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NYU DS

Program Overview​

Very well-suited for students with a CS/DS/Math undergrad who want to do an MS to strengthen their research background and then transfer to a PhD. You can follow nyucds on Instagram to see how much they emphasize research. Not great for career changers to CS; better suited for those seeking DS jobs. Quite a few students transfer to PhD within the department. For students interested in research, you can start emailing professors right after admission — many programs allow you to join a research group as early as the summer.

The coursework is rigorous and mathematically demanding, so many admitted students come from math backgrounds. Most students here are aiming for a PhD or DS jobs. If you study diligently for two years, the knowledge you gain will essentially prepare you for any DS position. (That said, in the era of LLMs, DS roles also require ML/DL skills.) The program does an excellent job teaching the knowledge needed to become a Data Scientist. The career fair tends to attract more NYC financial industry companies.

Admission Preferences & Representative Data Points​

Tends to admit US-undergrad top-50 math/stat/econ majors. The student body is roughly 1/3 Chinese, 1/3 Korean + Indian, and 1/3 white and other ethnicities.

Official admission report: In the 2021 intake cycle, the average GPA was 3.87. Our students' transcripts usually include As and Bs (only), and we expect stronger grades in more relevant subject matter (see below) from those coming from less selective institutions.

Average GRE Verbal: 159.3 (80th percentile) Average GRE Quantitative: 167.4 (90th percentile) Average GRE Analytical: 4.14 (61st percentile) Average TOEFL (where required): 111

  1. NYU Data Science undergrad, GPA 4.0
  2. UCI DS undergrad, GPA 3.97
  3. NYU BA undergrad, GPA 3.96
  4. UW Math undergrad, GPA 3.95
  5. Rutgers University DS undergrad, three years DS full-time work experience
  6. Brandeis University CS undergrad, GPA 3.79

Job Outcomes & Data Points​

Primarily DS positions. The landing rate is quite good compared to peer DS programs at the same tier.

  1. NYU Data Science undergrad, multiple research experiences, landed small-company DS intern
  2. UCI DS undergrad, landed C3 AI
  3. Indian student, one year internship experience in India, landed BCG DS
  4. Indian student, three and a half years full-time at SAP, landed CVS DS