Because of an enthusiastic response, the University of Macau (UM) Centre for Continuing Education (CCE) offered the course ‘Certificate in the Method of the Analysis for Big Data and its Application’ for the second time. The course was designed for those who want to learn more about smart technology, big data, and data science. 15 students completed the second edition of the course. Matthew Liu Tingchi, director of the CCE, says that the course combined theory and practice to increase students’ professional knowledge of big data through a series of real-world examples, so that they would acquire the fundamentals for further studies in the field.

Jia Weijia, deputy director of the State Key Laboratory of the Internet of Things for Smart City and head of the Centre for Data Science, says that the course not only helped to nurture interdisciplinary and well-rounded professionals to meet the demand of Macao, but also helped to popularise the application of big data. Liu adds that the certificate course was launched in line with the new Master of Science in Data Science programme to be launched in the 2019/2020 academic year. Participants in the course not only increases their knowledge of data science, but also acquired the fundamentals that will help them apply to the master’s programme. He also encourages other students to apply to the third edition of the course, will may become available by the end of this year.

The certificate course was taught by a team of UM veteran faculty members. Through the application of big data for smart city development and case studies on different topics, including finance, law, health care, language and transport, students in the course learned about database management tools, data analysis, and the operation of machine learning tools. With this practical experience, students will be able to provide solutions for big data problems in a real world setting. For more information about the course, please call 8822 4545 or email to cce.enquiry@um.edu.mo.