Students and Alumni

Previous Degree: Bachelor of Science in Atmospheric Sciences, Cornell University
Previous Experience: Analyst, Consulting Team, Risk Management Solutions (RMS)
Program: MDS Vancouver, Class of 2020

I decided to pursue data science because it combines everything I like about research -- uncovering insights, the thrill of discovery, working with new and interesting data -- but is extensible across all fields. I love the idea that I can apply this skill-set effectively in completely different topics from day to day. It makes the future very exciting, because rather than looking for a specific type of job, I can instead look for a specific type of company whose mission and values I really believe in.

About Cari Gostic

New York-native Cari came to the MDS program after previously working as an analyst on the consulting team with Risk Management Solutions, a catastrophe modeling company. While working with RMS, Cari worked to streamline the integration of RMS software into clients’ workflows and complete custom projects like in-depth analyses of exposure or custom app development. Cari holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Atmospheric Science from Cornell University. Read Cari's story.

Previous Degree: Bachelor's in Medical Laboratory Science, University of British Columbia
Program: MDS Computational Linguistics, Class of 2020

Everything I am learning in MDS CL, from coding to statistics to Natural Language Processing is all interesting, relevant and applicable to what we've seen every day in the world. It makes you think how I can use this in my life and I like how the instructors put it in a way that I can easily apply these to multiple fields.

About Niki Hajmoshir

Niki received her Bachelor's in Medical Laboratory Science from the University of British Columbia. It was towards the last few years of her degree that Niki realized she wanted to switch fields into something more computer related and found herself working on projects that used Natural Language Processing. This resulted in Niki becoming very interested in Computational Linguistics and to apply to the MDS CL program. Meet Niki.

Previous Degree: Master's of Business Administration, University of British Columbia
Program: MDS Okanagan, Class of 2020

While I was born and raised in Kelowna, I always knew I wanted to pursue an education in a different city. After obtaining my undergraduate degree from the University of British Columbia’s Vancouver campus, I worked for seven years before returning to UBC, where I obtained my master’s degree. I then moved to Calgary where, in my operations role using large data sets to inform drilling locations, I began to see the importance and value of data analysis. When it came time to return to the Okanagan while also pursuing a master’s degree in data science, the more research I did about the MDS program at UBCO, I knew it was the right fit.  Now I’m combining my business acumen and technical background with working knowledge taught in the MDS program.

About Christian Hluchy

A Kelowna native, Christian relocated to Vancouver where he received his undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of British Columbia.  Christian then obtained a Master’s degree in Business Administration nearly a decade later, also from the University of British Columbia, before moving to Alberta to pursue a career in the oil and gas sector. After a successful stint as an operations manager that exposed him to the value of statistical analysis, Christian began looking for different career options that would help him find employment in the Okanagan. His research into the best data science program led him directly to MDS program on the UBCO campus, where he has excelled in the smaller learning environment. Christian hopes to combine his business background with the working knowledge taught in the MDS program to pursue a data related role in the Okanagan.

Previous Degree: Bachelor of Medical Sciences Degree with an Honors Specialization in Biochemistry, Western University's Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry
Program: MDS Okanagan, Class of 2020

[While completing my undergraduate studies], I was lucky to land myself in dry labs, where I found myself enjoying statistical analysis and introductory-level programming. I wanted to elevate my foundational skills as I believe . . . data science is an effective tool that leads to a measurably impactful career in an array of disciplines. When looking at programs with accelerated learning combined with small class sizes and a campus with a close-knit community feel, the MDS program on the UBCO campus presented itself as the perfect fit. I hope to utilize the working knowledge taught in the MDS program to pursue a data related role in the global health sector.

About Kaitlyn Hobbs

Originally from Mississauga, Ontario, Kaitlyn obtained a Bachelor of Medical Sciences degree from Western University. It was during her undergraduate studies where she developed a deep appreciation for statistical analysis and programming and it was Kaitlyn’s investigation into the best data science program that led her directly to UBCO’s MDS program. Kaitlyn hopes to parlay the knowledge taught in the MDS program on the Okanagan campus into a job in the global health sector, where she would like to work on improving data collection. Read Kaitlyn's story.

Previous Degree: Bachelor Degree, Mechanical Engineering from the University of Victoria
Program: MDS Okanagan, Class of 2020

I gained an interest in improving my data collection and analysis techniques through teaching myself how to use Excel VBA. I started to look into how I could further improve my skills and during this search, I found that data science was the field that employed the skills that I was looking to develop. I searched for programs that offered both small class sizes and an accelerated learning path. I quickly discovered that my best option would be to return home and attend UBCO’s MDS program. Now through the program, I have gained the skills and knowledge to apply for entry level data science, data analyst, and machine learning positions.

About Connor Lee

Connor, a native of Vernon, obtained a Bachelor Degree, Mechanical Engineering from the University of Victoria. Having developed a deep appreciation for data collection and analysis techniques, Lee’s desire to improve his technical abilities and love for the Okanagan led him straight to UBCO’s MDS program. Read Connor's story.

Previous Degree: Bachelor of Science in Microbiology and Immunology, University of British Columbia
Program: MDS Vancouver, Class of 2020

[During my Master’s of Science in Public Health], in one class, students were instructed to conduct a literature review on a topic related to public health. I don’t exactly remember why I decided to do this, but I chose to write about the challenges and opportunities in the implementation of data science techniques in healthcare. A few days after I submitted the assignment, I attended a Meetup event on the application of machine learning to biomedical imaging and diagnostics. As I sat in the audience listening to the keynote speaker, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in data science.

About Reiko Okamoto

After completing her Bachelor of Science degree in microbiology and immunology from the University of UBC, Reiko wanted to study diseases beyond the molecular level so she moved to Sweden to pursue a master’s degree in public health to learn more about the application of epidemiological methods to improve population health. However, it was during her time in Sweden that her interest in data science was sparked. Read Reiko's story.

Previous Degree: Bachelor of Engineering, Computer Engineering, Covenant University
Prior Experience: Data Analyst, BaverianVine Ltd.
Program: MDS Computational Linguistics, Class of 2020

I saw the MDS-CL program as a typical MDS program but with the cherry on the cake. It offered mostly what the Master of Data Science offers with an additional focus on natural language processing. This was the deciding factor for me. NLP was important for me because a lot of the data I had come across came as free form texts and it was important that I learnt to work with those.

About Chidera Okoma

Chidera holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Computer Engineering from Nigeria’s Covenant University. Prior to joining the MDS CL program, Chidera worked as a data analyst with BaverianVine Ltd., a startup that consulted for the largest Nigerian institutions. It was while working in her role as a data analyst that she saw the impact that data insight had in decision-making. Read Chidera's story.

Previous Degree: Master’s Degree in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Washington, Seattle
Program: MDS Okanagan, Class of 2020

I have always had an interest in multidisciplinary fields which allow for collaborative work, and have applications in variety of areas. Data science is one such field and being able to see its wide impacts in almost all walks of life really got me hooked. Now through the program, I feel confident and prepared to enter the job market knowing the program has provided me with tools and knowledge I will need to succeed.

About Swapil Paliwal

Originally from (Firozabad, India), Swapil obtained a Master’s Degree in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Washington. It was during his time working as a Data Scientist where he fostered an interest in sharpening his technical skills.  Situated in the beautiful Okanagan Valley, the MDS-O program, with its accelerated learning program and intimate cohort, caught Swapil’s eye. Having now completed the 10-month program, Swapil hopes to utilize the knowledge and technical expertise taught in the MDS program on the Okanagan campus as he prepares to continue working as a data scientist or data engineer in cross-disciplinary teams.
Read Swapil's story.

Previous Degree: Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, University of British Columbia
Prior Experience: Executive Vice President, Senior Translator and Programmer, Simulingual Inc.
Program: MDS Computational Linguistics, Class of 2020

“If you are like me and enjoy devising solutions to real world problems, have a desire to transfer knowledge and skills from a previous job to the digitized world, or are passionate about language, this program is worth the money and time.”

As a professional translator, I have always been interested in machine translation. In particular, I wanted to know how linguistic data were processed in deep learning models. I wanted to be able to test out my hypotheses about how to improve the current machine translation models.

About Toshiko Shibano

Prior to the MDS Computational Linguistics program, Toshiko ran a translation business in Japan, which specialized in financial accounting and her clientele included major international audit firms, listed companies, and multinational corporations. Toshiko picked up programming to automate routine processes so that she could spend more time on translation. After handing over her business, Toshiko moved to Canada and pursued a Bachelor of Art degree in Psychology from the University of British Columbia. Read Toshiko's story.

Previous Degree: Master of Science in Computational Finance, DePaul University
Program: MDS Computational Linguistics, Class of 2020

With MDS CL, the data science courses are very essential to becoming a computational linguist. The program gives us a solid foundation for us to use our linguistics skills and put them into practice.

About Aaron Tian

Originally from China, Aaron has a Master of Science in Computational Finance from DePaul University. Coming from the finance industry, Aaron noticed that a lot of people were using Natural Language Processing tools to measure sentiment of the market to make better investment strategies. Seeing this, Aaron saw that the MDS Computational Linguistics program would give him the skills in sentiment analysis that he can apply to the finance industry.