In an effort to support the world’s demand for professionals with business-focused data analytics skills, the UCF College of Business Administration (#UCFBusiness), in partnership with the UCF College of Sciences, announces a new specialized master’s program with a business analytics focus. The inaugural class for the Professional Master of Science in Management – Business Analytics Track program (PMSM/Business Analytics) will commence January 2016 at the UCF Executive Development Center in Downtown Orlando.
“The future success of businesses, in large part, will be their ability to make good decisions using real-time data,” points out UCF College of Business Administration Dean Paul Jarley, Ph.D. “Big Data has forever changed the landscape of conducting research and the business analytics program will help professionals gain an advantage in competing for opportunities in that arena. Companies, on the other hand, will reap the benefit of more qualified analysts.”
The UCF PMSM/Business Analytics degree is a 20-month program with a 30-hour curriculum. The program will offer the rigor and depth of statistics coursework while providing students with applicable management and decision-making skills. Through its application-focused curriculum, students will gain the specialized skills necessary to respond to challenges of the new data-intensive, decision-making business world of today. The PMSM/Business Analytics will blend theory and practice by utilizing cutting-edge analysis tools, class discussion forums, case studies, interactive simulations and team field projects. With these skills, students will be able to bridge the gap between data collection and application, across all industries.
“This new degree will prepare graduates with the ability to merge skills in data analytics and business development,” said Robert Porter, Ph.D., executive academic director, UCF Executive Development Center. “Specifically, students will leave the program equipped to identify the business questions at hand, collect the appropriate data, analyze that data in a meaningful way, and interpret the results in non-technical terms to facilitate important business decisions.”
The PMSM/Business Analytics program is offered as a cohort format which consists of a class size between 24 to 32 students starting and finishing the program together. The cohort arrangement allows students to learn from each other through their wide variety of industry and functional area experiences. The cohorts form strong relationships which evolve into life-long friendships and an invaluable professional networking group. All classes for the UCF PMSM/Business Analytics program will be held conveniently on Monday and Wednesday evenings from 6:00 – 9:50 p.m. at the UCF Executive Development Center, 36 West Pine Street, Orlando, FL. The UCF Executive Development Center, an auxiliary unit of the College of Business Administration, administers the program, and its staff attends to all logistics.
Interested candidates for the PMSM/Business Analytics can find additional information, admission requirements, and application information at www.business.ucf.edu/graduate-programs. To schedule a personal appointment with the admissions director, contact Robin Hofler at mba@ucf.edu or call 407-235-3913.