From Statistician to Data Scientist

TL;DR

This paper discusses the evolving skills and training necessary for statisticians to transition into data science roles amidst the explosion of big data, emphasizing curriculum adaptation at INSA Toulouse.

Contribution

It analyzes the changes needed in statistical education to prepare students for data science careers, highlighting curriculum developments at INSA Toulouse.

Findings

Growing demand for data science skills among statisticians.

Curriculum updates at INSA Toulouse to include big data and modeling.

Need for continuous adaptation of training programs.

Abstract

According to a recent report from the European Commission, the world generates every minute 1.7 million of billions of data bytes, the equivalent of 360,000 DVDs, and companies that build their decision-making processes by exploiting these data increase their productivity. The treatment and valorization of massive data has consequences on the employment of graduate students in statistics. Which additional skills do students trained in statistics need to acquire to become data scientists ? How to evolve training so that future graduates can adapt to rapid changes in this area, without neglecting traditional jobs and the fundamental and lasting foundation for the training? After considering the notion of big data and questioning the emergence of a "new" science: Data Science, we present the current developments in the training of engineers in Mathematical and Modeling at INSA Toulouse.