Data Science Degree Programs in New Jersey
The size, scope, and concentration of industries within each U.S. state is an important factor that has a strong correlation to the number of data science job opportunities available. This is especially true when a city or state has a thriving tech sector. While every industry has the capability of leveraging the well-honed skills of a trained data scientist, the six-figure data science salary can be a hindrance for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).
Fortunately, for those seeking data science job opportunities in New Jersey, the Garden State is home to several major industries including pharmaceuticals, transportation and logistics, financial services, and information technology. The tech industry has a strong presence in New Jersey with 6.2% of Garden State employees working in the tech sector. Albeit, it’s not Silicon Valley but does contribute $56 billion to New Jersey’s economy.
Also, being New York’s neighbor, data scientists have a plethora of choices when it comes to finding a data science job since living in New Jersey and working in New York is an option. Thus, data scientists in New Jersey are not confined to working only in that state even though there are plenty of data science jobs available.
Career Outlook for Data Scientists in New Jersey
As of May 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that 2,840 employees are classified as data scientists. Keep in mind that not all employers use “data scientist” as a consistent job title; some use data analyst (even though there are distinct differences between the two), research scientist, Director of Research, Data Analytics Manager, and many other variations.
Read the job description closely: if you’re building machine learning models in addition to other advanced predictive analytic functions, that’s a sign that you’re viewing a data science job posting regardless of the actual job title. Many employers attach salary to job titles so they may be avoiding paying a data science salary while expecting you to fulfill those job functions.
BLS data says the mean annual salary for data scientists in New Jersey is $120,240, higher than the national median of $100,910. Computer and mathematical occupations as a whole in the state have a mean annual salary of $108,800.
New Jersey has a high cost of living: 32% higher than the national average (132.6 vs. 100). Median home prices are $100,000 more when compared to the rest of the U.S. With the average New Jersey data scientist salary being $108,000, that six-figure salary is quickly consumed by residents paying more for everything: utilities, taxes, transportation, housing, and groceries. Health care costs are lower than the U.S. average, but only slightly.
If you’re looking to only attend school in New Jersey and then find a data science job elsewhere, you’ll find that Garden State universities offer a wide selection of data science education options.
On-Campus Undergraduate Data Science Programs in New Jersey
On-campus bachelor’s degrees in data science are few in number throughout the U.S. Currently, there are no such on-campus programs available via New Jersey universities. Your alternative, if you’re intent on studying at a New Jersey university, is to major in a data science cornerstone, meaning statistics, business with an analytics emphasis, computer science or a STEM-related degree with supplementary coursework in a programming language, database systems, and college level courses in Calculus, Linear Algebra, and Advanced Statistics.
The New Jersey Institute of Technology offers many such degree programs that would perfectly align with many data science core competencies: B.S. in Business and Information Systems, B.S. in Computer Science, B.S. in Information Technology, and many others.
On-Campus Graduate Data Science Programs in New Jersey
On-campus graduate data science (and data science-oriented) programs are more ubiquitous than the on-campus undergraduate offerings. Some degrees may actually be hybrid programs, where you attend on-campus courses along with completing online, asynchronous coursework as well.
For example, Rutgers offers a Master of Business and Science degree. There are three “pathways” or tracks to choose from: Health Informatics, Finance, and Technical Analytics. All require a minimum of completing Calculus 1 prior to admission, and each emphasizes courses in either Python programming or AI. You must have a relevant bachelor’s degree depending on the pathway you choose, e.g., the Finance track requires a bachelor’s degree in any one of the following: Accounting, Business, Business Intelligence, Business Management Economics, Finance, Financial Economics, or a strongly related degree.
On-Campus Data Science Masters Programs in New Jersey
For a completely on-campus data science masters program located in New Jersey, Stevens Institute of technology has designed a Data Science Masters Program. A mere 15 minutes from the city of Manhatten, students will have opportunities to network with some of the major enterprises in the tech (and other) industries.
Over the course of completing 30 credits, you’ll gain advanced knowledge and hands-on experience in Statistical Methods, Deep Learning, Advanced Optimization Methods, Applied Machine Learning, and Dynamic Programming and Learning. Additionally, you have the choice of choosing electives from five categories: General Electives, Data Science, Data Acquisition and Management, Data Security, and Business Applications.
On-Campus Data Science Graduate Certificates in New Jersey
Not ready to invest two or more years and thousands of dollars for a master’s degree program? Then a graduate certificate may be the best choice for you.
The New Jersey Institute of Technology offers an on-campus graduate certificate in Big Data Essentials. You will complete a four-course series beginning with Introduction to Big Data and R Programming for Data Analytics. Furthermore, you’ll follow up with two elective courses of your choosing: Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, Advanced Machine Learning, High-Performance Data Analytics for Data Science, or Applied Statistics.
The credits earned for this graduate certificate can be transferred to one of the Institute’s masters programs. There are, however, prerequisites which include having attained a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, and three or more years of experience in programming.
On-Campus Data Science Ph.D. Programs in New Jersey
As with the previously mentioned data science job title variety, data science degree programs also come in different “flavors.” The New Jersey Institute of Technology’s on-campus Ph.D. in Business Data Science is a perfect example of this variation. Throughout the four to six year program, you’ll take courses in Data Mining, Data Management System Design, Statistical Computing with SaS and R, and Regression Analysis Methods; these are direct core competencies for data science.
However, Business Research Methods and many of the electives primarily focus on specific business systems and processes such as accounting, corporate finance, international investments, and so forth. Certainly, there are other electives that center on data science, e.g., advanced machine learning, data structures and algorithms, etc.
The Ph.D. in Business Data Science is geared towards those data scientists who want to apply their skills specifically to the business world, regardless of the particular industry. In essence, you would be accurate if you viewed this program as a combination of a Ph.D. in Business with a data science minor.
Online Data Science Degree Programs in New Jersey
Thomas Edison State University is a forward-thinking institution that offers an online Bachelor’s Degree in Data Science and Analytics. As is the case for just about every undergraduate degree program, you’ll complete 120 credits prior to being granted the B.S.
After the initial general education requirements are fulfilled, you’ll move on to your core study area: Principles of Statistics, Machine Learning Tools, Neural Nets and Regression, Linear Programming, and several other courses that fulfill data science core competencies. Thus, Thomas Edison State University’s online data science undergraduate degree provides an excellent foundation for a career in data science.
Online Data Science Masters Programs in New Jersey
Within The Garden State, there are more on-campus masters programs for data science than there are fully online options. One exception is the Master’s in Business Administration with a Data Analytics Concentration offered online through Thomas Edison State University.
During the roughly 15 months it takes to earn the graduate degree, your core credits will focus on the usual business education coursework: Marketing Management, Ethics for Managers, Financial Management, etc. From there, you’ll choose a concentration (in this instance, it would be Data Analytics), where you’ll complete an additional 12 credits in Managerial Statistics, Business Forecasting, Predictive Analytics for Business Intelligence, as well as a capstone course with Data Analytics and Visualization.
This is a solid selection for those who are interested in business and management with data analytics (not quite data science) as a supporting knowledge area. For meeting data science core competencies, you’ll need to supplement your education either through self-study or by taking additional courses in the data science biggies: advanced math and statistics, Python, R, SQL, and big data database systems.
Online Data Science Graduate Certificates in New Jersey
As a data scientist, you’re going to perform data mining, constantly. Consequently, a graduate certificate in data mining will provide the essential skills for this data science competency.
The New Jersey Institute of Technology’s Department of Computer Science has implemented a fully online Graduate Certificate in Data Mining which requires the completion of three core courses: Web Systems Development, Data Analytics for Information Systems, and Data Mining. You’ll also need to choose one elective course from one of the following: Java Programming, Enterprise Database Management, Information Retrieval, Transaction Mining and Fraud Detection, Web Mining, or Data Mining and Analysis.
Although the preferred programming languages for data science are Python and R (with SQL as a prime data manipulation tool), Java is a useful language for many data science activities. At the very least, establishing a thorough knowledge of one programming language increases the likelihood of knowledge transfer for gaining expertise in the other languages (you’ll still have a learning curve for the differences in syntax, available libraries, etc.).
Online Data Science Ph.D. Programs in New Jersey
As of this writing, there are no online Ph.D. in Data Science programs offered through New Jersey universities. We will update this page as online Ph.D. offerings become available for data science majors (or in one of the other core data science competencies).
2021 US Bureau of Labor Statistics salary and employment figures for data scientists reflect national data, not school-specific information. Conditions in your area may vary. Data accessed January 2023.
