Course summary

We live in a world where analytical decision-making happens every second. Data is collected about everything in order to construct, operate and maintain systems. If you want a career in decision support, operational research, industrial engineering or management science, the MSc Business Analytics is the ideal programme for you. This course will train you in analytical decision-making. Not only do you learn the theory of business analytics but also how to apply it in practice. This involves generating relevant business insights using data-driven methodologies and tools. Our programme is one of the few to teach the entire Business Analytics life cycle, covering Descriptive, Predictive and Prescriptive analytics. We have excellent partnerships with industry business analytics practitioners. We constantly update this programme to reflect the dynamically changing landscape of business analytics. We place a very high emphasis on creating graduates with skills that are valuable in the job market. For example, you will experience a real-life analytics project as part of your course. Lancaster University is a pioneer of analytics in UK and Europe. We were one of the first universities in the UK to establish an Operational Research department, which developed into Business Analytics. More than 50 years on, we are still at the forefront of applying analytics to business in teaching and research. Our academics are leaders in fields such as forecasting, optimisation, simulation and stochastic modelling. You will learn technical aspects like machine learning and data mining. We also have domain expertise like logistics and supply chain analytics, healthcare analytics, sports analytics, network analytics, marketing and pricing analytics. Our graduates become business analysts, data scientists, analytics engineers and logistics consultants, and some also go into academic research. Many students get job offers whilst still studying. Course Content The MSc in Business Analytics consists of compulsory and optional modules, plus a project. The compulsory modules ensure that you have a firm grounding in important subjects. The wide range of optional modules allows you to specialise in subjects that particularly interest you. During your first term from October to December you will study four core modules:

• Operational Research and Prescriptive Analytics

• Statistics and Descriptive Analytics

• Python Programming for Problem Solving

• Forecasting and Predictive Analytics

• Dissertation (Industry)

• Dissertation (Research)