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DATA INSTITUTE

Become a Member

By joining the Data Institute, you unlock a wealth of specialized resources and networking opportunities vital for addressing a wide range of data science challenges across industries, including those in AI.

Whether you're optimizing high-frequency trading algorithms, building predictive models for patient diagnosis and treatment outcomes in healthcare, or enhancing energy efficiency in transportation, membership provides unique access to experts and support to successfully execute your AI and data-related projects.

Data Institute Membership

By becoming a member, you unlock access to exceptional project-based and full-time data science expertise through the Practicum Project Program, receive exclusive invitations to enriching events featuring esteemed speakers, and enjoy reduced fees for professional certificate courses. All the while, your support contributes to furthering the mission of the Data Institute and the University of San Francisco. Membership benefits are extended to eligible private, public, and nonprofit organizations. While membership agreements are typically reviewed and renewed annually, organizations with a consistent stream of intricate data challenges can explore longer-term arrangements tailored to their needs.

Select a standard membership option that aligns most effectively with your team and organizational requirements, or explore tailored membership agreements to suit your specific needs by contacting datainstitute@usfca.edu.

    • Guaranteed practicum project placement of up to six (6) students.
      • Projects are centered on creating business value through data science and last approximately seven to nine months. Our students and faculty make a strong commitment to client success. A USF faculty member acts as project mentor, guiding students through the project. A project champion from the practicum company provides answers, business context and data.
    • Access to full-time recruiting opportunities including resume books, on-campus interviews, and information sessions
    • Up to eight (8) tuition free seats in professional certificate courses per year
    • Twenty (20)% discount on up to twenty (20) additional seats in professional certificate courses per year
    • Recognition in web and print materials
    • Guaranteed practicum project placement of up to four (4) students.
      • Projects are centered on creating business value through data science and last approximately seven to nine months. Our students and faculty make a strong commitment to client success. A USF faculty member acts as project mentor, guiding students through the project. A project champion from the practicum company provides answers, business context and data.
    • Access to full-time recruiting opportunities including resume books, on-campus interviews, and information sessions
    • Up to five (5) tuition free seats in professional certificate courses per year
    • Ten (10)% discount on up to twenty (20) additional seats in professional certificate courses per year
    • Recognition in web and print materials
    • Guaranteed practicum project placement of up to two (2) students.
      • Projects are centered on creating business value through data science and last approximately nine months. Our students and faculty make a strong commitment to client success. A USF faculty member acts as project mentor, guiding students through the project. A project champion from the practicum company provides answers, business context and data.
    • Access to full-time recruiting opportunities including resume books, on-campus interviews, and information sessions
    • Up to two (2) tuition free seats in professional certificate courses per year
    • Ten (10)% discount on up to ten (10) additional seats in professional certificate courses per year
    • Recognition in web and print materials

  • The Post-doctoral Research Associates Program can be added on to any membership tier for $55,000 per associate.

    As funds from members, grants, and generous donors permit, the Data Institute hires post-doctoral research associates to work for one or two years after their dissertation defense. Some of the Data Institute’s post-doctoral research associates choose to, and are hired to, focus on collaborations with practitioners rather than developing their skills as teachers. These post-doctoral research associates are deployed on a part-time basis (i.e., for 15-20 hours per week) at a Data Institute member organization. Post-doctoral research associates demonstrate computational and modeling sophistication, a capacity to work independently, and excellent communication skills.

    Data Institute members seeking to participate in this program must sign at least a two-year membership agreement with the Data Institute by February 28 of the calendar year during which they plan to start benefiting from the services of the post-doctoral research associate. Post-doctoral research associates are typically hired with a start date between June 1 and September 1, and are deployed to the Data Institute member within a month or two of their arrival. A Data Institute member at any membership tier can “add on” participation in the post-doctoral research associates program.

    With sufficient planning and advance notice, Data Institute members participating in this program may send representatives to sit on the hiring committees for these post-doctoral research associates, and can even have the position title and description modified to reflect the name of their organization. Post-doctoral research associates can help Data Institute members:

    • Mentor teams of our master’s-level 9-month interns, if such teams are being deployed to the Data Institute member under the current terms of its membership agreement;
    • Develop new intellectual property that is assigned to the Data Institute member itself;
    • Co-author scholarly publications and/or open-source code (over which members have control, in order to respect the Data Institute member’s intellectual property interest in the post-doctoral research associate’s work); and
    • Write joint practitioner-academic grant proposals for submission to federal funding agencies, foundations, etc.