Master in Data Science for Decision Making

The master’s programme in Data Science for Decision Making is a two-year programme and leads to the title Master of Science (M.Sc.). Data Science for Decision Making is the discipline concerned with optimisation and decision making, using tools and models from applied mathematics.

During the first year of the programme, students participate in two research projects that incorporate knowledge gained from the followed courses.

During the first semester of the second year, the programme allows you to pursue personal interests. You can partake in an international exchange, an elective semester, do a company or a research internship. In the second semester of the second year, you will work on your master’s thesis on a research topic of your personal interest, under the supervision of one of the academic staff members. You can do this master’s thesis research internally or externally at a company or in collaboration with one of the partner universities of DKE.

Programme description

The master’s programme in Data Science for Decision Making covers a wide range of topics in applied and theoretical areas, with emphasis on the following topics:

• Optimisation of continuous functions and of problems of a combinatorial nature
• Business IT concepts, production planning, scheduling and supply chain management
• Modelling and decision making under randomness, for instance in queuing theory and simulation
• Signal and image processing with emphasis on wavelet analysis and applications in the biomedical domain
• Bio-informatics: gene and protein interaction networks, inheritance trees from DNA and data-mining for sequences in DNA
• Estimation and identification of mathematical models, and fitting models to data
• Dynamic game theory, non-cooperative games and strategic decision making with applications in evolutionary game theory and biology
• Basics of feedback control design and optimal control, for stabilization and for tracking the desired behaviour
• Symbolic computation and exact numerical computation, with attention to speed, efficiency and memory usage.

In addition, master’s thesis research projects can be carried out that relate to projects offered by regional institutes and companies. The members of the scientific staff are all actively involved in the department’s on-going research programme. As a result, the educational content of the courses in the master’s programme in OR relates directly to the research performed.

The master’s programme in Data Science for Decision Making provides you with excellent qualifications to pursue a career in professional business, consultancy, industry, or scientific research. The Data Science for Decision Making programme is based on the Project-Centred Learning (PCL) education system.Through the programme, you acquire a thorough knowledge of state-of-the-art methods, techniques, and algorithms that are used to address all major issues in mathematical modelling and decision making. It also offers effective hands-on experience in applying this knowledge, by means of computer classes, the group research project, and the master’s thesis research project.

The PCL education system incorporates a number of important skills, including working in teams, interview techniques, project planning and presentation. Each of these skills will be important to future employers. The unique and modern blend of courses within this programme equips our graduates with all the required flexibility to develop a successful professional career in an area of personal interest. The comprehensive education, practical skills and international orientation of the programme will open the world to you. Graduates of the master’s programme Data Science for Decision Making have previously found doctoral and management positions at universities, research institutes, governmental institutions, and at R&D departments in the industry. Others have taken up consultancy and management positions in companies involving mathematical modelling, logistics, and the planning and scheduling of production processes.

There is a growing demand for graduates of the master’s programme Data Science for Decision Making from the areas of biomedical engineering and bioinformatics. When applying for positions, graduates from the master’s programme in Data Science for Decision Making are often preferred because of their problem-solving attitude, their modern scientific skills, their flexibility and their ability to model and analyse complex problems from a variety of application domains.