Sophia Cofone follows her passion for data science

Intrigued by data science

Sophia Cofone thought accounting was her future. She had a bachelor’s in that field and a new position as a tech auditor at PricewaterhouseCoopers, in Boston. But she soon realized it was actually the data part of her job that truly interested her.  

When Cofone came across the master’s of data science in the Roux Institute’s Align program, she leapt at the opportunity to make a change. “Align jumped out at me because of its rigorous approach,” she says. And the generous Alfond Scholarship sealed the deal. Cofone found herself moving from Boston to Maine to begin her new life.   

What she gained at the Roux

Learning a new discipline was initially challenging. “The classes push you to learn a lot quickly,” she says. But Cofone was gaining the technical skills she needed for her career goals. “My classes taught me to think like a data scientist.” 

Her new community at Roux was an unexpected bonus. “My classmates are a plus. Most don’t have STEM backgrounds, but they all have valuable experience,” she says. “It’s been fun to collaborate with other students.” 

Those connections led her to the perfect opportunity to gain data science experience. Through her roommate, Cofone discovered a short-term internship at Omnic Data, an esports startup (and Roux partner) that specializes in player performance data and analytics. An avid gamer, Cofone worked for three months in software engineering and data science at Omnic—an experience she found invaluable. 

From intern to employee

“If there’s a skill you want to learn, Roux is flexible,” Cofone says. “The program can be tailored to your interests or career goals.”