while preparing you to apply data science skills in a wide range of careers.
  • Build professional connections. Willamette’s data science community includes connections with organizations such as KEEN, Port of Portland, Salem-Keizer Public Schools, Cascadia Consulting, Intel, adidas, PacifiCorp, and others.
  • Work on real world data problems. Graduate coursework includes a summer capstone project where students apply what they have learned to real data, often in partnership with an outside organization or project sponsor.
  • Save time and money. Complete your bachelor’s and master’s degrees on an accelerated timeline, with graduate coursework included in Willamette’s flat-rate tuition while you’re an undergraduate. That can significantly reduce the cost compared with earning a master’s degree separately.
  • Apply with fewer barriers. The accelerated program offers a streamlined application process with no application fee or standardized test scores required.

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Environmental Science and Data Science student Dorsey Pearson BS ’26 combined interests in archaeology and data to help researchers uncover new insights from a 5,000 year old archaeological site in Scotland.

Dorsey’s Story

Using data science to uncover the secrets of the past

Working alongside Willamette faculty, Dorsey used data science to analyze geochemical data collected from Scotland’s Ness of Brodgar, one of Europe’s most significant Neolithic archaeological sites. His research focused on creating spatial and temporal heatmaps that helped researchers better understand how the site may have been used thousands of years ago.

View Story
Research at Willamette’s Archaeology Field School, Scotland’s Ness of Brodgar
By combining environmental science with data science, Dorsey gained the tools to tackle questions neither discipline could answer alone and participate in research opportunities rarely available to undergraduate students.

Alumni Stories

Data science alumni have applied their skills and expertise to a variety of fields such as medicine, business, and environmental science. They’ve accepted positions with major companies and built impressive careers. Find out more about how data science graduates are having an impact using new and evolving technology.

  • Tiffany Truong BS/MS ’26

    Combining Data Science and Public Health
    Tiffany Truong BS/MS ’26 combined her interests in public health and data science through Willamette’s accelerated MS in Data Science program. By applying data science tools to public health challenges, Tiffany learned how data can help tell stories, improve health systems, and inform decisions that affect communities.

    Tiffany Truong BS/MS ’26
  • Alex Weirth BS ’23, MS ’24

    Using Data Science to Advance Sustainability
    Alex Weirth combined his undergraduate studies in environmental science with a master’s degree in data science at Willamette. Today, as an analyst at Evergreen Economics, he uses data to evaluate energy efficiency programs and renewable energy initiatives and measure their effectiveness and impact.

    Alex Weirth BS ’23, MS ’24

Introducing Some of Our Faculty

Our faculty is comprised of experienced professionals actively working in their respective fields. Because of this, they are able to offer students the most up-to-date industry insights. Through one-on-one mentorship, professors provide personalized support and access to professional networks.

  • Meet Dr. Kristen Gore

    Professor Gore brings extensive experience from her tenure at HP Inc., where she led statistical data strategies and quality systems for advanced technology platforms. In addition, she has a passion for STEM outreach, serving as a LEGO robotics volunteer.

    Portrait of Kristen Gore
  • Meet Dr. Calvin Deutschbein

    Professor Deutschbein, an expert in computer security and systems. Their research has gained recognition from industry leaders like Intel and the Semiconductor Research Corporation, as well as at prominent hardware security conferences.

    Photo of Professor Deutschbein
  • Meet Dr. Heather Kitada Smalley

    Professor Kitada Smalley, Willamette’s Albaugh Assistant Professor of Statistics, is an applied statistician with expertise in survey methodology and data visualization using R. Her work has been recognized nationally, and her research explores bias estimation in public opinion surveys, experimental design, and educational rese

    Kitada Smalley headshot

Curriculum

Our BA/BS and MS in Data Science programs cover everything from technical skills to critical thinking. While undergraduate courses create a foundation of knowledge, graduate courses go further in depth, building your proficiency with systems and programs. The curriculum of both programs will help students gain the expertise they need to prepare for an evolving field.

  • DATA 503 Fundamentals of Data Engineering

    Learn to work with data that is both clean and structured, and dirty and unstructured. Students in this course learn the ways that data is stored and processed, giving them tools to work with databases. 

  • DATA 505 Applied Machine Learning

    Explore machine learning through practical applications like personalized recommendations, image processing, and speech recognition. With lectures, cases, and programming projects, you'll learn to solve real-world problems, run evaluations, and interpret results using existing machine learning libraries.

Program Requirements

Students will work with an advisor to follow an accelerated pathway. In the accelerated degree program, students will spend their senior year completing graduate level coursework. There are distinct pathways for students who major in Data Science and students who major in another discipline.

A glass meeting room where a professor is chatting with students

Admissions Information

Earn your bachelor’s degree and an MS in Data Science on an accelerated timeline. Open to students in any major, the program helps you build advanced data skills and enter the workforce sooner. Explore admission requirements for the Accelerated MS in Data Science.

Professor Kristen Gore chatting with a student

Financial Aid & Scholarships

Students who choose the Accelerated MS in Data Science program continue to receive their undergraduate financial aid for eight semesters and are charged the undergraduate tuition rate. They are then charged a fixed Summer Semester Tuition rate.

A student writing on a white board in Ford Hall

FAQs

In Willamette’s accelerated data science program, you will spend your senior year of undergrad completing both your bachelor's and the MSDS. Only already admitted Willamette College students are eligible to apply for the accelerated program. Accelerated MS in Data Science students join the graduate cohort and have access to the resources and opportunities available to graduate students in their senior year, as well as a specially designed career course sequence led by an experienced Career Advisor.

Students can keep their undergraduate financial aid during their senior year. The summer of graduate-level study ending the program is billed at the BS/MSDS Summer Semester Tuition Rate.

Willamette students interested in joining the Accelerated MS in Data Science  Program should speak with their advisor, and follow this path:

  1. Apply to the Accelerated MS in Data Science  as a junior to reserve your spot
  2. Complete most of your required undergraduate courses by the end of your junior year
  3. Begin graduate coursework in fall of your senior year as part of the MSDS cohort
  4. Finish remaining graduate courses in the summer

Yes. Willamette students can pair the accelerated MS in Data Science with any undergraduate major. Whether you study biology, business, environmental science, politics, psychology, the arts, or another field, the program is designed to help you add advanced data, analytics, and AI skills to your undergraduate education. That combination can help you apply data in the field you already care about and stand out in an increasingly data-driven job market.

Here's what students can expect their senior year to look like:

Fall

  • Data Visualization
  • Technology Careers 1
  • Graduate-level Data Science Topics Course
  • Undergraduate Course
  • Undergraduate Course

Spring

  • Data Engineering
  • Machine Learning
  • Data Ethics
  • Technologies Careers 2
  • Undergraduate Course

Summer

  • Data Capstone
  • Advanced Data Engineering
  • Advanced Machine Learning

A degree in data science equips you with skills to analyze, interpret, and leverage data for decision-making across various domains. Here are some career paths and roles available to you with a degree in data science: 

  • Data Scientist
  • Data Analyst
  • Machine Learning Engineer
  • Business Intelligence (BI) Analyst
  • Data Engineer
  • Quantitative Analyst
  • Operations Analyst
  • Healthcare Data Analyst
  • Marketing Data Analyst
  • Product Analyst
  • Risk Analyst
  • Data Science Consultant
  • Academic Researcher
  • Data Privacy Officer
  • Entrepreneur/Startup Founder

Learn more about what you can do with a Master's in Data Science.

Students study in Salem for their undergraduate course requirements. Graduate instruction during the fourth year can occur in either Salem or Portland. Students who need to take undergraduate course requirements during the fourth year must take them in Salem.

Willamette University

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