The Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, the nation’s most prominent accreditor of programs in science, technology, and engineering, according to an announcement, said that Northern Kentucky University’s bachelor’s degree in data science will be the first of only two data science programs in the U.S. to earn the organization’s accreditation.
As data science has emerged as an important field over the last decade, ABET announced that it would be creating accreditation standards for it, according to the organization. NKU was selected in 2020 to be one of only two universities to undergo the inaugural accreditation process.
NKU’s data science program was only the third such bachelor’s program in the U.S. when it launched in 2013. The program focuses on big-data analytics and machine learning, combining a background in computer science and statistics with real-world capstone projects.
The NKU data science capstone students underwent a project for Fidelity using artificial intelligence techniques to analyze social media posts.
“The students worked outside the box of their traditional course and drove many of the research aspects of the project with minimal guidance from Fidelity,” said Allen Detmers, vice president of Fidelity Investments. “Their final presentation gave us useful insights that will further Fidelity products.”
Dr. Kevin Kirby, the dean of the NKU College of Informatics, said they began shaping the data program in 2011.
“A good data scientist must be broadly skilled, a true renaissance person,” Kirby said.
The ABET focuses on learning outcomes and sets of attributes professionals must possess to excel in their field. Dr. Maureen Doyle, the chair of the Computer Science Department, served on the Association of Computing Machinery’s workgroup to develop a curriculum guide for data science and led the NKU effort.
“The ABET accreditation review process is rigorous and thorough in its evaluation of program content, assessment, and university support,” Doyle said. “I’m proud of how NKU came together to make this accreditation happen.”
NKU is also working to engage K-12 students in the field. NKU is the primary university partner in WeLead CS, an initiative to expand access to accelerated early college career pathways in computing for Kentucky high school students.
“It’s imperative Kentucky prepares students for these opportunities,” said Alicia Sells, director of innovation at the Ohio Valley Education Cooperative. “With guidance from the NKU College of Informatics, WeLead CS has developed a dual college credit program that will provide a seamless pipeline from Kentucky’s high schools to NKU’s bachelor’s degree in data science. ABET accreditation of the NKU bachelor’s degree adds great credibility to our efforts to engage schools, students, and parents.”
NKU’s data science program is one of a cluster of degree programs that are undergoing sudden new growth. Enrollment in NKU’s computer science and software engineering program cluster, which includes data science, is up more than 18 percent compared to one year ago, according to the university.