From left to right: Hung Tong (21′ M.S., Statistics), Jimmy Nguyen (20′ M.S., Statistics), Madhumita Roy (19′ M.S., Statistics), Mary Keonouphet (19′ M.S., Statistics), Jeffrey Lee (18′ M.S., Statistics).

We recently had the pleasure to speak with a few graduates of the M.S. Statistics program about their experience at San José State University. In our conversation, key features stood out that highlight the wonderful opportunities their program offers. The M.S. Statistics program allowed them to gain research experience, gave them a sense of community and belonging, and helped them build connections that led to their career. 

Research Experience Opportunities 

The Statistics program at SJSU offers unique research opportunities for its students. When I spoke with Hung Tong, he mentioned that he was able to complete two research projects and had two journal publications while in his program:

“During my studies, I was able to complete two research projects on developing new cluster analysis methods for data sets with outliers and missing values, which then resulted into presentations at the workshop Models and Learning in Clustering and Classification in Catania, Italy (one online in 2020 due to COVID and one in-person in 2022) and two journal publications.”

Mary Keonouphet also received hands-on experience, which she spoke to me about, “I personally chose to collaborate with a faculty member on a research project, which turned out to be a wonderful learning experience and helped me build rapport with an expert in the field.

Community and Belonging at SJSU

Two students, Madhumita Roy and Hung Tong highlighted the support, the community they built, and why SJSU was the right choice for them.

Madhumita Roy, said “The department was extremely supportive when my friends and I founded the data science club. They provided us with access to resources and helped us host club meetings. The department’s support and encouragement played a crucial role in my success and development during my time at SJSU.”

Hung Tong said, “If I had to choose again, I would definitely choose SJSU again. Despite being located in a high-cost-of-living city, SJSU is very affordable and offers great teaching quality. I probably wouldn’t have been able to get into a doctoral program without all the guidance, support, and time investment from the faculty here. After the program, I really found myself more mature in terms of knowledge, research interests, and career goals.” 

Connections in the Bay Area

Both Madhumita Roy and Jeffrey Lee spoke about the benefits of SJSU’s location, which allowed them both to network with professionals all over the Bay Area, and led to potential job opportunities. 

Jeffrey mentioned how SJSU’s location was vital for the connections he made, “SJSU’s location benefited me in that it was feasible to network with professionals, as well as, students from other schools in the San Francisco Bay Area and to continue building up relationships with my professors and classmates at SJSU. This included networking at professional conferences in the Bay Area, student clubs within SJSU, and clubs at other colleges. Some of the connections I made directly impacted my career and led me to my actuarial internships as well as a full time actuarial job.”

Madhumita spoke about the individual connections she made, “Attending SJSU provided me with the opportunity to make great connections with individuals in the data field, many of whom I still keep in touch with today. These personal connections have been valuable resources for me in terms of getting advice, learning about new trends and developments in the field, and even potential job opportunities.” 

What are Statistics Graduates up to?

Graduates of the M.S. Statistics Program have landed careers in various fields and gone on to pursue a Ph.D. 

Here’s a snapshot of their life after graduation:

• Madhumita Roy (19′) currently works as a Data Scientist at Rec Room, a fast-growing VR gaming startup.
• Jimmy Nguyen (20′) works as a Senior Data Scientist at LinkedIn.
• Hung Tong (21′) went on to pursue a Ph.D. in Applied Statistics at The University of Alabama. 
• Jeffrey Lee (18′) is an Actuarial Analyst at State Compensation Insurance Fund. 
• Mary Keonophet (22′) is a Data Analyst at International Rectifier.

The M.S. Statistics program and SJSU gave these graduates real-life experience, connections, and a community which opened the door to many opportunities.