Bronco Spotlight: Jacob Culver
Master of Science in statistics, 2020
Associate Data Scientist at Methods Consultants of Ann Arbor
I am responsible for providing statistical analysis, interpretation, and presentation tailored to the needs of our clients. I also help develop and test packages and functions for the statistical computing software R.
If you had a campus job or internship, how did they impact your career development?
I had an internship at Consumers Energy in the IT department. The internship allowed me to use some of the content and skills that I had learned during my first year of my graduate program. It also forced me to learn new skills, gave me perspective on collaboration in the workplace, and insights into my strengths and weaknesses. I believe the internship with Consumers was one of the best decisions I made for my career and was the reason I was given many interviews.
What advice do you have for others pursuing a career similar to yours?
The biggest suggestion I have for others pursuing a career in a highly collaborative field is to view your classmates as coworkers and your professors as bosses. Work hard to collaborate and learn from your peers. You will learn so much more by working through tough problems and projects with your classmates than you will on your own. Your teachers, especially the professors in your specific content area, will be the ones that write your recommendations right after graduation. Be professional with them, see them in office hours, show them that you are serious about learning the field...a field they love enough to teach at a high level...and you will stand out to them and you will learn more.