Summer 2024 Program
The application for Data Science for the Common Good (DS4CG) Summer 2024 Program at the UMass Amherst Center for Data Science is now closed. To learn more about the program, see the following Information Session slides and recording.
About The Program
The DS4CG summer internship program is hosted at UMass Amherst and aims to train aspiring data scientists to work on real-world problems that benefit the common good. Teams of Computer Science students have the opportunity to collaborate with nonprofit organizations and government agencies working in public health, education, health and wellness, environmental conservation, and more. To learn about past DS4CG program projects, visit our DS4CG Program page.
- 12-week summer on-campus internship
- Open to undergraduate, Master’s & PhD students in CICS at UMass Amherst
- Small teams managed by CDS staff work with public, common good organizations to solve a data science or machine learning problem
- DS4CG has worked with over 20 partner organizations since its start in 2019
- The application window will be announced on our website. We only accept applications while the window is open.
- Pay details may differ from year to year. Pay information will be visible on the application once it is available and will be covered in the information session.
- Undergraduate applications are considered separately from Masters students in an undergraduate-only track.
Please note that details about the program are subject to change on a year-to-year basis. We encourage you to attend the information session the current year for accurate and up-to-date information. If you are interested in previous years, you can view old recordings, but that information is not guaranteed to hold for the current year. Recordings and slides from the information sessions will be available on our website as soon as possible.
If you have any further questions about DS4CG, please email ds4cg@cs.umass.edu.
APplication process
Please note that the DS4CG application process is subject to change from year-to-year.
- Apply online. The application asks for your background (skills, coursework, and interests), short answer questions, and a resume/CV.
- CDS team members review applications, looking for overall application strength and skill/interest match for projects.
- Selected students interview with the CDS team members and can choose either a remote or in-person interview.
- Students receive a final decision within 2 weeks of the interview.
- Offer letters must be returned to CDS within 2 weeks.
What makes a good application?
- Depth of ability in at least one project critical area (computer vision, statistical analysis, full-stack development, NLP, etc.)
- Ability to work successfully on a software development team
- Teamwork, communication, and leadership skills gained through work experience, extracurriculars, or coursework
- Thoughtful responses about problems facing your community that show creative and critical thinking about how to apply data science
- Include examples of how you consider the impact of this type of work on the affected community, such as how to avoid having a disproportionate impact on marginalized communities (i.e. data privacy concerns, etc.)
- Use personal examples
- Avoid very short responses (<50 words)
Interested in exploring DS4CG projects or meeting the DS4CG team?