Midwest Undergraduate Data Analytics Competition Coming to Minnesota State Mankato

Saturday, March 30, 2019
8:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Centennial Student Union

• Mankato Free Press coverage
• KEYC TV coverage

Mankato, Minn. – More than 250 students representing 60 teams from over 30 universities and colleges in the Midwest will compete in the eighth annual Midwest Undergraduate Data Analytics Competition (MUDAC) Saturday and Sunday, March 30-31 at Minnesota State University, Mankato.

During the two-day competition, student teams will spend 24 hours working on a real-world data analytics problem pertaining to Minnesota water quality. Forty faculty advisors will work with the student teams, and 80 industry professionals and educators will judge the competition.

The competition, held in Minnesota State Mankato’s Centennial Student Union, begins at 8 a.m. Saturday, March 30 and concludes at 4:30 p.m. Sunday, March 31. A Saturday dinner and reception from 6-8 p.m. in the Centennial Student Union Ballroom will include an industry panel and musical performances from Minnesota State Mankato students. (NOTE TO EDITORS: Media are encouraged to cover the competition and the industry panel.)

“We are excited to host this prestigious competition, which has a great tradition of engaging students in solving rigorous real-world problems using data analytics,” said Rajeev Bukralia, assistant professor at Minnesota State Mankato and MUDAC competition chair. “This year’s challenge about water quality is a topic of great societal value. Over 250 of the very best students will work to find meaningful insights about water resources in the state.”

The 60 teams competing this year represent the highest number of registered teams in MUDAC’s eight-year history, said Bukralia.

For more information, contact Bukralia by phone at 507-389-1437 or by email at rajeev.bukralia@mnsu.edu.

Minnesota universities represented include Minnesota State Mankato, the University of Minnesota, St. Cloud State University, Winona State University and Metro State University. Teams from the University of Wisconsin, University of Illinois, University of Iowa and North Dakota State University are among the universities and colleges registered for the competition.

The Midwest Undergraduate Data Analytics Competition is dedicated to enhancing the education of undergraduate students who will soon be entering the data science/data analytics profession. It allows participants to showcase their analytical talent and promotes professional development.

MUDAC is a collaborative effort between Minnesota State University, Mankato; Winona State University; and MinneAnalytics. This year’s data sponsor is the Water Resource Center at Minnesota State Mankato.

Sponsors also include Federated Insurance; the Minnesota State IT Center of Excellence; the Minnesota State Engineering Center of Excellence; and the following Minnesota State Mankato sponsors: College of Science, Engineering & Technology; College of Business; College of Graduate Studies and Research; Career Development Center; Data Resources for Eager and Analytical Minds (DREAM) registered student organization.

Minnesota State Mankato, a comprehensive university with 14,227 students, is part of the Minnesota State system, which includes 30 colleges and seven universities.