Bring your data challenges to a team of BC Data Science students
Each Fall semester senior students in Boston College’s Data Science minor tackle real research problems with guidance from a faculty mentor for their Capstone course.
As part of the AI Collaboratory Initiative from the Provost’s Office, BC research faculty are encouraged to propose a project and potentially get a dedicated team of 4–5 students working on their data for a full semester using statistical analysis, machine learning, and data visualization.
Key Points
| One hour a week A weekly meeting with your team is all that’s required. The course instructor handles assessment and most feedback. | Bring your data Ideal projects have an existing dataset — from your research, a public source, or data collected via API or web scraping. |
| Course-integrated support Students are enrolled in a structured Capstone course. The instructor leads their training. Your role is to guide the research direction, not teach the methods. | Exploratory is fine You don’t need a fully formed question. A compelling dataset with a few interesting directions to explore is enough. |
What Data Science students can bring to your research project
- Exploratory data analysis
- Data cleaning and wrangling
- Statistical inference and modeling
- Machine learning and predictive modeling
- Interactive dashboards
- Data visualization and communication
- Web scraping and API data collection
- Literature review and written reporting
- Public poster session
How it Works
| OVERVIEW Characteristics of a Good Research Project | COMPLIANCE IRB and data use /considerations | INSPIRATION Project Posters from 2025 |
Apply
Faculty from all departments are welcome. The minor draws students from Math, CS, Economics, CSOM, Engineering, Applied Psychology, and beyond. If your project doesn’t fit the Capstone format, other options are available: hourly RA support, independent study credit, or the upcoming Software Engineering capstone for app-based work.
Contact
Please contact Professor Emily Prud’hommeaux, Department of Computer Science, with questions.