Faculty of ScienceSaint Mary’s University923 Robie StreetHalifax, Nova Scotia B3H 3C3msc.cda@smu.ca

smu.ca/mscda

MASTER OF SCIENCE

Computing & Data Analytics 2020

Meet the Demands of Big Data According to the IDC, the data we create is growing by 40% annually and by the end of 2020, 90% of large enterprises will generate revenue from data-as-a-service. With these staggering levels of growth, there is a huge appetite for data-savvy professionals. Simultaneously, the demand for conventional computing expertise also continues to rise.

To meet this demand, Saint Mary’s Master of Science in Computing & Data Analytics (MSc CDA) is a graduate-level, 16-month professional program that balances its focus on these two growth areas:

• Software design, development, customization, and management• Analytics and Business intelligence: acquisition, storage,

management, and analysis of huge amounts of data to improve efficiency, innovation, and decision making

MSc CDA’s primary focus is to develop highly qualified professionals who will drive innovation and organizational success.

Faculty and Industry ExpertsMSc CDA students learn from award-winning faculty from the Faculty of Science and the Sobey School of Business, internationally recognized with the prestigious AACSB accreditation. Fewer than 5% of the world’s business programs have earned AACSB, the highest worldwide standard for business schools.

Courses also feature industry instructors, so students receive real-world learning experiences. These industry interactions help students exponentially grow their professional networks and gain experience solving real-world business problems.

Career Path: Your Link to IndustrySince the program’s launch, nearly 100% of graduates have received full time job offers from Fortune 500 firms, SMEs, and start-ups alike. Graduates have been hired for a wide range of exciting jobs:

MSc CDA is a registered education provider for the Certified Analytics Professional (CAP) designation, managed by INFORMS, the leading international association for professionals in operations research and analytics. Graduates will have fulfilled the education requirements for the CAP credential and are prepared to write the qualifying exam.

To support our commitment to professional development, MSc CDA partners with a leading professional search firm that works with our students to transform their passion into careers.

Experiential LearningMSc CDA organizes industry-sponsored hackathons that foster creativity, teamwork and project management skills. Students enrich their portfolios by developing innovative data-driven applications and liaise directly with industry judges. The program also provides opportunities for students to attend external events, such as the International Business Analytics (IBA) Challenge, IEEE World Congress on Computational Intelligence, and RBC’s Next Great Innovator Hackathon.

Paid internships and industry-sponsored projects allow students to build skills while also developing important employment connections.

Learn. Apply. Innovate.

My passion for Data, plus experience I gained in MSc CDA program, helped me land a data science internship—and ultimately a full-time position. — Dinesh Kumar Govindaraj, Data Scientist at Home Except Inc

The program is very industry centric and provides tools and professional networking to learn the data analytics profession from the trenches. — Ildar Abdrashitov, Business Intelligence & Data Analyst at Missing Link Technologies

At IBM I am working as an IT Specialist to help find solutions to contemporary challenges. IBM provides me with new learning opportunities every day. — Kanngi Mahajan, IT Specialist, IBM

Recent Graduates:

Program StructureMSc CDA courses features technology, platforms, languages, and techniques that

are relevant to industry. To ensure students can adapt to industry needs/trends, the

program provides exposure to a broad range of technologies such as: Java/J2EE,

C#/.Net, JavaScript/jQuery/jQuery Mobile/node.js, HTML5, PHP, iOS, Android, Amazon

Web Services (AWS), IBM Bluemix, Azure, SAS, Cognos, SQL/MySQL, NoSQL/Mongo DB,

R, Python, Watson, Hadoop, Spark, and Hive.

In the first two semesters of the MSc CDA program, students are introduced to software

development and big data analytics challenges and solutions through eight foundation

courses. The program’s unique tutoring and technical mentorship includes group

sessions, one-on-one instruction, and practice.

Although not courses per se, students attend a series of workshops on industry relevant

topics and participate in various competitions to hone their technical and professional

skills. Examples include:

• Learning Spark from a Data Engineer, Mobivity Inc.

• Salesforce Saturday, Cloudkettle Inc.

• Data for Good - Poverty Hackathon, Chief Data Office, Government of Canada

• Innovative Design for Accessibility (IDeA), Universities Canada student competition

• Retail Hackathon, David Sobey Centre for Innovation in Retailing & Services

May to December (8 months)

Summer and Fall Terms

Applied learning options. Complete

one of the following:

1. Graduate Internship I & II

2. Master’s Project I & II

3. Master’s Thesis

Course Descriptions: www.smu.ca/academics/msccda-courses

Professional Development

Fall Hackathon

Conferences Career Development

IndustryWorkshops

Spring Hackathon

ProjectManagement

ProfessionalMentorship

September to December (4 months)

Fall Term

1. Software Development in

Business Environment

2. Statistics and Its Applications

in Business

3. UI/UX Design and Quality

Engineering

4. Managing & Programming

Databases

January to April (4 months)

Winter Term

1. Web, Mobile, and Cloud

Application Development

2. Business Intelligence and Data

Visualization

3. Big Data and Information Technology

Management

4. Data and Text Mining

Application & Admission The next available intake is September 2020.

The MSc CDA follows the general admission requirements and procedures of the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research, as outlined in the Graduate Academic Calendar: smu.ca/webfiles/2019-2020GraduateAcademicCalendar.pdf

MSc CDA is a highly competitive program with the following application process:

1. Before applying, contact cda.test@smu.ca for our required programming test.

2. After successfully completing the test, fill in the online application form: smu.ca/future-students/cs-apply-online.html

3. Submit the following required documents

• Official transcripts (BSc in Computing Science or equivalent; min. GPA equal to 70%)• Resume • Letter of intent• Three (3) recommendation forms

• Official proof of English language proficiency. Students whose first language is not English, and who have not attended an English language secondary school or who do not hold a degree completed entirely in English, must meet one of the following:

-- IELTS: Academic Minimum 6.5 (no band below 6.0)

-- TOEFL iBt: Minimum 80 (no band below 20)

-- English for Academic Purposes: Level 6 – Language Centre at Saint Mary’s.

4. As soon as all required documents are on file, we conduct an initial review and if your application meets admission requirements, you will be contacted for a technical interview.

5. If you are successful in the interview, the Admission Committee will recommend one of the following:

a. Early Admission – granted to exceptional candidates

b. Regular Admission: you will be added to a pool of candidates that will be re-evaluated against the number of available spaces for September 2020. If chosen for the cohort, you will be contacted by the Admission Committee

6. The Dean, Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research, issues the official decision letter.

7. Students must complete a Seat Deposit Form and pay a non-refundable deposit of $5,000. Once payment is received, a student’s seat is confirmed and the student can register for the program.

Once the program has reached capacity, incomplete applications will be closed and we will no longer accept new online applications until admission opens for the next available cohort.

Estimated Tuition Fees• Canadian Students $19,000• International Students $37,000

Tuition and Fees are paid in four installments at the beginning of each term (Sept 2020, January 2021, May 2021, Sept 2021). The university also charges Mandatory Fees and Medical & Dental insurance. Please refer to the 2019-20 Program Fee Schedule: smu.ca/academics/graduate-tuition-fees.

smu.ca • msc.cda@smu.ca

Saint Mary’s CampusA customized, multi-million dollar

learning space designed specifically for

MSc CDA students featuring state-of-

the-art computer hardware and software

opened in January 2018.

Saint Mary’s has a government-certified

immigration counsellor who advises

students on all visa and post graduate

work permit matters.

HALIFAX: Atlantic Canada’s Innovation HubSaint Mary’s University, a world-class

institution with a rich 200+ year history,

offers state-of-the-art facilities and a

dynamic, multicultural community. Saint

Mary’s is located in Halifax, Nova Scotia,

the bustling economic and cultural

centre of Canada’s east coast.

Nova Scotia recently solidified its

commitment to the growth of industry

and data analytics with the establishment

of the IBM Global Delivery Center.

RBC, Canada’s largest employer in the

financial services sector, also opened a

shared service centre in Halifax focusing

on data analytics.

Our students benefit from IBM’s active

academic alliance program which

provides data analytics resources

including licensing of software,

instructional videos, and data analytics

case studies. The collaboration

also includes involvement of IBM

professionals in student mentoring.