Ajay Sreekumar Review at University Of Arizona [U OF A], Tucson | Collegedunia

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6.3
Verified Review (Out of 10)
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Academic
6.0
Accommodation
6.0
Faculty
8.0
Infrastructure
6.0
Social Life
8.0
Placement
4.0

Student's Snapshots

General
General
Ajay Sreekumar
Reviewed on Mar 24, 2025(Enrolled 2023)

Course Curriculum

6

  • The difficulty is very easy aside from a particular set of courses (Neural Networks, Machine Learning introduction or an external courses from the MIS department).
  • The school of information focuses heavily on theoretical knowledge and leveraging DS towards domain specific research.
  • Positive aspects of the course were definitely some great faculty, flexible workloads and research avenues aplenty.
  • Negative aspects were definitely a focus on non-industry standard software’s like R and a focus on basics on a bunch of courses.

Admission Experience

  • University of Arizona - Admitted and attending.
    University of Alabama - admitted
    SUNY - Buffalo - rejected
    UMBC - Baltimore - rejected
    BIT - rejected
  • I don’t have a strong idea about what could’ve gone wrong with the rejected applications. Might’ve something to do with my background in IT and no relevant work experience in DS. Also, these schools are have highly competitive seats - so are correspondingly difficult to get into.
  • A renowned professor who has accrued a lot of funding for his research - Steven Bethard - was one of the reasons being a subject matter expert. Also, the array of courses on offer and flexibility in course work. Low tuition fees also were a factor, as was the ease of getting part time work (in 2023 fall).
  • Just needed to fill in my details in UA GradApp. Send over my LORs from my university professors and SOP from my side alongside my resume and relevant documents. Heard back from them within 2 months after applying in December.
  • For me personally, i think only the IELTS exam (8.5) was considered for English proficiency. I also gave the university my GRE scores (318) to add to my application. I think the minimum requirements were 7.0 in all fields.
  • No challenges in the admission process I could remember.
  • Fall 2023 - major intake period.
  • 2-3 months in total. Filled GradApp form which is a university application portal, sent over relevant documents - my LORs from university faculty, resume showing work experience, SOP showing intent to pursue my degree, my scores for GRE and IELTS, my educational record copies, my resume and got the admit after 2-3 months.

Class Schedule

6

  • One or two classes a day - up to 3 days a week if you take a full course load for a semester (9 or more credits).
  • Timings may be early morning (8am earliest), afternoon times or evenings (5.30 pm latest). Most classes last for 90 minutes.
  • My cohort saw a huge jump in DS aspirants - so about 80 students enrolled in the same degree in fall 2023.
  • Most of them were from India, and most of them were in all of my courses.
  • So average student count in the core courses were extremely close to 75-80 on average.

Faculty

8

  • There are usually 2 faculty for taking the core/higher student count courses. So they divide the entire cohort into 2 batches to take care of the entire batch. We have the option of taking a time that’s comfortable for us. Faculty are usually very helpful and knowledgeable about the academic coursework and projects.
  • There’s a reliance on academics and theory in the school of information. I don’t think that’s conducive towards getting a job unless you go in for a research job. I don’t know of any faculty assisting a student to get a part time job thus far. Clayton Morrison, Steven Bethard, Charlie Gomez, Egoitz Laparra are some of the best professors in the university.

Campus Life

6

  • University of Arizona has a total of 3 campuses - Tucson campus (main), phoenix biomedical campus and UA south (sierra vista). The campus facilities on offer include 2 libraries - the main (bigger) library and the Science and Engineering library.
  • There are other specialised libraries like the Fine arts library, law library and health sciences library. Sports facilities include the Mckale centre for volleyball and basketball, Arizona stadium for football and the bear down gymnasium for other athletic activities.
  • Medical services are offered by campus health services and Banner health located close to the main campus. Major festivals include homecoming, wildcat welcome, spring flings, Arizona film festivals, Tucson book fairs etc.

Part Time Jobs

  • Not many students secure Teaching Assistant (TA), Research Assistant (RA), or Departmental Assistant (DA) positions in my department - due to lack of funding and competition. Other departments offer more opportunities in this regard - like the Eller college’s MIS division. These positions cover either half of or the entirety of a semester’s tuition fees as well as pay for 20 hours worth of work weekly. Other part time jobs include student worker positions at the libraries, campus offices, working at on-campus restaurants and fast food joints or at the Arizona stadium for catering towards football games mostly. Usual hourly working wages range from $13.50 for graduate students and upwards. Maximum allowed hours are 20 per week. It is very competitive as it stands.
  • $14.50 per hour is the median salary on offer currently. It is very difficult due to the sheer amount of students applying for the same limited positions on campus. Students apply through Handshake portal, talk face to face with the student worker managers at the places they want to work and ask for openings. Handshake applications usually include a small questionnaire about your eligibility for the job, and requires an online resume submission. Then an interview is scheduled if you pass the screening. Other jobs just require a physical resume submission and on the spot interview.

Placement

4

  • I am unsure about the percentage of graduate batch students securing employment within the first 6 months of graduating. The job market is saturated as it stands - with every SWE, MIS person all applying for the same roles as DS students go for. So it is very difficult as it stands to get an open road towards a job.
  • Annually, the salary range is from $80k to $100k for data science positions. Again, unsure about how students usually do it since this degree is new. There are campus fairs which happen regularly for sure, but unsure about their practical usability. LinkedIn, handshake and indeed are far more in use. Credit one Bank hires regularly.

Accommodation

Off Campus
6

  • I used online platforms to search for off campus housing. That and coordination with other students enrolling in the same batch via WhatsApp got me my house for rent. My monthly rent was about $500 for a 2B 1 bathroom house for 4 people sharing.
  • One recommendation is to not go for the cheapest residency since the facilities and maintenance may not be up to standard - as we experienced. Also, ensure that the utility bills are kept in check and accounted for correctly.
  • Tucson is very hot in summers and unsafe after dark - so ensure you have both bills and safety in check. My current house is a 5 minute walk from campus - and most Indian students live within a 10 minute walking radius from campus. (Although more expensive housing)

Exams

  • TOEFL/IELTS showing English language proficiency were the scores considered primarily after COVID. Since I already had GRE scores handy, I sent over that too.
  • ALL OF THE ABOVE - Letter of recommendations (three), statement of purpose and Curriculum Vitae or Resume are all important.
  • No. I didn’t have an interview for admission into the MSDS program.

Fees

  • Regular Tuition & Fees
    Units Tuition Fees Total
    1 units   $1,794.00   $149.23   $1,943.23
    2 units   $3,588.00   $256.73   $3,844.73
    3 units   $5,382.00   $364.23   $5,746.23
    4 units   $7,176.00   $471.73   $7,647.73
    5 units   $8,970.00   $579.23   $9,549.23
    6 units   $10,764.00  $686.73   $11,450.73
    7 units   $12,558.00  $835.48   $13,393.48
    8 units   $14,352.00  $835.48   $15,187.48
    9 units   $16,145.00  $835.48   $16,980.48

  • Hostel - I stayed off campus. Paid rent of about $500 per month.
  • Tuition fees charged semester wise. Health insurance charged per year. (2 semesters)
  • Monthly expenses - $500-650
  • Rent, Groceries, Miscellaneous expenses.

Scholarship

  • No, I didn’t have any scholarship or financial aid. For financial aid, one would need to look into avenues of scholarship with their academic advisor. Nobody I knew had one in my department.
  • I don’t know the answer to how many students on average receive a scholarship each year. There are ways to apply for Fin Aid, but scholarship can be trickler/competitive.