MSDS New Student FAQs

Orientation will be held on July 5. Classes begin on July 8.

International students are also required to attend an International Student Orientation on July 8.

Your summer tuition payment is due June 1. The fall tuition payment is due August 1.

The MSDS program is a one-year, accelerated program with a required practical training component and there is no time for outside jobs. The coursework requires a great deal of time, concentration and effort and therefore outside work is not permitted. Students continuing on to the Data Engineering concentration may have a part-time job or internship during the final semester.

During boot camp, classes will take place on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. 

Fall classes take place on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday during Fall Module 1 and on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays in Fall Module 2 (Mondays and Wednesdays are reserved for practicum work). Most classes are scheduled 10am - 12pm and 1pm - 3pm, with occasional quizzes/exams in the morning from 9 to 10 am, and office hours in the afternoons.

All students are required to present proof of Covid-19 vaccination and all other required immunizations by August 15. If you have questions about this requirement, please contact USF's office of Health Promotion Services at hps@usfca.edu. More information will be provided soon. 

No, we are not able to offer deferrals in this program. If you choose not to accept the offer of admission this year, you will need to reapply again the following year for re-admission. We encourage admitted students who choose to reapply to apply early in the admission cycle and submit a completed application by December 5. 

Because the MSDS program requires students to be able to work legally in the US in order to fulfill their practicum requirements, studying on a visa other than F1 can be complicated or not compatible. Please reach out if this is your case. 

All students will need to be able to work legally in the US by the time the practicum begins in mid-October.

Outside work (other than the practicum) is not permitted, so H1 visas are not compatible with this program.

The USF office of International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) has created an expedited visa appointment letter for MSDS students. You can use this letter beginning 60 days before your I-20 start date to make an expedited visa appointment.

Please contact Aija for the letter and further instructions: atapaninen@usfca.edu.