At the Katz School and Sy Syms, you learn the way real innovators work. In every course and across a multi-semester project, our science, technology and business students identify opportunities, then design, build, test, and improve solutions — across AI, computer science, data analytics, cybersecurity, digital marketing, biotechnology, business and finance — mastering the exact skills employers want for research and development (R&D) careers.
In every class and in a multi-semester capstone project, you will:
You learn from practitioners, both from industry and academia. Our industry professors bring an entrepreneurial mindset into the classroom, many have hands-on R&D experience and have founded their own startups. They'll teach you to spot opportunities, validate market needs, and develop a proof of concept or minimum viable product. Our research faculty ensure that your work stays grounded in cutting-edge science as well as commercial reality. They bring a significant research grant portfolio from government agencies and private sectors.
Building something is only half the work; knowing whether you should is the other half. Through case studies worked alongside senior industry experts, you develop the judgment and ethical perspective to weigh real-world trade-offs, not in the abstract, but on the kinds of decisions practitioners actually face. You learn to move past “I know we can do this” and ask the harder question: should we? That instinct is what employers trust most in their R&D teams.
Your projects aren’t hypothetical. Many come directly from your current employer or from the university and industry partners we collaborate with, giving you real stakes, real data, and real users. You finish with results that matter to an organization, and experience you can speak to in any interview.
By the time you graduate, you won’t just know the science, you’ll have a track record of identifying opportunities and shipping solutions. That’s what sets Katz School graduates apart in R&D roles at companies like S&P, Dow Jones, Google, IBM, Deloitte, Goldman Sachs, and Microsoft.
A mobile app that classifies lung CT scans as cancerous, non-cancerous, or normal and highlights the exact regions that drove its decision, making early detection faster and more trustworthy where specialists are scarce.
A dynamic, data-driven framework that uses analytics and game theory to adjust user incentives in real time for platforms like Uber and Airbnb, boosting participation, fairness, and efficiency while controlling cost.
A full launch strategy for Healers’ curved-cutting sternotomy device, designed to speed patient recovery and reach surgeons, hospitals, and patients with a precision-targeted campaign.
A commercialization and market-entry plan for a radioimmunoconjugate therapy targeting osteosarcoma, developed with industry partner Frezent Biological Solutions to bring a safer treatment to young patients.
A secure, centralized platform that connects students and alumni across New York-area universities, built on strong cybersecurity practices to protect personal data while integrating GEOINT and OSINT intelligence.
A vision-transformer tool that automatically detects diabetic and hypertensive retinopathy from eye images, bringing fast, low-cost screening to regions with limited medical resources.
DIGITAL MARKETING & MEDIA
An AI-driven analysis combining sentiment, visual branding, and SEO to evaluate a Hilton property’s online reputation, surfacing concrete opportunities to improve guest experience and digital engagement.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
A privacy-preserving human-activity recognition system that uses large language models to synthesize motion data, powering fall detection, fitness coaching, and VR/AR tracking that adapts to any environment.
A mobile app that classifies lung CT scans as cancerous, non-cancerous, or normal and highlights the exact regions that drove its decision, making early detection faster and more trustworthy where specialists are scarce.
A dynamic, data-driven framework that uses analytics and game theory to adjust user incentives in real time for platforms like Uber and Airbnb, boosting participation, fairness, and efficiency while controlling cost.
A full launch strategy for Healers’ curved-cutting sternotomy device, designed to speed patient recovery and reach surgeons, hospitals, and patients with a precision-targeted campaign.
A commercialization and market-entry plan for a radioimmunoconjugate therapy targeting osteosarcoma, developed with industry partner Frezent Biological Solutions to bring a safer treatment to young patients.
A secure, centralized platform that connects students and alumni across New York-area universities, built on strong cybersecurity practices to protect personal data while integrating GEOINT and OSINT intelligence.
A vision-transformer tool that automatically detects diabetic and hypertensive retinopathy from eye images, bringing fast, low-cost screening to regions with limited medical resources.
DIGITAL MARKETING & MEDIA
An AI-driven analysis combining sentiment, visual branding, and SEO to evaluate a Hilton property’s online reputation, surfacing concrete opportunities to improve guest experience and digital engagement.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
A privacy-preserving human-activity recognition system that uses large language models to synthesize motion data, powering fall detection, fitness coaching, and VR/AR tracking that adapts to any environment.
