New SMU Cox MSBA degree helps fill a demand for “big data”

DALLAS (SMU)—The first classes for the new Master of Science degree in Business Analytics (MSBA) will launch in Fall 2014 at SMU Cox School of Business in Dallas. 

Applications are currently being accepted for the new SMU Cox MSBA program, designed to help fill a growing marketplace demand created by “big data.”  The one-year graduate degree in business analytics will help students hone skills in business process analytics and/or customer analytics, depending on which area they choose to specialize.

Students have the option of two program specializations or tracks.  One focuses more attention on data base concepts and applications (business process analytics).   The other focuses more attention on marketing research practices and consumer-centric analytics (customer analytics).  The degree is a 33 credit hour, two semester (four modules) degree program, with the first classes offered in the Fall 2014 semester.  The first graduates will complete the program in May 2015. No full-time work experience is required for admission. 

“‛Big Data’ continue to have an impact on how organizations conduct business as a whole and in the skill sets that employees are expected to have in order to be productive,” said Hettie Tabor, director of the new SMU Cox MSBA program.  “By investing in one additional year of education, SMU Cox MSBA students will meet that demand with the knowledge and skills that will allow them to launch a successful career in IT, marketing, operations and consulting fields.”     Candidates who might consider the new MSBA degree program are BBA and non-business students who are working toward degrees in economics, math, engineering and science, or graduates who have completed such degrees.

Tabor, a managing director at Accenture, has worked in IT for 25 years, with more than 19 years of practical experience in analytics and SAP.  Tabor built and served as the Accenture SAP Business Analytics Global Practice Lead for 15 years and has a wealth of technical and project management knowledge in the analytics, business intelligence, in memory computing, data mining, predictive analytics, business planning & consolidations and data management space. 

Students or undergraduates interested in applying should contact Hettie Tabor at htabor@smu.edu.

About SMU Cox

The Cox School of Business was originally established in 1920 on the campus of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas and named in honor of benefactor Edwin L. Cox in 1978.  SMU Cox offers a full range of undergraduate and graduate business education programs, including the BBA, Full-Time MBA, Professional MBA (PMBA), Executive MBA (EMBA), Master of Science in Accounting, Master of Science in Business Analytics, Master of Science in Entrepreneurship, Master of Science in Finance, Master of Science in Management, Master of Science in Sport Management and Executive Education. The school also offers a number of unique resources and activities for students, including the Business Leadership Center (BLC), the Caruth Institute for Entrepreneurship, the Folsom Institute for Real Estate, the Maguire Energy Institute, the Global Leadership Program and the Associate Board Executive Mentoring Program, as well as an international alumni network with chapters