Computational Research

Perspectives on Computational Research (MACS 30200), University of Chicago, M.A. Program in Computational Social Science: Spring 2017 and Spring 2018

Perspectives on Computational Analysis is the capstone of the three-course core sequence in the M.A. Program in Computational Social Science at the University of Chicago. I developed this course and taught it Spring 2017 and Spring 2018 terms. It brings together the research design and data skills that the students learned in Perspectives on Computational Analysis (Autumn term) with the advanced methods they learned in Perspectives on Computational Modeling (Winter term). It is an essential and natural final outcome of this course that the students produce a full-length (around 20-25 pages) academic paper that answers a social scientific research question using modern computational methods. The students also produce a poster of their paper and present their poster to the faculty and to classmates at an end-of-term seminar. All the syllabus, references, and assignments for the course are available in the GitHub repository for the Spring 2018 section of MACS 30200.

The lectures in the course teach students how to write academically and how to write the different sections of a social scientific research paper. We study the different sections of leading current articles in the top journals in economics, sociology, political science, and psychology. Despite differences among fields, many unifying characteristics stand out. Initial problem sets are strategically structured to help them progress through the stages of producing a research paper (e.g., proposal, literature review, and methods/initial results sections separately and in sequence). For the first assignment, the research proposal, the students make a formal 5-minute slide presentation and are graded on content, clarity, and delivery. In addition, students receive feedback on their submissions as the course progresses. By the end of the course, a large percent of the students have very impressive research papers. My rough observation is that about half of the research papers submitted at the end of the Perspectives on Computational Research course end up forming the foundation of that student's MA thesis. This course also ensures that at least one of the courses in the first year of the MACSS program requires the students to write a proper academic paper.