Durham University Business School partners with Department of Computer Science to launch #STEM focused MSc Business Analytics

Durham University Business School has combined the management expertise of its faculty with the technological capabilities of colleagues in the University’s Department of Computer Science to create the MSc in Business Analytics.

Launching in October 2019, the one-year programme has been specifically designed to meet the demands of an increasingly technology-driven global business landscape.

By offering the programme in collaboration with the Department of Computer Science, the Business School will teach students how to develop newly essential modern management skills such as data-informed decision making, identifying algorithms in big data, machine learning and coding, and how to use these techniques to inform their own future business decisions.

Professor Mike Nicholson, Co-creator of the programme from the Business School says,

“Many of our Bachelors graduates sought further education to build their technology competencies, however many programmes currently available focus only on developing technological skills and fail to demonstrate how these can be used in a professional or business scenario. In structuring our programme we not only sought to cater to student demand but also to better support the requirements of employers. We sought advice from our corporate partners and wider industry to understand the skills their organisations wished to gain from their newest recruits.”

To that end, the MSc Business Analytics will be practically-focused from the outset, with lectures interspersed with workshops, fieldwork and opportunities to work directly with companies on research projects to tackle current business analytics problems. Students will learn from both Computing and Management faculties as well as take in guest lectures from representatives of major multinationals.

Students will also put their skills to the test in Silicon Valley, working with international knowledge-driven organisations to understand how data analytics can underpin effective marketing strategy, finance, innovation methods and customer engagement. The trip will also enable students to take lectures at the University of San Francisco.

Dr Steven Bradley, Co-creator of the programme from the Department of Computer Science says,

“Offering this programme in collaboration with the Business School enables us to break the siloes that exist between disciplines in business. Increasingly, analytical skills are in demand from employers looking to ensure their organisations are robust enough to ride the digital wave. Graduates entering the workforce must have a solid technological knowledge-base, or risk falling quickly behind their peers.”

The MSc Business Analytics will welcome applicants who have established backgrounds in science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM), in either education or industry, as well as those with more traditional management experiences. To help bring students up to speed with each other, additional support in computing or management basics will be made available throughout the programme. 

Applications to join the inaugural cohort are now open, as well as the  opportunity to apply for one of eight scholarships. The MSc Business Analytics Scholarship will be awarded to applicants on criteria including academic achievement, previous work or voluntary experiences.