The Teaching, Research and Extension Chamber (Cepe) of Unicamp, approved this Tuesday (10) the proposal to create the bachelor's degree course “Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Data Science”.
The new course will be a shared responsibility between the Faculty of Applied Sciences (FCA) and the Faculty of Technology (FT) and is expected to begin operating in Limeira in 2027. The expectation is that a class will also be offered at the Campinas campus starting in 2028. The course will have a minimum duration of 8 semesters – and a maximum of 12 semesters – a workload of 3.240 hours, and will offer 40 places.
The proposal to create the course will still have to be voted on by the University Council (Consu), the highest decision-making body of the University.
According to the Vice-Rector for Undergraduate Studies, Mônica Cotta, the new course will have emphases in three areas – Smart and Sustainable Cities, Public Administration and Digital Government, and Health and High-Performance Sports. “It will not be a course focused solely on research or public service,” she said. “The emphasis on Smart and Sustainable Cities speaks directly to the market,” she argued.
The course curriculum was structured around six main areas: mathematics and statistics; computing, AI tools and data science; emphasis on application areas and transversal skills; and finally, internship.
According to FCA's associate director, Professor Cristiano Torezzan, who presented the proposal to the committee, the new course has a strong cross-disciplinary character. "This is a unique course, conceived in an interdisciplinary way," he said. "The course is new and unique enough to justify its own format, aligned with the demands of the contemporary world," he added.
The rector of Unicamp, Paulo Cesar Montagner, drew attention to the integration between the two units (FCA and FT) in the implementation of the course. "With this, the units are taking a significant step, because it's not trivial to bring two units together," the rector pointed out. "But we have to work in this direction," he concluded.
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