Prepare yourself for the future with this trailblazing, STEM and OPT certified degree. From retail giants to healthcare companies and consulting firms to political organizations, employers need people who can translate technical data into actionable insights. The MSBA program at SMU Cox opens the door to this burgeoning field. By taking courses across a range of disciplines, you'll explore the latest methods being used to analyze individual-level data and turn it into actionable information. Count on a return on your investment at Cox: More than 95 percent of our recent MSBA grads received job offers within six months of graduation.
Across all industries, firms today capture and maintain enormous amounts of individual-level data on their customers and prospects. This has led to a vast increase in data resources available—and a high demand for professionals who can translate technical data into actionable insights.
In the past, companies have focused on reporting, data management and business intelligence. Business Analytics goes beyond the traditional data, BI and reporting environments and focuses on how to better analyze your business using information to gain insight to the business. It extends data management and business intelligence (data warehousing) to enable the management of big data, and combines it with data analytics and business information to analyze consumer behavior, web site data, marketing data and even to perform predictive analytics. The broad and intensive curriculum across a range of management disciplines and functions explores the latest methods of translating data into relevant information for decision-makers.
With big data, firms can react in real-time to customize product and service offerings, if they have the highly specialized talent trained to leverage this increased complexity. SMU Cox recognized this high-growth and high-reward career path when we developed the MSBA program for those interested in solving today’s business challenges using big data. In fact, 85% of the positions in the field of business analytics require an advanced degree, with 75 percent listing an MS degree as an educational requirement for a career in the field. Graduates of the Cox MSBA program will be well poised to take advantage of these increasing opportunities.
The Master of Science in Business Analytics (MSBA) degree at SMU Cox provides students with the expertise and specialized Analytic skills that employers in IT, marketing, operations and consulting are demanding now. The broad and intensive curriculum across a range of management disciplines and functions explores the latest methods of translating data into relevant information for decision-makers. Either Full-Time or Part-Time, the MSBA program prepares students for successful careers in the burgeoning field of business analytics from business analysts, data analysts, marketing analysts, financial analysts, data base and data warehouse architects to data scientists.
Immediately after starting the program, the Career Management Center was an invaluable resource helping with resume reviews and interview prep. The SMU brand made a strong statement on my resume as I participated in my job search.
MSBA 2016
Join Cox faculty, our vast alumni network and other professionals as you navigate this fascinating, fast-moving field. Turn data into a into a decision-making tool that’s moving business in bold new directions. Go beyond the “analytics” buzzword to gain strategic skills that every future business leader needs.
This dynamic organization guides SMU students to success in the ever-changing business landscape. The club offers members case interview practice, networking with local boutique and specialty consulting firms that can lead to consulting project opportunities, and quality face time with hiring managers.
One of SMU Cox's largest student organizations, Women in Business helps launch you into a meaningful career as a business leader. You'll find opportunities for mentorship and networking with high-powered women from industries across Dallas, as well as a calendar full of events, from lunch-and-learns with guest speakers to seminars and get-togethers. The club's relationship with the Forté Foundation means you automatically benefit from membership in the national organization.
Consultant at Infosys Consulting, Inc.
Lexie Mize first realized the power of data and analytics to deliver real-world insights in her role at a PR firm, where she learned the ins and outs of social media analytics. But she realized there was a bigger analytics world waiting for her. That’s when she enrolled in the SMU Cox MSBA program. Today, she’s a consultant at Infosys, where she wields the power of data management and business analytics at the enterprise level.
Pricing Analyst at JP Morgan Chase
Geoffrey Chen was interviewing for a job when a question stopped him in his tracks: How to use an analytical approach to price a product. Then he recalled a lesson about regression analytics from his SMU Cox MSBA class and leveraged that information to craft a compelling answer — music to the interviewer’s ears. Geoffrey was called back for a second interview. Today, he is exploiting the power of data as a pricing analyst at JP Morgan Chase.
Revenue Management Development Analyst at American Airlines
After earning her bachelor’s degree in New Zealand, Phuong Tran came to Dallas to dive in data. During her MSBA practicum, she visited the DFW offices of American Airlines monthly every month, where she and the practicum team presented their findings to 20-plus managers. With steady support from the SMU Cox faculty, Phuong turned academic concepts into business insights. Meanwhile, she also learned the professional skills that employers demand. After graduation, Phuong landed a job at American.