Northeastern introduces artificial intelligence combined majors, renames undergraduate data science programs

This fall, Northeastern will roll out 24 artificial intelligence, or AI, combined majors, which will replace its undergraduate data science majors.

The rename of the data science major and its associated combined degrees “more accurately represents the scope and depth of the curriculum,” Christo Wilson, associate dean for academic programs and student experience, wrote in an Aug. 25 email to Khoury College of Computer Science undergraduates. The majors include AI combined with mathematics, biochemistry and journalism.

Students currently studying data science can either transition to the AI degree or choose to graduate with a data science degree, Ed Gavaghan, Northeastern’s media relations manager, wrote in an Aug. 20 email to The Huntington News. In Wilson’s email to Khoury, he advised that students studying on F-1 or J-1 visas interested in changing their major title should work with the Office of Global Services to request an updated I-20 form that reflects the update.

According to an FAQ page about the major, the new name reflects the curriculum’s long-standing emphasis on AI and modern machine learning. The official name change will automatically apply only to incoming students. (The university also offers a Master of Science in AI, but said its Master of Science in data science will not be impacted.)