Now, six months have passed since I officially started my journey into the world of data science. As promised, here’s my second quarterly update detailing my journey from a data-science-zero to analytical hero!
My first update can be found here.
To keep myself accountable and motivated, I set out these 5 goals in the previous update:
- Enroll in a Statistics graduate program
- Read and work through Introduction to Statistical Learning
- Read and work through Online Stat Book
- Complete 10 Blog Posts
- Update the layout of FisherAnkney.com
Enroll in M.S. Statistics Program
I’m happy to report that I’ve completed the most important goal listed above. In what turned out to be a six-month process, I’ve enrolled in a Master’s of Statistics program at Oklahoma State University. The position comes with a full tuition waver, and a two-year TA stipend of over $8,000 each semester.
The full breakdown of my admission results looks like this:
- Iowa State University - No Reply
- Colorado State University - Rejected
- University of Vermont - Accepted, Partial Funding
- University of New Hampshire - Accepted, No Funding
- Kansas State University - Accepted, Partial Funding
- Oklahoma State University - Accepted, Full Funding
- Utah State University - Rejected
The program at Oklahoma State University focuses on foundational statistical theory and applications; classes like Linear Models, Bayesian Analysis, Multivariate Analysis, Probability and Inference make up most required coursework. Beyond the required 30 credit hours of graduate classes, a 6-credit thesis of publishable research is required to graduate. The thesis project will allow me to apply for PhD positions if I so choose.
To earn the stipend and tuition waiver, I’m required to teach a section of Elementary Statistics to over 75 undergraduate students each semester. I’m delighted at the prospect of teaching again, even if I’ve only ever taken one statistics course 5 years ago…
Blog Posts
While I set out to complete 10 blog posts between April and July of 2018, I only ended up completing a single post. The post, Unpacking the Tidyverse - Tibble, is a simple tutorial on the tibble package of the tidyverse. While it’s a good post, it was short and easy to complete.
I’ve also wrote 90% of my most ambitious post yet, a roulette simulation. Unfortunately, it remains unfinished and cannot be counted in this update.
I’ve been very busy earning money in, and road tripping through, 12 National Parks in the last 4 months. And while it is not an excuse to slack on my personal projects, it is an explanation. It’s hard to pick up the laptop when you’re surrounded by giant sequoia trees in Redwood National Park, or by the sheer cliffs of Yosemite.
Introduction to Statistical Learning
I didn’t read or work through this book. It’s still on my to-do list, but must be pushed to the back burners for now, given my first semester of graduate school is quickly approaching. Perhaps I’ll take it on during the winter break later this year.
Introduction to Statistics - Online Edition
I’ve worked through the first half of Introduction to Statistics using a pen and paper. While it’s a simple refresher of elementary statistics, it’s long. I expect to finish the book well before the beginning of this fall semester. Besides, I need to brush up on my elementary statistics if I plan on teaching it to a lecture hall full of undergraduates. It has been five years since I’ve taken my one-and-only statistics course.
For the record, I did earn an A.
FisherAnkney.com
I’ve revamped the splash page and profile section of this website. While I’m happy with these improvements, the blog post selection screen is certainly lacking. I’d like to add on a short description of the post, or perhaps a visual aid. I would also like to enable pagination to accommodate future expansion.
The blog posts themselves are appealing enough, and I’ll leave them be for now. Eventually I would like to add in google analytics and learn some SEO to better optimize my blog posts for internet traffic.
The Next Three Months
July, August, and September of 2018 will surely be the most important three months of my data science journey so far.
I start my graduate career at Oklahoma State on August 6th with a two-week long Introduction to Scientific Teaching workshop. After that I dive into my coursework and planning my thesis research, both of which have yet to be determined. The graduate program focuses on foundational statistical theory and techniques, not necessarily on data science or computational analytics. That’s why now more than ever, it’s important for me to be pushing myself to learn technology and keep posting projects to this blog.
By October first, I plan to be performing at an A level in all my graduate courses at Oklahoma State. I will exceed all expectations set for me in graduate teaching and research. I will finish working through Introduction to Statistics - Online Edition before the semester begins. I also plan to create at least 5 more blog posts using R.
Thanks for following me on this journey, and check in for Data Science Update III on September 1st, to what happens when expectations meet reality!
Until next time,
- Fisher
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