The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s professional master’s degree in Resource and Energy Demand Analysis (REDA) prepares students for in-demand careers with utilities, consulting firms, regulatory agencies, and other organizations involved in protecting natural resources. They learn economic theory, survey methodology, econometrics, statistics, and communication skills, but they also get practical experiences. In a final practicum project, they synthesize what they’ve learned to solve a real-world research problem, often working with a partner company.
Analysts at Navigant Consulting, named a top-10 energy consulting firm by Vault, Inc., mentored students Ethan Barquest, Zan Li, and Justin Margolies. Barquest evaluated a demand-side management program designed to increase grid stability, while Li evaluated an energy efficiency program using an online web portal to encourage behavior change.
“We want to calculate how much energy the program saves for the customers,” Li says. “The practicum is challenging because we are dealing with a really large data set.”
Industry connections
The professional master’s in Resource and Energy Demand Analysis is the first program of its kind, allowing students to earn their degrees in under a year. There’s a high demand for graduates with the quantitative skills to manage and evaluate energy efficiency and resource conservation programs, given their growth around the world.
The practicum project helps students bridge the gap between theory and practice. Industry professionals provide feedback and guidance, as well as offering professional connections.
For Margolies, the practicum was the perfect transition between learning and application.
“The opportunity to work as an intern for a world-class company like Navigant was truly a gift,” he says. “It gave me much more confidence, now that I’m going into the working world and applying to jobs.”
For more information on the professional master’s degree in Resource and Energy Demand Analysis, watch the video above or see here.