NJ Pathways Happenings: Data Science Summer Institutes (2024)
Kelly Fitzpatrick / Joseph Diaco
Associate Professor, Mathematics, County College of Morris / Professor, Mathematics, Camden County College
kfitzpatrick@ccm.edu / jdiaco@camdencc.edu or (973) 328-5000 / (856) 227-7200
County College of Morris/Camden County College
Camden County College (CCC) and the County College of Morris (CCM) hosted 2024 Summer Institutes for Data Science.
CCM hosted its Summer Institute for Data Science, a four-day workshop (June 24 – June 27), for 25 local area high school students from 24 different high schools.
Students engaged in programs such as Natural Language Processing in Python, Statistical Analysis using R programming language, and Tableau for Data Visualization. These technologies and skills are recognized across the state as in-demand skills needed in Data Science.
As a result of participating in the Summer Institute, most students agreed or strongly agreed that they’re now more familiar with data science technologies and career opportunities in the field.
The Summer Institute for Data Science at CCC hosted 17 students from 10 different high schools who also participated in hands-on workshops with in-demand programs like Excel, R programming language, Python, and Tableau from July 22 – July 25. Daily projects included real-world data collection by physically measuring each other’s arm spans and heights, analyzing and visualizing these data in Excel and R programming language, Natural Language Processing in Python, and dashboard creation in Tableau.
The Summer Institute will help support and encourage enrollment in the dual enrollment programs that allow high school students to take college credit courses at their local high schools. These courses will count towards the Data Analytics certificates or degree programs. The students rated their overall experience a 4.47 out of 5.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the job market for mathematical occupations with skills to process and analyze big data is forecasted to grow 30% (or about 3500 openings per year) between 2022-2032. According to Indeed, the necessary programming and software skills for data analysts and scientists include Python, R, SQL, Tableau, Apache Hadoop and Microsoft Excel.
