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Master's degree program
The EMOS programme aims at responding to emerging needs of qualified people in the production and analysis of data, with particular reference to official statistics. Eurostat, scientific sponsor of the Master programme, in fact, underlines that this type of training is necessary both
The EMOS programme provides preparation aimed at those wishing to operate in national and international agencies producing official statistics and, more generally, in all public or private companies, that are users as well as producers of data (e.g., big data, internal and external data and Official Statistics).
The EMOS programme, designed to comply with the requirements established by Eurostat, has been recognized as a European Master in Official Statistics (EMOS). EMOS is a label awarded by the European Statistical System Committee (ESSC) to master’s programmes providing postgraduate education in the area of official statistics on the basis of selective criteria regarding various aspects: teaching capacity of the staff, content of the courses, infrastructures, agreements with official statistical agencies. The training objectives required by Eurostat concern the system of official statistics, methods of data production, statistical methods and themes of official statistics. The EMOS network is active in more than 15 European countries and comprises more than 30 universities and their collaboration partners in national statistical offices, central banks, other national authorities, international organizations and other partner organizations.
The programme is characterized by the study of methods and problems relating to the production of data, laboratories for software and elements of statistics in general and official statistics. EMOS students will be introduced to the rapidly changing landscape from design-based production of official statistics to integrating different kinds of data sources, including new data sources. Further, the programme includes not just technicalities, but an understanding of the institutional environment, statistical processes, dimensions of the quality of the statistical outputs with special emphasis on the dissemination aspects as well as communication and soft skills.
The EMOS programme is embedded in the Data Science (DS) curriculum. At their second year, DS students might decide to obtain the EMOS label by properly selecting their elective courses (namely, Text Mining and Sentiment Analysis, European Economic Policy, and Statistics for Management). Further, in addition to the institutional courses, the programme includes 6 credits relating to “Thematic Activities”, consisting generally of seminars / webinars held by Istat or international experts or in any activities proposed by Eurostat. The curriculum includes an internship in official statistics (6 credits) to be generally held at Istat or other National Statistical Institute or eventually other national or international statistical authorities acting in the area of official statistics. Some possibilities for cross-border internships are also available. In formally justified cases, the internship could be substituted by a research project (written report) on a topic relevant to official statistics. The final dissertation should cover methods or topics relevant to official statistics and be in line with the theme developed within the internship. EMOS students can benefit from activities sponsored by Eurostat, such as paid cross-border internships, sponsored conferences attendances, webinars, workshops, and the bi-annual Master’s Thesis Competition, which overall offer the opportunity to acquire a relevant mix of skills and knowledge for tomorrow’s official statisticians. The student who graduates with the EMOS programme obtains the European Master of Official Statistics Diploma Supplement, certifying its international importance.
The EMOS programme is committed to addressing future challenges of statistical production and dissemination and to adapt the pedagogical approach accordingly in order to offer a stimulating learning experience.
More details on the study plan can be found at the following link.
