ShanChuan (Frank) Li knows he has become a better problem solver, thanks to the MS in Business Analytics (MSBA) from Emory University Goizueta Business School.
“Now I have the data skills, I can talk the data language with my clients,” he shares. “Data is the most cutting-edge part of the business world. [I can now] use quantitative analysis to solve a business problem, especially using techniques such as machine learning and predictive analytics.”
Such promising outcomes are possible through science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) designated courses and experiential learning opportunities. Hear it from students like Mary Boken.
“The MSBA program helped me not only to gain the technical skills needed to be successful as a data scientist but also the soft skills and business acumen that I will carry with me throughout my career,” she says.
Building on the MSBA’s success, a new track — AI in Business — will launch in Fall 2023. Courses will cover advanced topics on deep learning, reinforcement learning, AI at scale, and advanced network analytics.
It complements Goizueta’s AI.Humanity initiative. “Our stakeholders are the students, industries where we place them, and the larger university mission and agenda, and this new track meets a number of needs,” says Dr. Ramnath K. Chellappa, the Associate Dean and Academic Director of the MSBA program.
“The launch of this track also enables our students to be more attractive to advanced tech firms on the West Coast, like Google and Facebook.”
Experiencing the world of business, data and artificial intelligence
Goizueta’s MSBA analytics practicum places students at the heart of a real-life business scenario. They act as consultants to deliver results – with the MSBA program managing director and faculty supporting them every step of the way. It’s the perfect combination of business, data, and technology.
During the program, teams of students work with a real client – ranging from a Fortune 500 company to a startup company – to deliver a data-driven business solution to a real problem the client is having. The teams deliver the three core deliverables of a data science project: technical (code, cleansed data), dashboard visualisation (Tableau, ggplot), executive deck (business result).
Projects will align with the track that a student completes. Business Analytics track students will complete a general data science project and AI in Business track students will work on a project that has an AI-focused problem or solution.
Little wonder why 100% of graduates from the class of 2022 received job offers within six months of graduation. They had a median base salary of US$100,000.
Graduate program for working professionals
Goizueta is also launching a new part-time MS in Business Analytics program exclusively designed for professionals with five or more years of work experience in data, IT, and analytics fields. “We have observed a need in the industry from current working professionals in the areas of business, technology, and data. What we are offering is fundamentally different than other possibilities that these people have right now,” Chellappa says.
He is referring to the xMSBA: Master of Science in Business Analytics for Working Professionals. It builds upon the core competencies of the MSBA program, with certain elements tweaked. For example, classes are held on alternate Wednesday evenings and Saturdays.
What sets the xMSBA apart are the intensive global residencies as well as the analytics practicum. Companies that choose to sponsor a group of their employees for this program can debunk a problem they are facing with the guidance of MSBA’s expert faculty members and its managing director.
“The program has developed a unique way of taking a business situation, converting it to a data problem, deriving data science-based solutions and converting the solutions to a business recommendation,” says Chellappa.
With Goizueta’s Global Classroom, an xMSBA cohort can come from countries like Mexico and Columbia — where companies have already expressed interest in the program. Students will have to meet and interact with each other in the compulsory residencies: two six-day sessions to start and end their degree in Atlanta and two three-day international trips. The residencies are scheduled with working professionals in mind and only require six weekdays away from the office.
Excited about what you’re reading? Kickstart your career in business analytics with Emory University Goizueta Business School’s flexible, future-forward full-time MSBA and part-time xMSBA programs today.
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