First Day of Social Data Science
The inaugural cohort of the University of Copenhagen’s MSc of Social Data Science (SODAS)
Starting the first day of a graduate programme is different in the time of a pandemic.
Especially considering how lucky and fortunate one can be. Firstly, to be able to attend such a programme, and secondly that due to mitigating efforts one is able to conduct such an affair with an in-person meeting.
Being a new student can be scary for some, and many who attend a graduate programme move to a new country.
This is an article about my first day as the inaugural cohort of the new MSc of Social Data Science at the University of Copenhagen.
I will first attempt explaining what social data science is and why I decided to attend the programme, and then show a few pictures from the day.
Welcome new MSc in Social Data Science
The first thing I saw coming towards the university was all the students gathering around the old historic building. After a while I found this sign that guided me to another sign, and made me find my way to the first session in a classroom.
It must be said that my journey to attend the MSc in Social Data Science had started a while back.
In the past I had many questions, being a social scientist and being interested in programming.
What is social data science?
Can society benefit if social scientists attempt to learn programming both to help them conduct research and to be more critical of implementation?
Thinking about this is how I came upon the term due to exploring questions surrounding these topics. I tried to explore this previously in an article I wrote on the 19th of July 2019:
Wikipedia, at least, told me that social data science ‘does not exist’.
I think this made me more excited rather than discouraged.
However, I was wrong to think (as I did in a brief moment) that this venue was not being explored.
I found out at the time that there were programmes at the University of Oxford, The London School of Economics and Political Science,and University of Copenhagen.
It was the University of Copenhagen that had the definition that kept popping up both in my feed and my head:
Social data science is a new discipline combining the social sciences and computer science in which the analysis of big data is linked to social scientific theory and analysis.
Fields of study in relation to social data science are numerous. They can be based on both digital data collected from e.g. the social media, register data, customer data or on other types of digital traces that people are leaving, for instance by their personal use of the internet, their use of smart phones and of other digital services. These enormous sets of data can also be combined with qualitative data collected through anthropological field work etc.
–University of Copenhagen, Social Science Faculty retrieved 19th of July
This was iterated in the beginning of the day by Andreas Bjerre-Nielsen, Head of Studies at the MSc. Social Data Sicence and Assistant Professor at Department of Economics & SODAS who said:
“Social data science is: combining methods and tools from data science with theory and methods from social science.”
He did mention that there are a variety of definitions, and this may be one of several.
Enter the MSc of Social Data Science at the University of Copenhagen with different disciplinary perspectives
I had found the programme at the University of Copenhagen a while back.
I went in-depth covering the development of the graduate level programme on Social Data Science at the University of Copenhagen the 30th of July 2019:
I never thought, of course, that I would join it when I wrote the piece…
Looking at the Copenhagen Center for Social Data Science (SODAS) as a research unit now and examining their programme one thought struck me:
Wow, this is a really inclusive and ambitious programme!
It seemed to be that SODAS in Copenhagen to a great extent attempted to include different disciplinary perspectives, especially believing that qualitative research had a place in social data science.
Before I had discovered the programme I wrote about this the 30th of June.
Although this cartoon is rudimentary it displays a situation I sometimes found myself in when I once worked as an interviewer.
That being said (or drawn, by someone else), I think different kinds of approaches to understanding an issue are incredibly important.
The point is: we need a variety of different perspectives and methods!
The Social Data Science master program at the University of Copenhagen draws primarily on six disciplines (Anthropology, Data Science, Economics, Political Science, Psychology, and Sociology).
As such, the respect different people from these various background have to each other is the core of the programme.
Additionally, it seemed most of the cohort were from different countries, with the largest group naturally being Danish.
The programme is shaped to gain a common ground in the first year and build on your foundations of the discipline you most strongly identify with in the second year — combining it with these new learnings.
This is only the beginning.
On this first day I quickly experienced that people from so many disciplines had come together into one graduate programme, and it made me very happy.
I was also pleasantly surprised to see the insane amount of effort that the team at SODAS had put into every single detail.
I mean, we even got a tote bag.
I have so many expectations for a graduate programme, and was unsure how the first day would be.
I am glad to say it was heartwarming.
People came from different places, and they attempted to keep it as safe as possible.
We got face mask, antibacterial, water bottle, pen, book and bag.
The mask fit neatly and can be reused.
While using these face masks we conducted group activities.
We drew out circles first on individual pieces of papers in smaller groups. Then, two groups united and drew lines from each other circles. Later, all papers were combined together to form one large whole.
Afterwards some of us gathered in the King’s Garden located just a few minutes walk away from the SODAS building.
I cannot think of a better way to start this graduate programme.
The sun even came out.
Talking to people from so many disciplines has already given me several new thoughts.
A great many thanks to Mette My Madsen (Postdoc at SODAS) for leading the day and being a wonderful facilitator.
My impression was that most seemed rather satisfied about how this programme began.
I am excited to see what the coming weeks will bring.
This is #500daysofAI and you are reading article 454. I am writing one new article about or related to artificial intelligence every day for 500 days.
