Media Coverage

Data scientist, named the best job in America for 2016 by job site Glassdoor, is the sexy mashup of traditional careers from data analysis, economics, statistics, computer science and others.

But it goes beyond collecting and analyzing data. It's a job for the curious, for the intuitive and for those who like to not just solve problems but figure out the problem. It's part science, part art.

The rise of data science is due to the explosive growth of data collection — or big data — and the need for companies to make sense of the mishmash of new types of data from smartphones, images, human behavior and even handwriting.

An established code of ethical behavior for analytics professionals already exists.

That code is part and parcel of the Certified Analytics Professional Program (CAP) – a highly regarded professional certification for analytics practitioners managed by INFORMS – the largest international association of professionals in analytics and operations research.

Among other things, the code establishes certain standards for those who call themselves analytics professionals and guidelines for how they should behave and be judged by their peers and employers.

The operations research profession is now #2 in business jobs, up from #4 in 2015. O.R. has also risen to 18 from 20 in the list of 100 best jobs.

In 2008, thousands of children in China fell ill after drinking milk that had been adulterated with the chemical melamine. 

This scandal inspired Liying Mu, University of Delaware assistant professor of operations management, to study ways to eliminate this dangerous and common problem.

“Milk adulteration, such as by adding, water, detergent or starch to milk, has been widely reported in many developing countries,” Mu said. “What are the reasons for those adulterations? And how can we solve the problem?”

In two papers published in top journals Management Science and Production and Operations Management, Mu’s team found three key reasons behind the milk adulteration problem, as well as a number of creative solutions.

Have a look for yourself at the five jobs with the highest percentage of women working in the profession...

3. Operations Research Analysts

• Percentage of women employed: 55.4%
• Mean annual wage: $82,940

These analysts use mathematical and analytical methods to help organizations solve complex problems, from using statistics to help inform decisions to gathering input from employees. Most operations research analysts have master’s degrees in operations research, engineering, computer science, mathematics or physics. Some entry-level positions are open to those with bachelor’s degrees.

This field only has 55.4% female workers, but that is still a considerable amount when looking at women in STEM. The reason for this, says analyst Laurie M. Orlov in her article on cio.com, is that jobs in the business technology arena capitalize on women’s greatest strengths in the workplace: “communication, collaboration and problem solving.”