It may get lost sometimes in the torrent of news about algorithms, AI agents, and advances in computing, but the future of data science will pivot on the collaborations of people. A new Yale program aims to help shape and support that community of researchers for the next generation.
The Peter Salovey and Marta Moret Data Science Fellows Program, which launches in the spring 2026 semester, will offer mentoring, professional development, and outreach opportunities for an interdisciplinary cohort of doctoral students. The support will complement the students' ongoing Ph.D. training and encourage engagement with a wider community of scholars addressing the challenges facing science and society where data science plays a critical role.
"The field of data science has enormous potential to transform our world," said Lynn Cooley, dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS), who championed the program's creation. "Ph.D. students fuel the research taking place across the university. We wanted to create a cross-disciplinary community of students and faculty from across Yale who are applying data science to a range of fields, facilitating the serendipitous exchanges that can lead to breakthrough discoveries."
The program is a collaboration between the GSAS and the Yale Institute for Foundations of Data Science (Yale FDS). Yale FDS, a hub for interdisciplinary data science collaborations on campus, will administer the program, which is funded by an anonymous alumni donor.
