About Our Student Organization

Written on February 24th, 2019 by Eric Englin

Who We Are

The Data Science Club is a student organization at Harvard Kennedy School.

We are policy folks that want to deeply explore issues using data science and machine learning. Our level of expertise ranges from absolute beginners to PhD level economists.

Our core goals as a program:

Learning New Skills: We don't expect experts but rather we are trying to build an environment where we can each learn together
Gaining Real-World Experience Using Data Science: There are a lot of projects happening right now. Part of our club is understanding these trends, and maybe even trying a few out for ourselves!
Developing a Portfolio of Projects: We feel that the best way to improve beyond coding bootcamps is to start building actual projects. Our current portfolio is available on our github page.
Connecting with Employers: These skills are in incredibly high demand in public, non-profit, and private sector agencies.
Learning About People Actually Using Data Science In Policy Right Now: About once a month, we bring in a speaker who is doing this in their current work. Some of our previous speakers have been Chief Data Officers of Boston, head of analytics at Massachusetts General Hospital, and head of analytics at the Boston Celtics.