That’s why Emory University Goizuetta Business School is launching a new Master of Science in Business Analytics for Working Professionals (xMSBA).
Designed exclusively for those with five or more years of experience working in data, IT, or analytics, the program aims to upskill employees with basic data and programming skills to help them stay ahead of rapidly advancing trends.
Goizueta Master in Business Analytics for Working Professionals | Curriculum
With classes held in the evenings and on Saturdays, the 10-month part-time program is designed with the flexibility to fit around students’ working life.
The program builds on the core elements of a full-time Master in Business Analytics program but also includes content aimed at providing a deeper understanding of how advanced topics such as AI and cloud computing can be applied to industry problems.
In the Analytics Practicum, students work in small groups to strategize a data-driven solution for companies such as Bank of America, Delta, and FedEx.
Students who have been sponsored by their firm can use real data to solve a business problem their company may currently be facing, applying their new skills and knowledge with the guidance of expert faculty members.
“The program has developed a unique way of taking a business situation, converting it into a data problem, deriving data-science based solutions and converting those solutions into a business recommendation,” says Ramnath Chellappa, associate dean and academic director of Goizueta’s MS in Business Analytics and professor of Information Systems and Operations Management.
xMSBA students will also take part in two immersive residence periods, one in Atlanta and one in a global setting, as well as two three-day international trips.
Why is now the right time for working professionals to study the xMSBA?
As many as 3.5 quintillion bytes of data are produced globally every day. In today’s business world, if companies aren’t using data and technology to drive business forward, it’s likely that they’ll get left behind.
While many working professionals have core skills in data and programming, they’ll need to fully understand the implications of new technologies on business strategy to use it effectively.
“We have observed a need in the industry from current working professionals in the areas of business, technology, and data, and what we are offering is fundamentally different to other possibilities that these people have right now,” says Ramnath.
As these changes are happening on a global scale, it’s important that the xMSBA program connects an international cohort of students. Goizueta’s Global Classrooms use cutting-edge technology to make the virtual learning experience as interactive and immersive as possible with gamification and virtual reality simulations.
“In the xMSBA, we cross-pollinate people who are actually working in the industry so they’re not only learning from their professors but from each other in terms of how to do projects for their firms and best practices,” says Ramnath.
The program is set to launch in Fall 2023 with applications for the first cohort closing on April 12, 2023. The total cost of the program is $75,350.
