University of Central Arkansas

There are two graduate programs available in data analytics, the Graduate Certificate in Data Analytics (GC-DA) and the MS in Applied Data Analytics. Both of these programs prepare graduates for employment in managing, using, and exploiting data in organizations to enhance decision-making. These programs are particularly useful for individuals who wish to shift careers or add to their repertoire of current skills. Such skills are useful in almost every area of business, including accounting, management, marketing, finance, etc. The effective management of data has become increasingly important in organizations, as companies gather more and more data and use it for strategic purposes. Using this data for better decision-making remains a primary goal of data analytics. Effectively using data requires expertise in a number of areas, including data management and cleansing, descriptive/predictive/prescriptive analytics, advanced statistics, and data mining, to name a few. While in small organizations, an analyst may need skills in many areas, in larger companies’ employees typically focus in particular areas.