PROVIDENCE – Technology advances and their ethical applications will stand as a central focus in a new online degree program offered by Brown University.
The university’s online master’s degree in data science, a 16-month course, will “train future leaders who can handle vast volumes of data and do so with the greater good in mind,” the university said in an announcement.
Brown had already offered an on-campus master’s degree in data science, the statement notes, but the online program “expands on the foundational data science skills” in that course, with a focus on policy, governance and societal impacts.
As artificial intelligence technology continues to advance, the program aims to give students the skills needed to undertake “the once-in-a-generation opportunity to shape the foundation of AI governance practices across the world,” said Suresh Venkatasubramanian, a Brown professor and interim director of the university’s Data Science Institute.
“The world is paying close attention to AI now – and even closer attention to how we deploy AI systems in ways that are responsible and that center the needs and aspirations of all of us,” Venkatasubramanian said.
“AI governance – the set of practices, tools and policies that ensure that AI deployments align with our values and goals – is therefore crucial for any organization seeking to deploy AI at scale, whether it be in the private or public sector,” he said in a statement.
But these principles are rarely taught in existing data science or computer science programs, Venkatasubramanian said.
“You can acquire the skills you need separately, but not as a cohesive unit in the context of big data and AI,” he said. “That is what our program seeks to provide.”
The program’s first cohort will launch in September 2025.
Jacquelyn Voghel is a PBN staff writer. You may reach her at [email protected].
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