How She Made Her Journey Her Own: Sunny Hadavi
Sunnya Hadavi is a recent Master’s graduate in Data Science & Business Analytics. During her time as a Niner, she demonstrated significant initiative and is now a Data Science Consultant at Duke Energy.
Experience at UNC Charlotte
During her time as a 49er, Sunnya earned three degrees from the University: a B.S. in Data Science, a B.A. in International Studies, and a Master’s degree in Data Science & Business Analytics. Although she began as an International Studies major, a mentor during one of her internships encouraged her to diversify her skills and education.
“While I could have picked other programs, data science was the only one that was truly interdisciplinary and allowed me to use my background in the social sciences and humanities. More importantly, I consider myself a storyteller, and data science is a way for me to do that.”
Upon completing her Master’s degree, Sunnya successfully defended and submitted her thesis titled “Tackling the Nationwide Readability Issue in Newswriting: Using Natural Language Processing to Spatially Analyze Local News Across the United States and North Carolina.”
“Completing my thesis was a challenging experience, but very rewarding. I was able to combine my passion for data science and journalism into one project and get results that could hopefully have an impact.”
As a Charlotte native, Sunnya experienced UNC Charlotte firsthand before choosing to continue her education there.
“When I was in high school, I had the opportunity to visit UNC Charlotte’s campus for Model UN conferences because my mom is a faculty member. I fell in love with the campus because of those experiences and was drawn to it. I knew it was where I wanted to be.”
As a member of the School of Data Science, Sunnya benefited from an inclusive community. When asked to identify a favorite professor, she found it difficult to select just one and instead chose to recognize several individuals who played significant roles in her academic journey.
“I don’t really have a favorite professor. My favorite people in SDS are the professional staff: Josh Hertel, Carly Mahedy, Barbara Howard, Lindsay Mongillo, and Kyle Hairston. Each of these people has had a positive impact on my time as a data science student, making everything possible and worth it. They’ve supported me, advocated for me, and believed in me throughout undergrad and graduate school. It is so clear that they care deeply about these programs and the students, and I’m so glad to have met and worked alongside them.”
Through involvement in the School of Data Science community and participation in extracurricular activities, Sunnya gained substantial knowledge in data science, developed collaborative skills, and learned strategies to overcome imposter syndrome associated with new opportunities.
Piece of Advice
Sunnya offered the following advice to future students as they begin their own academic and professional journeys:
“Take every opportunity you can and talk to everyone. You are here to learn and grow, and the only way to do that is to get out of your comfort zone. No one will advocate for you or mentor you unless you take that first step.”
Accomplishments:
Award-Winning Researcher: Sunnya won First Place for Oral Presentation in the Interdisciplinary category at the 2026 Graduate Research Symposium, where she presented her thesis. She also shared her thesis research at the 2026 Media Literacy Matters Conference at UNC Charlotte and was awarded Best Graduate Student Poster Runner-up at the School of Data Science (SDS) research poster presentation day.
WiDS Speaker: She was a featured speaker at the 2026 Women in Data Science (WiDS) Conference in Charlotte, presenting a session titled “When Data Meets News: The Benefits and Impact of Data Science in Modern Journalism.”Having attended the conference for years as a student volunteer and keynote introducer, she found speaking on that stage the ultimate highlight of her student career. The experience solidified for her that women have a rightful place in STEM and computing, and she hopes her journey inspires others to work hard and achieve their goals.
Milestone Student Leader: In Spring 2022, Sunnya became the 100th student to declare the Data Science undergraduate major. This milestone sparked her deep involvement with the SDS community outside the classroom, leading to her being featured in promotional media, including a “Day in the Life” video in 2022 and SDS program videos in 2025.
Data Journalist: Her work with the Niner Times allowed her to blend her diverse passions during college. Throughout graduate school, she focused on data reporting, surveys, and feature pieces, using her data science background to tell impactful stories in new ways. Her data-driven stories on topics like AI, Light Rail Safety, and DEI received national and state recognition for both writing and print design.