**NEW FOR FALL 2026**
The name of the program will change to the Graduate Artificial Intelligence and Data Science Certificate Program
Note: New academic requirements are in effect for students who are accepted to the program after Oct., 2022. Students who have already enrolled in the program by Oct., 2022 will still follow the previous requirements.
Academic Requirements
There are three fundamental requirements for earning a Graduate Data Science Certificate.
- Nine graduate credit hours of coursework in approved courses: These courses are designated by three categories: Foundations, Applications, and Electives. Students are required to choose at least one course each from the Foundations and Applications categories.
Only one course may be double-counted (up to 3 credits) with the student’s core degree program. It is recommended that students select courses outside the main graduate program of study to broaden the student’s data-science experiences (e.g., statistics students may consider taking engineering courses, social science students may consider taking outside statistics and application courses, etc.). - A data science related experience (3 credit semester equivalent, over 160 hours of work): This can take the form of non-credit activity like a practicum, independent research project, or professional project equivalent to a three credit-hour course, or a capstone course designed to serve as a practicum course of at least 3 credits or more. For a non-credit data-related experience, students will need to have their supervisor or mentor sign the verification form certifying that the student spent sufficient time working on a data-intense project during that practicum. At least once while you are in the program, this experience should be presented as a poster at the U-M Annual Data Science and AI Summit that demonstrates data science content, relevance and applications.
- For the 2024 cohort and prior: Students should participate in at least 7-9 data-science specific seminars (1 semester) to enrich their formal didactic training. These seminar series could be from different schools, Institutes, Initiatives, Centers, etc. Seminar attendance should be recorded here.
Enrollment Prerequisites
Students will need to ensure that they meet any prerequisites for courses they propose to enroll in to fulfill the course requirements.
Completion Competencies
The goal of the program is to ensure all recipients of the certificate gain data science and AI literacy with critical understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the models and tools they deploy in their research.
Application Procedures
The Graduate Data Science Certificate Program is open for enrollment to current University of Michigan graduate students from any degree-granting program at the University.
Current students accepted in MIDAS’s initial application (linked below) will receive instructions to fill out the requisite Rackham application form to formally enroll in the program. Accepted applicants must complete the Rackham application form by the end of the application cycle’s academic term for formal enrollment.
Complete applications (including MIDAS’s and Rackham’s applications) received by August 1st each year will be enrolled in the upcoming Fall semester. Admission and applications (MIDAS’s and Rackham’s) received by December 1st will be enrolled in the upcoming Winter semester.
Clicking on the button below will open the MIDAS application in a new tab.
You will need to be logged into your umich account to be able to access the application form.
Please contact [email protected] if you have issues with the form.
- Identifying information (Name, UMID, Home Department, current degree program, advisor)
- Proposed Program of Study including proposed courses and proposed practicum
- Personal Statement including data science learning goals, any prior data science experience, and research goals.
Students are encouraged to discuss their proposed study program with their advisors, MIDAS Graduate Certificate Program committee members or MIDAS Faculty prior to submitting an application.
- UM graduate students enrolled in a Rackham graduate program (e.g. MS, PhD, MA, MFA programs) should also complete the *Rackham Add a Degree/Certificate Online application.
- UM graduate students enrolled in a non-Rackham graduate program (e.g. MHI, MIS programs) need to complete both of the above steps and enroll in the Rackham graduate school. See below for the full procedure.
*Please email [email protected] once you have completed this online application. The Graduate AI and Data Science Certificate Program academic program code is 02135, and the academic plan code is 2100CGR.
U-M Non-Rackham Graduate Program Students
Please note that your first semester grades must be posted before applying for this certificate.
- UM graduate students should complete the online application form. Students are encouraged to discuss their proposed study program with their advisors, MIDAS Graduate Certificate Program committee members or MIDAS Faculty prior to submitting an application. Of note, non-Rackham graduate students must apply to Rackham.
- Go to the Rackham Graduate School Application, click on the button entitled ‘Apply Now’, and login.
- Type “Artificial Intelligence and Data Science” into the search box, and select the following degree program: Artificial Intelligence and Data Science Graduate Certificate
- For the Academic Statement of Purpose, upload a document stating “Artificial Intelligence and Data Science Program – Academic Statement of Purpose not required.
- In the Recommendation section, write “Artificial Intelligence and Data Science Program — Waived by Dept.” in the First Name field.
- Pay the application fee
- Email [email protected] and Elle O’Brien [email protected] to inform the committee of your submitted application.
MIDAS Certificate Assistant
Ask me about the certificate program
Conversations may be recorded to improve this service.