Rice offering new, unique energy data management master’s track

Rice University is offering a new and unique master’s degree in energy data management in the coming school year.

The Wiess School of Natural Sciences’ Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences has opened enrollment for fall 2018 and spring 2019 in its graduate program in subsurface geoscience, through which the energy data management track will be offered, along with existing tracks in geology and geophysics.

Rice faculty have collaborated with leading Houston oil and gas companies to develop this new focus area that promotes modern understanding of exploration and production as a data-driven business, emphasizing the importance of the curation and exploitation of data within the upstream oil and gas industry. This program provides a graduate study opportunity for students to become data-enabled geoscientists to match current demands in the industry.

“Demand in this field is steadily growing in a variety of industries, and in response to this need Rice’s M.S. in subsurface geoscience has expanded the focus areas to include courses in data science, management and governance,” said Dagmar Beck, director of the professional science master’s program. “Energy data management is increasingly recognized as a discipline critical to the energy industry. The program hopes to attract applicants interested to move into this up-and-coming field.”

Course work overview:

Four core courses establish a strong foundation in geophysical, geological and reservoir engineering knowledge and methods and are complemented with three data management and science courses providing the core skills expected of a data-enabled geoscientist, including the fundamental principles of energy data management and data governance. This foundation is then used to build capability in the tools and methods for data science and subsurface modeling in the energy industry and their underpinning information technology and data management requirements.

Electives and practical work experience — capstone project:

To round out their education, students will take up to five elective courses in their interest area. Among a wide range of available topics are management and business, business ethics, project management, policy and business writing. The program also requires practical work experience through an internship and/or capstone project with companies in the oil and gas industry.

The subsurface geoscience degree features a fully integrated design and is available as part-time (over 2 1/2 to 3 years) or full-time study (21 months).

For information about the program, contact profms@rice.edu or visit www.profms.rice.edu.