What will the new AI degree at A&T require of students?

GREENSBORO — N.C. A&T announced last week it will be the first public university in the state to offer a standalone bachelor’s degree in artificial intelligence.

The university plans to enroll the first group of about 50 students next fall. From there, officials hope to expand the program to 143 students by the third year and then to around 300 students by the fifth year. 

The degree requires 120 credit hours to complete, but the exact coursework depends on which of two concentrations a student chooses: Advanced AI Systems, offered through the College of Engineering, and Applied AI in the College of Science and Technology.  

For starters, all A&T students pursing a degree in AI will take core courses that provide a rudimentary understanding of the mathematics and coding necessary to work in the AI industry.

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“First, there’s the foundation technical courses, which is a set of courses in math, statistics, and coding or computing,” said Abdellah Ahmidouch, dean of A&T’s College of Science and Technology.

Foundational courses for students in the Advanced AI systems track will require higher levels of math and coding than those in the Applied AI concentration, said Stephanie Luster-Teasley Pass, dean for A&T’s college of engineering. 

Additionally, all students in both concentrations will be required to take an AI ethics course before they can earn their degree.

“There are no real regulations and rules already established by either local governments or state or federal government. So we will have to police ourselves initially,”  Ahmidouch said. “Students need to be aware of the implications of what they do in AI and how it can affect either population, products that they produce, and anything else.” 

From the core courses, students then move on to courses in their concentration. 

Pass said for the Advanced AI Systems concentration, there are three main tracks a student can pursue: machine learning; decision making and robotics; and a pure computer science track.

“The three areas that they can go into really takes them to the next level of understanding,” Pass said. “What is the coding? How do you teach the machine models? How do you go through and really understand the structure of pulling together AI smart systems.” 

Similarly, there’ll be three main tracks for students in the Applied AI concentration: a technology and engineering track; a design, animation, and modeling track; and finally a data science and analytics track. 

Ahmidouch said the university hopes to eventually offer applied AI tracks in other fields. 

“The goal is ultimately to expand those applications to additional areas such as business and finance, and agriculture,” Ahmidouch said.

As another component of the program, students in both concentrations will be required to have an industrial experience where they either engage in a research project or internship.

The two groups will then get together so they can talk about their experiences, Pass said. 

With members of A&T’s staff already engaged in research ranging from autonomous vehicles to facial recognition — and the university’s partnership with companies like Google, Apple, and Microsoft — Pass said there should be plenty of research opportunities for those pursing a degree in AI. 

“Students already can come right in, they can start doing research,” Pass said.

Pass said the program is generating a lot of interest.

“We’re already getting lots of phone calls about people who are excited about the program,” Pass said. 

Originally Appeared Here