Muhammad Usama Bin Abad, an Applied Data Student at L'Aquila University and one of the winners of our 2020 STEM scholarships, discovered his passion for Big data and Computer Science at the young age of eight, when his uncle gave him a Pentium II to play with. Today, he's on the cusp of fulfilling his dream of becoming a skilled data analyst. In our interview with him, Muhammad Usama shares his college journey and aspirations.

Can you briefly introduce yourself?

I’m Muhammad Usama, I’m from Lahore, a beautiful city in Pakistan, and I’m 25 years old. I hold a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and I’m currently attending the Master’s Degree in Applied Data Science run by the University of L’Aquila. I fell in love with computers when my uncle gave me his Pentium II to play around with: I was 8 years old back then.

What’s your degree all about?

This degree provides a strong foundation in the collection, processing, analysis, visualization and reporting of data. It will enable me to learn how to draw data-driven conclusions, while being compliant with data protection policies.

Why have you chosen this path?

Actually, data feels home to me. I feel comfortable with myself whenever I deal with large sets of numbers.

What do you love the most about your degree program?

I love its practical side, such as the possibility to obtain useful information by analyzing junk data. Junk data is unorganized: you therefore need to apply functions to make it useful for a company. This program, furthermore, gives me the chance to explore the world of Cyber Security, a topic I’m really interested in, which involves the application of technologies, processes and controls to protect systems, networks, programs, devices and data from cyber-attacks.

What are your future goals?

Become a talented Data Analyst, whose job is to identify, gather and analyze big data and make numbers accessible to companies through easy-to-understand graphs, charts, tables and reports.