Business Analytics Certificate Program | Northwestern SPS: School of Professional Studies | Northwestern University

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Certificate in Business Analytics

Discern the signal from the noise and extract valuable insights from your organization’s data with a business analytics certificate. Students enrolled in the business analytics certification program will develop the ability to harness the power of big data and make practical use of information that moves beyond traditional data processing methods.

Although the concept of big data has been around for years, rapid advancements in technology and storage infrastructure have made this once siloed issue a mainstream topic across industries. But just having access to more data does not necessarily translate into more knowledge; the true challenge—and the objective of the business analytics certificate—is turning that information into actionable business insights in a timely manner. This requires specialized business analytics training, including knowledge of data collection and visualization, predictive models, and effective communication. Equipped with these in-demand skills, working professionals with a certificate in business analytics bridge the gap between the technical world of data analysts and other stakeholders to help their organizations make informed decisions.

Program Goals

In this certificate program students gain a practical understanding of how to use the business analytics process to harness the power of big data to gain actionable business insights.

Goals of the Business Analytics Certificate Program include:

Synthesize the lifecycle process engineering of data management and predictive analytics including defining a problem, analyzing and solving the problem, and communicating and acting on results
Develop skills to apply predictive analytics techniques to gain powerful business insights
Interpret insights into the latest market trends using illustrative examples that depict real world cases
Explore the art and science of smart visualization techniques of large-scale data objects
Explain in a broad sense data governance and management issues affecting privacy, security, compliance, audit, storage and ownership
Frame business problems in analytical terms and formulate the deliverables commensurate with an affinity for analytical thinking, data metrics, process engineering and visualization
Identify required skills in strategy development, project management, execution, decision making and presentation applicable to business analytics.

Business Analytics Certificate Audience

The Certificate in Business Analytics Online Program is designed for professionals and managers who regularly consume analytics in their normal course of business, work with partners that create or utilize analytics, or manage a team of analytics professionals, but may not be an analyst themselves. Students in the program’s business analytics courses will learn the foundations of business analytics at the strategy level, basic statistics and modeling concepts, and how to effectively present results and tell a story with data. There will be no programming required for the curriculum, but supplementary coding material will be provided for those who are interested in exploring those details as well.

Upon completion of the Certificate in Business Analytics program, students will be able to:

Apply analytics tools to real-world business scenarios for improved decision-making
Assess the strengths and limitations of various analytics and predictive modeling techniques for different business applications and varying data conditions
Acquire hands-on experience working with leading statistical tools and software packages in predictive modeling and the visual analysis of results
Effectively communicate the actionable insights stemming from analytical work to multiple stakeholders
Strategically navigate technology tools and trends to solve big data and analytics problems
Manage data strategies and analytical projects

Program Courses

Explore all the Business Analytics Courses for detail on the program’s offerings.

Business Analytics Certificate Requirements

To earn a Certificate in Business Analytics students must complete three online core courses. You must take Intro to Business Analytics (BUS_ANLY 201) and Modeling Concepts (BUS_ANLY 202) in order, but may take Data Visualization, Communication, and Storytelling (BUS_ANLY 204) whenever it is offered.

Business Analytics Courses

Introduction to Business Analytics (
BUS_ANLY 201-DL)
Modeling Concepts for Business Analytics (
BUS_ANLY 202-DL

)
Data Visualization, Communication, and Storytelling (
BUS_ANLY 204-DL

) – can be taken out of sequence)

Tuition and Financial Aid

Tuition for each course in the Business Analytics certification program is $1,995. The total tuition for the three core courses is $5,985. Complete details can be found on the Business Analytics Tuition and Financial Aid page.

Business Analytics Career Options

Read more on the Business Analytics Career Options page.

Related Professional Development Programs at SPS

Learn more about the Certificate in Agile Practices.

Find out more about Northwestern’s Certificate in Business Analytics

Contact an Enrollment Adviser

An Enrollment Adviser at Northwestern University School of Professional Studies can help with any inquiries regarding our certificate programs.

Graduate-level Corporate Data Science Training

Let us assess your training needs. We will work with you to evaluate your needs and tailor a program that meets your schedule and budget.
Your team members will learn together in small online classes and build the skills needed to implement consistent, high-level best practices across your organization.
You can increase the decision-making and forecasting ability of your organization without adding new positions.

Find out more about corporate training

Business Analytics Course List

Core Courses:Course Detail

Intro to Business Analytics <> BUS_ANLY 201-DL

Data and analytics are fundamental in the solving of business
and organizational problems. Mastering these practices requires a
well-rounded introduction, regardless of whether you are performing
the analysis or implementing the results. Introduction to Business
Analytics provides a solid foundation by beginning with basic
principles in data modeling and intelligent information. We then
continue with how to define business goals, various techniques for
collecting and preparing data, different types of analysis and
predictive models, and effective ways of communicating results.

The course will discuss many of the latest technology trends
applicable to big data and predictive analytics, and includes
examples from real use cases to provide a comprehensive,
innovative, and practical approach to tackle business analytics
problems. Students will also learn strategies to successfully
approach stakeholders within an organization with analytic
information while navigating the ethical, regulatory, and
compliance issues related to the use of data analytics.

Content / Topics

Analytics Terminology, Methodology and Tools (with Statistical
Concepts)
Descriptive, Prescriptive, and Predictive Analytics
Business Intelligence vs Business Analytics
Data Collection, Sampling, Preprocessing, Typing, and
Governance
Designing a Data Analytics Study
Analytics Project Lifecycle
Implementation / Application of Business Analytics
Latest Analytical Technologies

Registered students can access their online course site
here. An
activated NetID and password is required for login. *Please note:
It may take up to 24-hours for registered students to be added to
the online course platform.

View BUS_ANLY 201-DL Sections
Modeling Concepts <> BUS_ANLY 202-DL

Modeling Concepts for Business Analytics is tailored to the
needs of non-practitioners who interact with statisticians and data
scientists, including managers, technology partners, and business
users. We will present the basic statistical and machine learning
techniques that are used by data scientists to analyze and model
data, but will not spend time on the intricate details of each
model or how they are coded. Instead, students will learn the
basics of each technique with an emphasis on understanding what the
algorithm does, what it is used for, and the pros and cons of each.
We will also cover best practices for managers and information
technology professionals who are upstream or downstream from the
analysts.

Course Objectives

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

Describe applications of key data mining methods for business
decision-making.
Articulate data mining terminology.
Explain what to look for when evaluating various data mining
methods.
Interpret results from various data mining methods.
Communicate methods and strategies with internal or external
business data stakeholders.

Prerequisites

Students must complete BUS_ANLY 201-DL before registering for
this course.

Registered students can access their online course
site here. An activated NetID and password is required for
login. *Please note: It may take up to 24-hours for registered
students to be added to the online course platform.

View BUS_ANLY 202-DL Sections
Data Visualization, Communication, & Storytelling <> BUS_ANLY 204-DL

This course examines how to make business analytics an integral
part of an organization’s decision-making process in order to
create a competitive edge and generate value. Topics covered
include promoting analytical thinking, building consensus, adopting
smart metrics for project development, implementation, evaluation,
and monitoring.

Emphasis will be placed on the visual display of data and how to
effectively communicate analytical and sometimes complex results to
a mixed audience including clients, staff, non-technical leaders,
and senior management.

Various dashboarding and graphics technologies will be explored,
and students will have the opportunity to work with examples
depicting real scenarios from different industries such as finance,
healthcare, retail, government, marketing, and sales. Students will
also gain firsthand experience with making the case for analytics
in front of an audience and presenting their analytical findings,
actionable insights, added value for the business, and gained
competitive edge.

Course Objectives

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

Formulate data profiles and generate thoughtful actionable
insights.
Summarize complex analytical results into simple, encompassing,
and convincing visual analytics.
Create presentations for delivery to a mixed technical and
non-technical audience.
Create effective visualizations using best practices and
synthesize them into illuminating stories.
Illustrate the comprehension of data storytelling through the
sharing of a video story with the class.

View BUS_ANLY 204-DL Sections

Elective Courses:Course Detail

Advanced Modeling Methods BUS_ANLY 203-DL

Advanced Modeling Methods gives business analysts the foundation
and tools to implement various prediction algorithms that will
allow them to make better data driven decision for their business.
This course places emphasis on modeling techniques to gain insight
into hidden data patterns while using the technology stack of R.
Topics covered will include various classification algorithms such
as Cluster Analysis, Neural Networks, Discriminant Analysis, and
Support Vector Machines. Students will also be introduced to
various topics in Time Series, and other statistical based methods
including Principal Component Analysis and Affinity Analysis.
Lastly, students will learn about the structure of Networks and how
tools such as Sentiment Analysis can provide valuable insight into
their customer base.

PREREQUISITES:
Students must complete BUS_ANLY 201 and BUS_ANLY 202
before registering for this course.

View BUS_ANLY 203-DL Sections