Newman University’s Applied AI: Bridging Ethics and Innovation

Key Takeaways

• Newman University's Applied AI program balances technical expertise with ethical considerations, preparing students for the rapidly growing AI industry.
• Students gain practical skills in predictive modeling and Large Language Models while developing ethical AI implementation frameworks.
• The Rize Education partnership provides modern curriculum, flexible scheduling, and access to nationwide experts.
• Graduates can build careers as AI specialists, machine learning engineers, data scientists, and prompt engineers.
• Faculty with real-world experience ensures education aligns with current industry demands.

Where Innovation Meets Ethics: Newman's Applied AI Advantage

Artificial intelligence transforms industries at remarkable speed, and Newman University stands at the forefront of AI education with a program addressing both technical skills and ethical questions. Newman's Applied Artificial Intelligence program teaches students not just how to build AI—but how to build AI responsibly.

What makes Newman University's approach distinctive is its commitment to developing AI professionals who understand that innovation without ethical consideration isn't true progress. In today's AI-driven world, this program prepares students to become leaders who can handle both technical challenges and moral implications of AI systems.

Program Foundations: Building Tomorrow's AI Leaders

Technical Mastery for Real-World Impact

The Applied AI curriculum goes beyond theory to provide hands-on experience creating actual AI solutions. Students build and deploy custom AI tools that solve real problems across different industries. This practical approach ensures graduates can immediately contribute in a job market hungry for AI talent.

By combining theoretical knowledge with practical applications, the program prepares students for an AI-integrated future. Students work on projects that mirror the challenges they'll face in their careers.

Ethical Framework for Responsible Innovation

What distinguishes Newman's program is how ethics integrates throughout the curriculum. Students don't just create powerful AI systems—they evaluate their trustworthiness, protect privacy, and address intellectual property concerns. This ethical foundation ensures graduates consider the broader impacts of the technology they develop.

Human-Centered Design Approach

At the heart of Newman's program is the belief that AI should help people, not replace them. Students create smart systems that improve human decision-making, making AI a positive force in society. This approach aligns with Newman's broader mission to develop technology that respects human dignity and serves the common good.

By prioritizing human needs in AI development, graduates build solutions that work well technically and fit responsibly into communities and lives.

The Applied AI Curriculum Experience

Newman's curriculum builds both technical skills and ethical awareness through a carefully designed learning path. Here's what students master:

1. Predictive AI Modeling

First, students train algorithms that identify patterns and make forecasts using historical data. This foundation helps them develop systems that predict trends in healthcare, finance, weather, and more.

Through hands-on projects with real-world data, students gain practical experience while learning why data quality matters for reliable predictions.

2. Data Structures & Algorithms

The program examines the computational building blocks of AI, focusing on efficient ways to organize and process information. Students optimize how AI systems handle massive datasets, ensuring their solutions perform well even with complex problems.

This technical depth prepares graduates to build AI that's not just smart but also fast and scalable.

3. Prescriptive AI Applications

Moving beyond predictions, students create AI that recommends specific actions. This practical focus teaches them to develop solutions that provide decision support across industries like manufacturing, healthcare, and business operations.

Students create systems that evaluate different scenarios, weigh trade-offs, and suggest the best strategies based on organizational goals.

4. Large Language Model Deployment

Recognizing the significant impact of large language models, the curriculum includes hands-on training with these powerful tools. Students customize, evaluate, and responsibly implement LLMs for specific uses.

This advanced focus prepares graduates for the fast-changing world of generative AI and its applications across industries.

5. AI System Evaluation & Optimization

The program emphasizes thorough testing and improvement of AI systems. Students learn techniques for measuring performance, finding and fixing biases, and optimizing for both technical excellence and ethical outcomes.

This evaluation focus ensures graduates build AI solutions that people can truly rely on.

Ethical Considerations Throughout

Unlike programs that treat ethics as just another course, Newman weaves ethical thinking across the entire curriculum. Key focus areas include:

1. Trustworthiness Assessment

Students develop frameworks to evaluate how reliable AI outputs really are. They learn to identify potential problems, assess confidence levels, and design systems with appropriate human oversight.

This prepares graduates to build AI that earns user trust through transparent, consistent operation.

2. Privacy Protection Protocols

The curriculum emphasizes data privacy as essential to responsible AI. Students master techniques for anonymizing information, implementing privacy-preserving algorithms, and meeting regulatory requirements.

3. Intellectual Property Safeguards

As AI creates more content and inventions, understanding who owns what becomes essential. Students learn to navigate copyright, patent, and ownership issues in AI development. This knowledge helps them protect their organization's creations while respecting others' rights.

These skills become more valuable as AI-generated works raise new legal questions that tomorrow's AI professionals must address.

Rize Education Partnership Benefits

Newman University works with Rize Education to make the Applied AI program even stronger by providing:

• Modern curriculum that keeps pace with fast-changing industry standards
• Greater scheduling flexibility through online course options
• Access to experts from across the country in specialized AI fields
• Additional job-ready skills that complement Newman's core teachings

This partnership ensures students get both Newman's ethical foundation and practical approach while also learning from diverse perspectives across the AI world.

Career Pathways in the AI Revolution

Graduates enter a job market where demand for AI talent continues to grow across nearly every industry. The program prepares students for many different career paths:

1. AI Specialist & Machine Learning Engineer

These technical roles focus on designing and optimizing AI models for specific uses. Graduates might work on computer vision for self-driving cars or recommendation engines for shopping websites.

Newman's hands-on approach ensures graduates have the practical skills these positions require, while the ethical foundation prepares them to implement AI responsibly.

2. Data Scientist & AI Product Manager

These roles connect technical expertise with business strategy, turning organizational needs into AI solutions. Graduates learn to spot opportunities for AI and guide projects from idea to implementation.

The program's focus on both technical skills and ethics uniquely prepares graduates to lead AI initiatives that balance innovation with responsibility.

3. Software Engineer & Prompt Engineer

As AI becomes part of software development, companies need engineers who can build AI capabilities into applications. The new field of prompt engineering—crafting effective instructions for AI models—offers opportunities for specialists who understand both technical and human aspects of AI interaction.

Newman's curriculum prepares students for these roles by combining strong technical foundations with human-centered design principles.

4. Cross-Industry Opportunities

Beyond tech companies, organizations in healthcare, finance, manufacturing, retail, and many other sectors actively seek AI professionals. From medical diagnostics to fraud detection to quality control, AI applications continue to expand.

The program's focus on practical, ethical AI prepares graduates to tackle specific challenges across this wide range of industries.

Expert Faculty Shaping Your AI Journey

Newman's Applied AI program is led by faculty who bring both academic knowledge and real-world experience to the classroom. The program benefits from David Cochran, Dean of the School of Business & Technology, along with a dedicated team including Assistant Professor Robert Norman and Adjunct Professors Ricky Boyer and Travis Scheopner.

This experienced team delivers education that's technically solid and relevant to today's AI landscape. Faculty members stay connected with industry developments and ethical discussions, bringing current insights directly to students.

Preparing for Success in Applied AI

1. Programming Background Recommendations

To thrive in the Applied AI program, students should have programming experience, preferably in Python—the most widely used language in AI development. This foundation allows students to focus on AI concepts rather than struggling with basic coding principles.

Students without programming experience can build these skills through introductory courses like Programming for Everyone I and II before starting the AI curriculum.

2. Foundational Course Preparation

For the best preparation, prospective students should:

• Complete basic programming courses before entering the program
• Learn fundamental data structures and algorithms
• Get familiar with statistical concepts that support machine learning
• Practice collaborative problem-solving and project-based learning

These preparations help students engage fully with the Applied AI curriculum from day one.

3. Advanced Study Considerations

Students considering graduate school or advanced technical roles should take additional courses in:

• Advanced algorithms and computational complexity
• Probability and statistical theory
• Linear algebra and calculus
• Specialized AI domains like natural language processing or computer vision

These mathematical foundations complement the practical focus of the undergraduate program, preparing graduates for further academic study or specialized AI careers.

Join the Next Generation of Ethical AI Innovators

Newman University's Applied AI program offers a unique opportunity to develop technical skills, ethical framework, and hands-on experience needed to shape the future of artificial intelligence. In a world increasingly transformed by AI, you'll graduate ready to guide this technology toward outcomes that benefit humanity.

Newman University is committed to developing AI professionals who lead with both expertise and integrity in this fast-changing field.