Deep Dand is currently pursuing a Masters of Science in Information Systems graduate degree at Marist. He is in the Information Systems Management track and is also taking coursework for an advanced certificate in Business Analytics. He is expected to complete his plan of study in December of 2018.

Please provide your previous education including major, degree, and college/university attended.
I have completed a Bachelors in Computer Engineering in 2013 from K. J. Somaiya College of Engineering, Mumbai, India. Prior to that, I completed my Diploma in Computer Technology, also in Mumbai.

Tell us about your work or professional history before coming to Marist, including years of experience, industry, companies, and positions. 
I worked with Accenture Services Pvt Ltd, in Mumbai, India for 3 years as an Application Developer Analyst and have experience on SAP Basis. I also managed a team of 30 people for the duration of a year.

What are your short and longer-term career goals? 
My work experience ranges from UI design to developing Android applications and also publishing a paper on Artificial Intelligence. I have also developed a project on AI and I currently want to complete my masters in Information Systems with a concentration in Business Analytics and get work experience in handling AI projects.

My long-term goal is to be an entrepreneur leading a group of motivated people to make innovations and research in areas of healthcare using Artificial Intelligence. 

Why did you choose to pursue your graduate degree at Marist?
I already have some industry experience and a formal education in computer science so I wanted to pursue a master's that had a business analytics focus but also included AI and systems. At Marist, I am getting the flexibility of choosing my master’s program the way I wanted and so it stood as perfect choice for me to complete my graduation.

Tell us about a project or course that was particularly meaningful to your professional development or course of study? 
I have completed 3 semesters here at Marist and it has been a great experience. The courses like Theoretical Machine Learning and Deep Learning with tensorflow (these were the electives I chose being in MSIS domain) are one of the meaningful courses towards my career goals. The subjects really helped me get the knowledge of machine learning, and I am researching in areas of American Sign Language with Convolution Neural Networks and Auto-Encoders under the guidance of Dr. Pablo Rivas.

What advice would you give to other international students considering a graduate degree at Marist?
Do your homework well before choosing any place for a graduate degree. I had my reasons for choosing Marist. Decide your areas of interest and subjects that align with your plans for after graduation. I understand that all of us doesn’t have things planned but at Marist, before coming to the college, you can get the guidance from many people. Check the website and you will know about the flexible options for subjects and specializations that Marist offers. I am sure you will make a well-informed choice if you come to Marist.

If you took an online class or had online learning as part of a regular course, tell us about your experiences – any tips or suggestions to pass along to future students?
I do have one online class in this semester and it has been going really easy for me. The instructions are clear and assignments are to be submitted to the Marist iLearn portal. Also, the course materials are arranged in a very good way. The classes are divided into weeks and you know the agenda of next week prior to the week starts so you can have clarity of course content. The professor is reachable by email all the time and is very helpful in terms of solving our problems. The requirements are posted by the professor at the start of online course which states what are things that will be delivered and what is expected out of students.

Please feel free to provide additional comments:
I am happy with my decision of choosing Marist for my graduate studies and starting from the first day I was able to find people to help guide me through any difficulties that came up. Be it learning something new, understanding the new place, or celebrating cultural festivals (which is possible through Center for Multicultural Affairs) we, existing students, staff members and professors all are here to help you once you join us.