GradCertBA
Graduate Certificate in Business Analytics

Business analytics enables modern organisations to use data so they can make better informed business, financial, and marketing decisions to guide their future.

This specialised course will equip you with the practical knowledge and skills to work in roles that involve data analysis, reporting and decision-making.

Learn how to use powerful analytics tools to extract and analyse 'big data' from a wide range of sources, visualise key trends and patterns, and transform complex datasets into meaningful business insights.

Students will work on real-world scenarios while developing their skills in data scraping/mining, data cleaning/wrangling, data analysis and visualisation, prediction and querying, reporting and forecasting. And you'll get exposure to business analytics tools such as Google BigQuery, Excel, and Business Intelligence (Power BI and Tableau).

By the end of the course, you'll understand how to leverage the greatest business value from big data, and use business analytics to solve common organisational problems. Students will also discuss ethical concerns around the collection and storage of data in New Zealand, and the importance of respecting protocols related to Māori data rights.

The course is taught at an advanced undergraduate level and is designed for business/management students who are interested in using data to solve business problems, and then communicate their recommendations to a company's stakeholders.

The four compulsory papers can be completed part-time over 9 months or longer; equivalent to 600 learning hours in total.

Who is this course suitable for?

The GradCertBA is ideal for anyone who wishes to gain a mastery of business analytics fundamentals and find work as a business analyst in a wide range of sectors, such as marketing, supply chain, HR and strategic management.

It is also suitable for people already working in roles that involve data analysis, but who lack any relevant professional training in this field.

What the programme is like:

This course is delivered in a FLEXI teaching format, meaning that your learning can be done both face-to-face on campus in Hamilton, or completely online at home, giving you lots of flexibility to choose. Face-to-face learning is preferable but not essential.

Two papers are offered each trimester, so you can study part-time for 9 months (March to November, or November to July), or over an even longer period of time if you wish.

Course content:

• BUSAN205 Data Analytics with Business Applications
  This paper introduces data analytical methods and illustrates how data can be used to produce better-informed business decisions
• BUSAN300 Management of Big Data
  Gain a broad understanding of complex datasets known as 'big data', and develop your skills in using big data tools such as Python, Google BigQuery, SQL and NoSQL. Carry out basic data modelling and design, and learn how to manage data across cloud platforms.
• BUSAN301 Contemporary Tools for Business Analytics
  Gain hands-on experience in using a range of business analytics tools and techniques, with a focus on web-based tools such as Google BigQuery, Microsoft BI, Tableau, and Microsoft Azure ML.
• BUSAN302 Data-Informed Decision-Making
  Learn how to extra the maximum value from business data to increase decision-making success. Students will develop an analytics mindset to aid them in detecting trends and patterns, with a focus on visualisation and judgement theory. Through lab exercises, students will develop skills in quantitative and statistical tools such as DAX, Excel and SPSS.