University News
IBHE Approves New Post-Baccalaureate Program in Business Analytics
June 17, 2014
MACOMB, IL - - The Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) approved a new post-baccalaureate certificate (PBC) program, business analytics, at Western Illinois University, beginning Fall 2014.
The program, offered by the WIU Department of Economics and Decision Sciences (EDS), brings together the technical skills of data mining, statistical modeling and forecasting for data-driven decision making and solving analytical problems of the contemporary business world, according to Tej Kaul, EDS chair.
"This program is designed to meet the needs of students from a diverse undergraduate background, as well as working professionals who want to sharpen their skills or learn advanced statistical methods," he added. "A recent Chronicle of Higher Education article noted that the need for skilled data professionals is real and growing. A 2011 study indicated that the U.S. could face a shortage of as many as 190,000 workers with 'deep analytical skills' by 2018. The new post-baccalaureate certificate at Western has been established at an ideal time and aligns not only with the University's educational opportunity and academic excellence core values, but also corresponds with the needs of the business world."
Individuals who are currently enrolled in complementary graduate degree programs, such as economics, statistics, business and math to name a few, may apply select credit hours earned in the PBC business analytics program toward the fulfillment of their graduate degree requirements. Students who are not enrolled in a WIU graduate program must apply to the School of Graduate Studies.
As part of the requirements for the degree, the EDS department will offer an online course, Introduction to Business Analytics, during the Summer 2014 semester. The course is designed to provide a broad introduction to the business analytics field and will count toward the 18 semester hours required for completion.
For more information, contact EDS Assistant Professor Bhavneet Walia at B-Walia@wiu.edu or (309) 298-1153.
Posted By: University Communications (U-Communications@wiu.edu)
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