Studying Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence is an ever-growing field of study that has immense research and career possibilities. Students who take up this field of study will be able to thrive within the system since there is no room for stagnation and they will also be able to record their advancements over the ages all the while getting paid high salaries. This field of study deals with machines that are stimulated into performing human intelligence processes. Students will be dealing with subjects like reactive machines, limited memory machines, self-aware AI’s, etc.

Since it is a research-oriented field, students mostly opt for degree programs in this field. But most universities also offer professional certification programs in the field so that candidates will be able to work in select job roles within the field without having to invest a few many years in the subject. The USA has over 7,000 different programs offered for artificial intelligence most of which are recognized internationally and offer specializations that are career-oriented.

Benefits of Studying Artificial Intelligence

Studying artificial intelligence and understanding the nuances of this field is beneficial not just in technical areas but in every possible industry around the world. This is one of the career paths that promise growth and advancement for the candidate as long as they are keen on updating their knowledge within the space. A few of the benefits of studying artificial intelligence include-

• Studying AI will exponentially improve the employability of candidates since it is considered to be an ever-evolving space that can aid industries like healthcare, business, fashion, finance, etc.
• AI-related courses are deep-rooted in subjects like machine learning, data mining, computational design, human-computer interaction, etc. all of which are individual skills that one can further specialize in for career advancement.
• Students who do not wish to enter the corporate sector will be able to continue their research within organizations that focus on AI. Research options in the field will allow the candidate to remain a scholar for as long as they require all the while allowing them to make a living and bring advancements to society.
• More than improving employability, the career options one can choose from after completing a program in AI will offer a pay range between $100,000 to $150,000 per year. They will also be able to choose from a wide range of career possibilities if they pursue this field.

Specializations in Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence is a field that is deeply rooted in computer science but has its branches in robotics, human-computer interactions, deep learning, etc. all of which are individual streams of study themselves. Students who take up a course in artificial intelligence will do well if they master the overall aspects of the course and then focus on one specialization. A few specializations that one can pursue while studying artificial intelligence include-

• Neural Networks
• Cognitive Computing
• Machine Learning
• Deep Learning
• Cybernetics

Fee for Programs in Artificial Intelligence

Candidates who wish to take programs in artificial intelligence will be able to find plenty of programs at an undergraduate level and professional certificate programs. But at the same time, universities also offer programs at a master’s and doctorate level for students who wish to pursue a research-oriented career in this field.

The fee for artificial intelligence programs is dependent on the level of education one is wishing to take and the institution they are enrolling in. The fee will also be different for both in-state and out-of-state students. The fee range for undergraduate programs is between $32,000 to $61,000 per year with the lowest fee charged by the University of Illinois in Urbana Champaign and the highest charged by Cornell University.

Recommended Universities for Artificial Intelligence

A few of the best universities that offer programs for artificial intelligence are-

University	Location
Carnegie Mellon University	Pittsburg, PA
Massachusetts Institute of Technology	Cambridge, MA
Stanford University	Stanford, CA
University of California	Los Angeles
Cornell University	Ithaca, NY
University of Illinois	Urbana, IL
University of Michigan	Ann Arbor, MI
University of Texas	Austin, TX
University of Cincinnati	Cincinnati, Ohio
University of Georgia	Athens, Georgia
John Hopkins University	Baltimore, Maryland
Northwestern University	Evanston, Illinois

Recommended Artificial Intelligence Programs

The best programs one can take for artificial intelligence in the country are-

BS in Artificial Intelligence-CMU

Candidates who are majoring in Artificial Intelligence will be focusing on fields like math & statistics, computer science, science & engineering, ethics, humanities & arts, etc. as part of the program. The core subjects they will deal with in AI will include concepts in AI, machine learning, natural language, and computer vision. They will have to choose from the cluster electives which include subjects like decision-making & robotics, machine learning, perception & language, and human-AI interaction. The duration of the program is 4 years and the fee for undergraduate programs at the university is around $68,000 per year.

Professional Certificate Program in Machine Learning and AI-MIT

This program is offered to candidates who have a bachelor’s degree in a field relating to computer science, statistics, physics, or even electrical engineering. Candidates who enroll in the program will have to complete at least 16 days of qualifying courses which are machine learning for big data and text processing. Candidates will be able to arrange the courses according to the order in which they want to study them but they will have to complete all courses within 36 months in all.

The electives offered under this professional certificate program have separate fee requirements and can be chosen according to the specializations the candidate requires-

• AI for Computational Design and Manufacturing- $4,700 for 5 days
• Applied Data Science Program- $3,400 for 5 days
• Deep Learning for AI and Computer Vision- $4,700 for 5 days
• Advanced Reinforcement Learning- $2,500 for 2 days

The application fee for the program is $325 after which candidates will have to pay separate fees for the courses they choose.

Artificial Intelligence Graduate Program- Stanford University

The programs offered by Stanford University for AI are all in online mode and they are offered by the Stanford School of Engineering. Candidates who are software engineers or research scientists in the field will be able to benefit highly from the program. They will only have to spend around 15 to 20 hours every week for 3 years attending the lectures and completing the homework assigned to complete the program. This will allow them to cover 2 required courses and 3 electives in the field.

The fee for the program is charged per unit with an amount of $1,352 required for every unit.

MS in Artificial Intelligence- University of Michigan

This program is offered by the College of Engineering & Computer Science. It is a 30-credit hour curriculum and it is required that students who enroll in the program be familiar with the STEM field and that they have completed courses in programming, mathematics, and statistics. This program has core subjects like computational learning, algorithm design, software engineering, etc. The concentrations offered include computer vision, intelligent interaction, machine learning, knowledge management, etc.

The tuition that out-of-state students have to pay is around $26,000 per year while that for in-state students is around $12,000 per year. The duration of the program is 2 years.

M.Eng. in Computer Science-AI, Cornell University

The M.Eng. in CS program at Cornell University has a duration of 2 years and is considered to be a professional degree. Students will be able to take an artificial intelligence concentration and students will be dealing with areas like algorithms, architecture, computer vision, computational biology, etc. Students are required to take up an internship or project in the field of AI for course completion.

The fee for the program is $60,000 per year.

MS in Artificial Intelligence- Johns Hopkins University

This online program has a duration of 5 years and candidates are required to complete 10 courses within this period. They will be learning 4 core courses and an additional 6 courses all from the AI field. But at the same time, they will be allowed to take up programs from outside the AI program requirements as long as they are approved by their advisor. The core courses include algorithms, data science, artificial intelligence, applied machine learning, and AI-Enabled systems.

The fee per course for graduate programs here is around $6,000.

MS in Computer Science with AI-Stanford University

The master’s program offered for computer science at Stanford University has artificial intelligence as one of the specializations offered. Since the university offers a shopping period for students to choose the courses they want to learn, the courses that they will learn will be entirely up to their choice. Once this is set, they will be able to choose the AI specialization and learn things like machine learning, logical reasoning, robotics, probabilistic modeling, etc. This program has a duration of 2 years.

The tuition is charged per unit with each course having 3-5 units minimum. The cost for a unit is $1,352.

MS in Artificial Intelligence-Northwestern University

This program has a duration of 15 months and is provided as a full-time program with an additional summer internship. It has a class size of 40 or below. The traditional track of the program has subjects like the introduction to AI, machine learning, data science, natural language processing, deep learning, human-computer interaction, etc. as its main courses. Students are required to complete an industry capstone project in their final semester.

The program is split into 4 quarters with the tuition fee for each quarter being $20,300.

M.Eng. in Artificial Intelligence- University of Cincinnati

This is a graduate program with a duration of 1 to 2 years. Students are required to complete at least 30 credits for course completion. The core courses that one must learn for the program include systems engineering analysis, software testing, engineering project management, lean six sigma, engineered supply chain, etc. They will also be able to choose 4 or more elective courses from the 10 courses that are offered along with other capstone courses they have to do.

The fee per year for the program is around $27,000.

MS in Computer Science with AI- UCLA

This program has a duration of 2 years which spreads across 6 quarters in all. Most students will have the option of completing the program between 5 to 7 quarters. Students will be able to follow a thesis plan or a capstone plan for the program with the former requiring them to take 7 formal courses and 3 electives after which they can submit their thesis. The capstone plan on the other hand requires students to complete 9 courses and 4 electives. They will be able to choose AI as one of their chosen fields of study.

The fee for the program is around $18,000 per year for residents and around $33,000 per year for non-residents.

MS in Artificial Intelligence- University of Georgia

This program is offered by the Institute of Artificial Intelligence at the University of Georgia. The MSAI program here requires students to complete 30 hours of coursework along with an oral comprehensive examination and a research thesis for course completion. The core courses they have to deal with include deductive systems, data mining, artificial intelligence, etc.

The tuition per year for in-state students is around $4,500 whereas that of out-of-state students is around $13,000 per year.

MS in Computer Science- University of Illinois

This program has a duration of 2 years and has a 32-credit requirement. Students are required to complete 28 credit hours in coursework and the remaining 4 credit hours as part of their thesis work. They will be able to choose AI as one of the 3 core areas they are supposed to choose from the 10 that are offered to them. The fee for the program is calculated per course with each course costing around $6,300.

High Paying Jobs for Artificial Intelligence Graduates

Candidates who have completed their education in artificial intelligence will find that most of the career options in this field are based in the investigation and security services industry. But at the same time, they will be able to work in computer science-related career options. The most popular career options in the field include data analytics, research scientists, software engineering, AI engineering, etc.

• AI Engineer- They are responsible for building AI models for different industries. This will require an in-depth knowledge of deep learning, machine learning, and neural networks.
  Median Salary- $135,000 per year
• Computer and Information Research Scientist- Their job description will include investigating and developing computational models that can solve existing problems in computing. This can include the creation of software systems, computing languages, etc. as required by the industry.
  Median Salary- $131,490 per year
• Data Scientist- This job role will involve transforming raw data into information through the use of programming languages and visualization software.
  Median Salary- $100,900 per year
• Machine Learning Engineer- This job deals mostly with the automation part of robotics and candidates will be dealing with predictive analysis for the same.
  Average Salary- $112,000 per year
• Software Engineer- Candidates who have studied artificial intelligence will be able to create software that deals with the functionality of AI machines. This will include the creation and maintenance of such machines.
  Average Salary- $86,000 per year