The Spears School of Business recently had students place first and third in the 2021 RMDS Data Science Competition.

OSU students capture 1st, 3rd place in worldwide data science competition

Friday, April 2, 2021

OSU business analytics and data science graduate students Andrew Dryanski, Pankajdeer Bikumalla, Xitong Hu and Aspen Schmidt teamed up to win first place in the 2021 RMDS Data Science Competition.

A pair of teams of Oklahoma State University business analytics and data science graduate students were the big winners at the 2021 RMDS Data Science Competition. OSU teams won first and third place in a competition which more than 320 teams from around the world registered to compete in.

The team of Andrew Dryanski, Pankajdeer Bikumalla, Xitong Hu and Aspen Schmidt won first place for their analysis that predicted the impact of news sentiment on the stock market. Also, Kalyan Alisetty, Vinil Rayala and Maruthi Shankar Nanduri placed third

“Admittedly, winning first place in this competition was entirely unexpected,” Dryanski said of the first-place team. “We knew our classmates and other very talented teams from around the world were all putting in a full effort and had the potential to win.

Competitors were asked to create an innovative solution to analyze the effects of news sentiment and biases on daily stock performance for top companies in the oil and gas industry. News sentiment and biases have a significant impact on stock prices and consumer behavior. Contestants were provided with the necessary news data, stock market data, macro data and company financial data. “Taking first place is a tremendous confidence boost and puts the past two years of work and study into perspective. We’re all very tired, but now we are also absolutely sure that we know how to take in a dataset and a research question on a very tight schedule and turn out a thesis, a data model and some professional recommendations.”

“This competition was a reality check on our problem-solving skills and deploying the right tools and methods before entering the professional world,” Alisetty said. “We thank our professors at the Spears School of Business, particularly Dr. Goutam Chakraborty, who encourage us to participate in case competitions across the country. Dr. C was instrumental in imparting us the knowledge and wisdom to excel in academics and such competitions.”The foursome of Dryanski, Bikumalla, Hu and Schmidt were awarded the $1,000 grand prize, but more importantly showed that OSU business analytics and data science students are among the best.

Kalyan Alisetty, Vinil Rayala and Maruthi Shankar Nanduri placed third.

“I am thrilled to have OSU students secure not one but two of the top three spots in this massive competitive event,” said Chakraborty, SAS Professor of Marketing Analytics and director of the MS in Business Analytics and Data Science program. “This is one of the best validations for the strength and capabilities of our programs and the credit goes to the hard-working students and all of the dedicated faculty who have prepared them to perform well in such types of competitive events.”

For more information about the master’s in business analytics and data science program at OSU, visit https://business.okstate.edu/analytics/index.html

MEDIA CONTACT: Terry Tush | Director, Marketing and Communications | 405-744-2703 | terry.tush@okstate.edu