928-523-3657
fcb@nau.eduBusiness Analytics, Master of Science
Department of Management, Marketing, and Information Systems
The Master of Science in Business Analytics degree (STEM-designated) is for those individuals who already have an undergraduate degree and are looking to enter the field of business analytics. This degree will focus on teaching students advanced technical and analytical skills, building quantitative aptitudes to better prepare them for the job market or the advancement of their current career path. Over the past decade business analytics has grown from small specialized applications into a multi-billion-dollar industry. Organizations including businesses, non-profits, and governmental entities are now heavily reliant on analytics to better serve stakeholders/customers and gain competitive advantages in multiple markets. This dependence on business analytics is projected to continue to grow for many years as a means to derive insights into greater organizational effectiveness, efficiencies and opportunities. The curriculum of this program requires advanced technical business analytics courses to assist students who are seeking to advance their career as business analysts/data scientist in the current Big Data era.
To receive a master’s degree at Northern Arizona University, you must complete a planned group of courses from one or more subject areas, consisting of at least 30 units of graduate-level courses. Many master’s degree programs require more than 30 units.
You must additionally complete:- All requirements for your specific academic plan(s). This may include a thesis.
- All graduate work with a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0.
- All work toward the master’s degree must be completed within six consecutive years. The six years begins with the semester and year of admission to the program.
Read the full policy here.
In addition to University Requirements:
- Complete individual plan requirements.
| Minimum Units for Completion | 30 |
| Major GPA | 3.0 |
| Additional Admission Requirements | Individual program admission requirements over and above admission to NAU are required. |
| Additional Fees/Program Fees | Required |
| Progression Plan Link | View Program of Study |
Purpose Statement
Over the past decade business analytics has grown from small specialized applications into a multi-billion-dollar industry (industry valuation is expected to exceed $100 billion by 2026). Organizations including businesses, non-profits, and governmental entities are now relying on analytics to better serve stakeholders/customers and gain competitive advantages in multiple markets. This dependence on business analytics is projected to continue to grow for many years to derive insights into greater organizational effectiveness, efficiencies, and opportunities.
Students completing the Master of Science in Business Analytics degree will have more crucial technical and quantitative aptitudes to better prepare them for the job market or the advancement of their current career path. The degree will differ from the existing FCB MBA program offerings in that it will focus on teaching students advanced technical and analytical skills, rather than the traditional business managerial expertise included in the MBA program. We believe this new curriculum will meet the demand of our future students who desire to complete advanced technical business analytics courses with the anticipation of becoming business analysts/data scientists in the current Big Data era. Of additional importance, with the offering of a Master’s Degree in Business Analytics, the FCB will have its first STEM-designated graduate program, which could attract additional international students to the FCB and NAU.
Student Learning Outcomes
- Apply analytics translator skills to business applications such as marketing, human resources, finance, accounting, and supply chain.
- Identify and describe a business analytics problem by gathering business objectives from a client and defining analysis goals.
- Define questions for analysis to explore data-driven solutions to a business problem.
- Communicate analysis results to a client, both technical and non-technical audiences, using best practices in writing, presentations, visualization, and data storytelling.
- Manage data to support business analytics.
- Identify, collect, store, and manage data to support business analytics.
- Perform data integration process (Extract, transform, and load – ETL).
- Prepare data for analysis through data wrangling techniques.
- Build and utilize an appropriate model.
- Determine the appropriate modeling technique.
- Apply descriptive analytics, predictive analytics, and prescriptive analytics models.
- Build the appropriate model.
- Use the model to analyze the business analytics problem.
Graduate Admission Information
The NAU graduate online application is required for all programs. Admission to many graduate programs is on a competitive basis, and programs may have higher standards than those established by the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies.
Admission requirements include the following:- Transcripts.
- Undergraduate degree from a regionally accredited institution with a 3.0 GPA on a 4.0 scale (“A” = 4.0), or the equivalent.
Visit the NAU Graduate Admissions website for additional information about graduate school application deadlines, eligibility for study, and admissions policies.
Ready to apply? Begin your application now.International applicants have additional admission requirements. Please see the International Graduate Admissions Policy.
Additional Admission Requirements
Individual program admission requirements over and above admission to NAU are required.
- A personal statement outlining the prospective student’s background that prepares them for this program (including educational and/or work experience), reasons that they are interested in this program, and how this program will help prepare them for their future professional goals.
- Priority will be given to students with Bachelor’s Degrees in Business, Computer Science, and Engineering. Students who have not completed a business degree will be required to complete a Business Foundations Course in their first term of the program. This course does not apply to the 30 units required for this master’s program.
Master’s Requirements
This Master’s degree requires 30 units distributed as follows:
- Business Analytics Coursework: 24 units
- Electives: 6 units
Take the following 30 units:
Business Analytics Coursework (24 units)
Electives (6 units)
- In consultation with your advisor, select courses in business administration, computer science, economics, informatics, information systems, mathematics, management, marketing, or other fields that are appropriate to your career goals. Up to 6 units may be at the 400-level.
Students enrolled in this plan may not enroll in or pursue the following due to the number of overlapping units:
- Business Analytics, Graduate Certificate
If you have completed the Business Analytics, Graduate Certificate prior to enrolling in this plan, the certificate coursework may be applied to this plan.
Additional Information
Be aware that some courses may have prerequisites that you must also successfully complete. For prerequisite information, click on the course or see your advisor.
- Program Fee Information
Program fees are established by the Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR). A program fee has been approved for this program. See program fee details. Program fees are subject to change and updated July 1 for the next academic year.