Some Background #
I have been working as a Data Scientist for the past 4 years. I have worked mostly on the applied side of machine learning and never got a chance to understand the various algorithms that I have been using on a much deeper level. So I wanted to bridge this gap of understanding that I had. This prompted me to look for a masters program with a strong focus on machine learning. I did not want to leave my job so I had to choose from those programs that allowed people with full-time jobs to pursue a master’s program. OMSCS program from Georgia Tech turned out to be the best fit.
Prerequisite #
The application process is quite simple and it is very well explained in their website. You have to take an English proficiency test like IELTS/TOEFL and achieve a score above their threshold(For me, it was a minimum of 100 out of 120 on TOEFL). The second main requirement was to get three letters of recommendation (2 academic and 1 professional). Along with this you have to submit your resume and fill out a detailed application form. I had applied for Fall 2024 and got my acceptance letter during March, 2024.
Introduction #
Time management has been my enemy ever since my college days. I struggle with multitasking and I knew managing this program with a full-time job was going to be hectic. Guess what?, it was! Even though OMSCS is an online program, it is a tough and challenging program. You essentially get the same degree as the onsite program, so you can deduce that the program is going to be tough. I took the course Machine Learning For Trading(ML4T) as my first course and coupled it with a LLM seminar. The biggest challenge was adjusting to the program in the first few weeks. Every week you have some readings to complete, research papers to read, programming assignments to complete and, quizzes to give. My target was to study a couple of hours every day and not to keep workload solely for weekends. It was extremely tough to achieve this in a full time job setting. Some days I would be extremely tired after coming from office and some days office work would be so critical and time consuming that I hardly got any time and patience left in me to study. But I tried my best to study everyday and for about 75-80% of the days I was able to achieve it. Below are the few things that I experienced or learnt after my first semester
Back to learning phase :) #
This is the biggest advantage. You get to learn stuff. The learning phase is back and if you take the program seriously you can learn a lot of interesting and fascinating concepts. I had very little idea in finance but this course enabled me to understand a lot of stuff that was happening under the hood. I learnt about technical and fundamental indicators, how we can use them to predict stock prices, how hedge funds work, received a refresher on pandas and numpy and also got an opportunity to code some machine learning algorithms from scratch like decision trees. On the seminar side, I learnt about human computer interaction specifically in LLM-based systems and also gave a lightning talk on one of the projects that I was working on.
Social Life takes a hit! #
Honestly I am not much of a social person but I still go out during the weekends, maybe going out to lunch or dinner with my friends/family or going for a cricket match. Nothing fancy, just standard weekend activities. However I realized I would have to sacrifice some weekends if I want to complete my work. Some weeks the programming assignments are tough and you have to put extra effort in making it work. Not just that a few assignments require detailed reports and that can be a time consuming work. Although I enjoyed working on such assignments and writing detailed reports, I had to sacrifice several weekends to meet deadlines. The final assignment especially was extremely challenging and time consuming and I had to dedicate close to 10-12 hours everyday for a week or so to complete it.
Multitasking is the key #
As you can deduce from the name, you have to learn to multitask. This was the biggest challenge for me and it took me quite some time to get into the flow of handling work, masters and life. One thing that I tried to do a lot was find these pockets of time where I would quickly complete a reading or watch video lectures or brainstorm some ideas for the assignment. Even for 15 minutes, completing a small activity did help a lot in the long run. All you have to focus on is consistency of completing small tasks whenever you get time.
Entertainment consumption reduces drastically #
Before OMSCS, post work all I did was to scroll through various OTT platforms and watch something and then go to sleep. Brain rot is real and even though some days I tried to study or work on a fun project, those instances were rare , and I mostly ended up consuming digital content. OMSCS saved me there! Instead of watching movies, I had to read papers, watch video lectures, research on various topics online or work on assignments. I was learning something new everyday and it felt satisfying. However one thing that I also missed was playing on my PlayStation post work :(
Plan your vacations #
This can be tricky to deal with. You have to think a lot before taking a vacation and be prepared to carry your laptop wherever you go especially if you plan to take a vacation during a semester. The safest option is to plan your trips during semester breaks but you can still take trips during semester provided you have thought of a plan on how to finish your work during your trip. I did take a trip to Gujarat with my family during this semester and although I tried to find some time to read during my trip but it wasn’t enough. The workload piled up for me after I returned, and had to stretch a lot to complete it on time.
You still can network! #
Even though the masters program is in an online setting you still get to network with a lot of people. We have numerous groups for people who are pursuing the program and regular meetups are also organized city wise for people to come and interact with each other. We recently had our Bengaluru meetup on December 14, 2024. You can find people from various backgrounds and different experience level (from a fresher to people with 15-20 years experience) pursuing the program.
Conclusion #
To put it simply, it has been a tough and challenging experience, but it is worth it. I learned a lot in finance and machine learning this semester, made some new friends and improved my time management and multitasking skills. This learning experience is highly rewarding and I am excited for my future semesters.