Meet Alyssa Bawgus, Online Master of Science in Data Science student

After college, Alyssa Bawgus spent a decade as a semiconductor engineer at Raytheon. She had worked her way up to principal engineer and had acquired a solid base of technical knowledge and skills. What was missing, she decided, was a similarly strong foundation in data science. That realization led Bawgus to the Tufts University online Master of Science in Data Science MSDS.

A Massachusetts resident, Bawgus had long been aware of Tufts’ strong reputation; she also appreciated its proximity and the programʼs flexible online format. We chatted with Alyssa to learn more about her experience as a part-time online student, her career goals, and her advice for prospective students.

Tell us a little about yourself and what led you to the online MSDS program at Tufts.

I just finished the Tufts online MSDS program while working in the semiconductor manufacturing industry. Although I have a technical background, it was not software-focused, so this was a development area for me. I wanted to shore up the fundamentals I didn't necessarily have coming from a different background and gain formal education in growing fields like machine learning and AI. I wanted the academic background to build my authority and comprehension, which don't always come from working in the industry.

I wanted to go to Tufts because I'm local to the area and am familiar with the school and the level of engineers it produces. I had not done a graduate program before because it's so hard to accommodate a working schedule. The Tufts online MSDS format allowed me to manage a full-time job while completing coursework outside work hours. The flipped-classroom offline education allowed me to manage my learning independently while still having the resources of an actual graduate program.

Is there any particular class, project, or anything that sticks out in your memory that you enjoyed because it was challenging and interesting?

For my capstone project, I applied what I learned to my job by developing a reliability model. Usually, we do long-term testing to determine product lifetimes, but now we can use real-time results from the manufacturing line to make those predictions, providing a significant advantage for development. It was something I always wanted to do, and the knowledge I gained in the Tufts online MSDS enabled me to do it.

Where are you hoping this program will take you?

I really wanted to develop specific expertise. I wanted to do more data science in my role, and I wanted to solidify that with a strong academic foundation. I also wanted to have a very versatile and widely applicable skill set to be able to work and excel not only in my current field but also in other fields, and I was able to achieve that. 

Do you have any advice for students coming into the program?

Coming into the program, I think it's important to keep your time limits in mind. You want to stay on top of your coursework throughout the semester to ensure you don't get too behind. I think it works best when you keep a steady pace. Life always gets in the way, but managing your time as much as possible does help out a lot. 

If you want to learn more about the Tufts online MSDS, attend an upcoming event or contact an enrollment advisor. If you're ready to begin your journey, start your application.