UVA alum and Emergency Medicine Physician enrolls in online Data Science program to help improve automotive safety

Meet Thomas Hartka, UVA online MSDS student and UVA Medical School graduate. Dr. Hartka grew up in Severna Park, Maryland. Prior to attending UVA, Hartka earned both his Bachelor’s and Master’s in Computer Science from Virginia Tech. Hartka is a THRIV Scholar and currently uses his medical background to study car accidents and provide insights regarding automotive safety.

What led you to pursue a degree in Data Science at UVA?

I’ve always loved programming. I actually got a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Computer Engineering at Virginia Tech and then decided I wanted to go to medical school. I wound up going to a post-bacc program at Johns Hopkins before coming to UVA for medical school where I met my wife. I stayed here for my residency in emergency medicine and then entered a fellowship in trauma research. A lot of my research revolves around data analysis already, so this seemed like a natural progression to really expand my skill set in analyzing data.

Can you tell me more about the role data plays in your medical research?

I analyze car crash data and do a lot of car crash-related research. One of my chief responsibilities is analyzing cases to put into a big national database for NHTSA, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration. I’ve been very interested in how we can use car crash data, because we have lots of it, to improve the care that we deliver in the emergency department.

How has the MSDS program fit into your busy professional schedule?

The convenience has been great. That was a huge draw. I just couldn’t commit the time to doing 40 hours a week. The fact that I can take these courses from home, and with a course load that still affords me time to do my job, has been remarkable and allows me to fit it all in.

How has it been earning a degree online as opposed to in-person?

I mean, it’s amazing. I’ve never taken any online program prior to this or any online classes, so I didn’t really know what to expect. We have a fairly small class, and it’s very interactive so I’ve gotten to know my classmates very well. We collaborate on a number of projects. We’re all taking the same courses at the same time, so it leads to a fairly close-knit group.

Has the sense of community exceeded your expectations of an online program?

It has. On top of the intimate class structure, there was a meet-and-greet early in the semester where people actually came to Charlottesville and had dinner together and attended networking events. That was a fantastic opportunity to actually meet people in person that I’d seen so often on the screen.

What have one or two of the highlights of the online MSDS thus far?

It has been fantastic just learning all these different methods, finally understanding these things that I had heard about so often, like support vector machines and various other deep learnings that have allowed me to peer under the hood and see how these algorithms actually work.

Another highlight has been how readily applicable the material I’m learning is to my job. I have been able to take things I was taught last week in class and apply them to my current research. It’s just been such a natural fit to be able to take stuff I learned last week and apply it right now.

Like Dr. Hartka, an MS in Data Science can help you utilize data in your daily professional life. It can also enable you to pivot your careers and professional trajectory. If you’re thinking about earning an MS in Data Science, apply here today.