emlyon business school and École Centrale de Lyon launch a BSC in Data Science for Responsible Business

In September 2023, emlyon and Centrale Lyon will open the Bachelor of Science in Data Science for Responsible Business on the Lyon-Ecully campus. This post-secondary program, situated at the crossroads of the business world and emerging technologies, aims to train students to harness data science and AI to serve responsible businesses and achieve more sustainable development.

A hybrid program focused on social and environmental responsibility

emlyon business school and École Centrale de Lyon have jointly developed a hybrid program that interweaves engineering and management science to address organizations’ economic and socio-environmental challenges.

In the first two years of the Bachelor of Science, which are taught in English, students acquire and hone their skills in the fields of AI, data science and responsible management. In their third year, students will be able to choose one of the three specialization tracks:

Data Science: students develop a data science project in partnership with a company;
Research: students undertake study and research in partner laboratories;
Entrepreneurship: students develop a business start-up project underpinned by the incubators run by emlyon and Centrale Lyon.
On the strength of their total of 15 to 18 months of internships, the students completing the BSc in Data Science for Responsible Business will be equipped to apply for positions as Big Data Analyst, Data Analyst, Data Scientist, Data Science and AI Consultant or AI Project Manager. These job fields are all highly sought after by companies and organizations both in France and around the globe.

For Yohann De Castro, the program’s scientific advisor and a professor at Ecole Centrale de Lyon: “Artificial intelligence plays a central role in our economy and our lives. A knowledge of its distinctive features, its limitations and its challenges is an undeniable asset for our future decision-makers.”

Jean Savinien, Academic Director of the program and a professor at emlyon business school, adds: “We firmly believe that AI requires us to build gateways between engineering and management, and that it must be used to meet social and environmental commitments. The BSc in Data Science for Responsible Business is a hybrid program to train future AI experts who are informed and responsible.”

Aligned strategies and a historic collaboration

Higher-education institutions must be key players in the environmental, energy, digital and social transition. emlyon and Central Lyon have decided to construct their respective strategies around these issues. Today, the two excellence-oriented establishments have the same policy focuses and are renewing long-standing synergies as they work towards a common goal.

Pascal Ray, Principal of École Centrale de Lyon, says: “Today it is fundamentally important to reconcile digital science and social responsibility; the question of applications and impacts must be inherent to the development of new technologies. This is why, thanks to the cross-cutting nature of emlyon and Centrale Lyon, we propose a cross-disciplinary teaching approach. The hybrid course that we have designed together not only provides essential technical skills and managerial know-how, it also equips young graduates with the tools and behaviors that will enable them to act as a visionary, committed and responsible stakeholder.”

Isabelle Huault, Executive President and Dean of emlyon business school: “In this course, the disciplines are not distinct subjects taught independently: they are interconnected in an effort to foster cross-fertilization. The Bachelor of Science combines the best teaching in engineering and management to deliver training that is commensurate with the socio-environmental issues at stake. The program also fuels the spirit of enterprise and commitment through teaching that is underpinned by experience and application on the ground, where each student can find their own path, map out their career plan and contribute to the enlightened transformation of society.”

The Bachelor of Science in a nutshell

For young people who have either obtained or are in their final year of study towards a “scientific” baccalauréat (maths and science)
Taught in English
Duration: 4 years
Internships: minimum of 15 months spread over the four years (maximum of 18 months)
Next intakes: September 2023
https://masters.em-lyon.com/en/bsc-data-science-responsible-...