Considering the Cornhusker State for a data science degree? Read on for an overview of research initiatives, online offerings, graduate fellowships, professional forums, and employment avenues for data scientists.

Nebraska is the home of big agriculture, a Great Plains state that generates medical research, and the birthplace of Warren Buffett. What’s that got to do with big data? A lot. First, Nebraskan ag has gone high-tech, with unmanned aerial systems (drones) and other data-collection tools stockpiling mounds of information that help farmers manage cows and crops. Second, medical research these days is backed by the Nebraska Research Initiative, a state-funded grant program that’s often used for bioinformatics.

Students can find all the above specialties at University of Nebraska’s flagship campus in Lincoln (UNL)Read our quick roundup of what UNL and other schools are up to:

Multiple schools jump into the data science pool at the graduate level, including two concentrating on business analytics. University of Nebraska-Lincoln is the state’s main public university, which may be attractive to state residents looking to save money. Bellevue University, meanwhile, is a private university that gears every program to adult online learners, therefore competing on flexibility. Nurses, meanwhile, can get in on the trend of healthcare informatics at Nebraska Methodist College, a private institution focused on allied health.

University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s Business Analytics Graduate Certificate assumes undergraduate exposure to statistics. From there, students learn to do regression analyses, run customer experiments and visualize data sets. The program is best-suited to current business professionals looking to leverage data to fine-tune their growth strategies.

The University of Nebraska – Omaha also offers a graduate certificate in business analytics

Nurses with an MSN can branch into data-driven healthcare with the Nursing Informatics Certificate from Nebraska Methodist College. The program covers how to ethically use data to create patient-centric strategies.

UNL offers an MBA with a Business Analytics specialization. The courses here don’t match up one-for-one with those in the certificate program, but it’s still probably best to have statistics coursework on your undergraduate transcripts – or take some side classes from UNL. Otherwise, no specific baccalaureate degree is required. Students get all the standard finance, marketing and management coursework with a comprehensive overview of how to create a data-driven workplace using mining and analytics. Nothing too technical.

Bellevue University’s Master of Science in Business Analytics degree also accepts a bachelor’s degree in just about anything for entry. Students not only learn all there is to know about running a business, but also get some IT coursework to become more comfortable with hardware and software design (learning to code is optional). Specialization courses cover data science standards like analytics and data mining.

Nurses have two paths to an MSN on the Informatics track at Nebraska Methodist College, depending on their starting point. BSN holders go straight into a 21-month program, where they’ll complete coursework plus a group capstone project and two practicums. RN holders require 30 months to get to the same outcome, needing undergraduate bridge courses in both nursing and research methodologies before continuing onto in-depth statistical and regulatory issues around client data.

If you reside in Nebraska and are interested in pursuing your career in either data science or data analytics, completing a bootcamp is another option. Data science and data analytics bootcamps in Nebraska are relatively short yet practical “crash courses” on the basics of the fields. While some bootcamps in Nebraska focus exclusively on either data science (the study of how knowledge is generally gleaned from raw data) or data analytics (the process by which specific conclusions are drawn from data), other bootcamps combine study of both data science and data analytics. Check out our guides to learn more about whether a data science bootcamps or data analytics bootcamps in Nebraska.

Although scholarships may be available to all incoming students, fellowships and assistantships from individual departments remove competitors from other disciplines. Check with your department for awards like this:

Most of the data science communities form in eastern Nebraska, although groups with statewide audiences may make it as far west as Kearney for meetings. There are more communities for data science professionals and students than what you see below, but the following are the most established:

From agriculture to education, Nebraska hosts several annual events with a strong data science component:

Omaha is home to billionaire investor Warren Buffett. His company, Berkshire Hathaway, is the state’s most prominent Fortune 100 member. Orion Advisor Services may also be a good place to start. The company, which has offices in Omaha, recruits financial data analysts who create tools for financial advisors, such as data visualization dashboards. Another big player is Nelnet, a student loan provider headquartered in Lincoln that has opportunities for analysts to help it set proper interest rates and take appropriate risks with its money.

Outside of finances, the company many Nebraska data science grads aim to work with is Gallup. The international polling and analytics firm maintains a big office in Omaha and recruits big data engineers to improve its hardware and cloud-based infrastructure. And defense contractors such as Booz Allen Hamilton have job listings for  data scientists to work at Offutt Air Force Base, home to the Air Force Weather Agency and its database of climate information. Back in Lincoln, you might find a home with one of the companies at the Nebraska Innovation Campus, a UNL-linked research park. MetaGenome Analytics, for instance, is in the DNA sequencing business. And there are even a few pure data science firms in the state. Contemporary Analysis is one of them; it uses predictive analytics to solve problems for regional business clients. It also runs Omaha Data Science Academy with Interface, teaching technically driven courses on predictive analytics, data visualization, Python, and statistical modeling.

According to data from the O*NET OnLine in 2020, data scientists made an average $50,530 per year in Nebraska.

Last updated: April 2022

If you’re looking for information on career paths that involve STEM, see our guides below:

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