What is the Data Science for the Public Good Program?

The Data Science for the Public Good (DSPG) program is the first of its kind immersive program held in Turkey. The program engages students to work together on projects that address public challenges around critical social issues relevant in our cities today. DSPG participants conduct research at the intersection of statistics, computation, and the social sciences to determine how information generated within every community can be leveraged to improve quality of life and inform public policy.

Content of the Program

  • A free-of-charge and world-class 140-hour training from the experts.
  • A unique opportunity for students from many different disciplines, especially social sciences.
  • Opportunity to develop impact-oriented, participant-driven, sustainable solutions to real social issues in Ankara and Istanbul.
  • Team work:The students admitted to the program will be assigned into teams to solve the social challenges presented by the municipalities.
  • Working together with the experts from the municipalities in Istanbul and Ankara, using real data.

Program and Admission

Timeline:

  • 12 October 2020: Application Deadline
  • 14 November - 31 January 2020: The Training (Until the Covid-19 threat is over, the classes will be online. The classes will be held on Saturday and Sunday.

Contents:

  • The Training Content for Istanbul (Classes are given by Kodluyoruz)
  • The Training Content for Ankara (The classes are given by Ted University Center of Applied Data Science (CADS@TEDU) and TED University Social Innovation Center (İstasyon TEDU))

Who can Apply?

Only university students who are at the 3rd and 4th year of their studies, Master's and PhD students, and recent graduates who have graduated from school in the last one year will be admitted to the program. If you do not meet these criteria but still are interested in the program, we would welcome your application.
We will pay special attention to diversity in the classrooms in terms of gender and academic background. In both Istanbul and Ankara, 30 people will be selected.

We will use a 3-tier admission process for the applicants:

  • The application form
  • Algorithmin thinking test
  • Interview

Who are We?

This program is possible thanks to the collaboration between the University of Virginia Social and Decision Analytics Division, Kodluyoruz, CADS@TEDU (TED University Center for Applied Data Science), İstasyonTEDÜ (TED University Social Innovation Center), and İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality.
The program is sponsored by the US Embassy of Turkey. New partners are planned to join the Program in September.

Partners