Digital and Data Studies is an interdisciplinary program that integrates practice- and skills-based learning in programming, data analysis, computational processes, and web development with critical study, drawing on the college’s long-standing strengths and commitments to data science, GIS, digital storytelling, and media studies. The program teaches its students to be both knowledgeable consumers and engaged producers of content on the internet, as a complex information landscape that provides valuable opportunities for learning and public-facing scholarship, even while it can be wielded to disseminate dangerous misinformation. The program is committed to promoting socially and culturally responsible approaches to technology.
Students will have the opportunity to study computational analysis and data-inflected approaches, drawing cases and applications from the range of disciplines at Harpur College. In addition, students will gain contemporary skills for employment and produce innovative digital work at all levels.
All liberal arts students can benefit from a heightened understanding of computational methods and data-driven processes, along with enhanced information literacy. These proficiencies are useful in professional, academic, and/or creative contexts. This minor degree complements all of the majors at Harpur College.
Students who pursue the Digital and Data Studies minor will have the opportunity to take courses that align with their chosen major, along with three required courses, offered under the DIDA and HARP rubrics. The Digital and Data Studies website lists the elective courses from across Harpur College that may be applied to the minor. This list will be updated each semester.