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Data Analytics Program2022-06-09T19:22:01-04:00

A Graduate Certificate built for those who want to make an impact in a data-driven world.

Whether you’re a recent undergrad ready to maximize your career opportunities in a rapidly growing career field or an established professional who wants to elevate your career in a changing world, the Online Graduate Certificate in Data Analytics will position you to take the next step in your professional career.

What Will You Learn in a Graduate Certificate in Data Analytics?

Students will engage in a four-course program to become equipped with skills required to analyze data, understand analytic reports, and ultimately use data to make decisions that will impact their organization. Coursework includes data analysis, complex modeling, big data techniques, and predictive modeling/forecasting. Graduate certificate students have the opportunity to learn at a top-tier research facility from a faculty of accomplished academics and current industry practitioners.

Credits earned in this four-course online graduate certificate can be transferred into the Master of Science in Applied Economics program at Boston College.

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Online Graduate Certificate in Data Analytics

Are You Ready To Take the Next Step?

The Online Graduate Certificate in Data Analytics is a four-course for-credit certificate program. The program can be completed in 8 months and is designed to be flexible to meet the needs of both full-time students and working professionals pursuing the certificate part time. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. All undergraduate majors are welcome.

Admission Requirements

Students accepted into the Online Graduate Certificate in Data Analytics join a worldwide network of over 180,000 Boston College alumni. To complete an application, please compile the following elements:

  • Proof of bachelor’s degree from an accredited college/university
  • Personal statement
  • Letter of recommendation
  • Resume
  • Prerequisite course: College-level statistics or completion of statistics module

Course Descriptions

All four courses are offered fully online in 8 week terms and can be completed in 8 months.  The courses are for-credit and can be transferred into the Boston College Master of Science in Applied Economics degree program.

This course is designed to introduce students to the concepts and data-based tools of statistical analysis commonly employed in Applied Economics. In addition to learning the basics of statistical and data analysis, students will learn to use the statistical software package Stata to conduct various empirical analyses. Our focus will be on learning to do statistical analysis, not just on learning statistics. The ultimate goal of this course is to prepare students well for ADEC 7320.01, Econometrics.

This course focuses on the application of statistical tools used to estimate economic relationships. The course begins with a discussion of the linear regression model, and examination of common problems encountered when applying this approach, including serial correlation, heteroscedasticity, and multicollinearity. Models with lagged variables are considered, as is estimation with instrumental variables, two-stage least squares, models with limited dependent variables, and basic time-series techniques.

Prerequisite: ADEC 7310 Data Analysis or department approval.

This course demonstrates how to merge economic data analysis and applied econometric tools with the most common machine learning techniques, as the rapid advancement of computational methods provides unprecedented opportunities for understanding big data. This course will provide a hands-on experience with the terminology, technology and methodologies behind machine learning with economic applications in marketing, finance, healthcare and other areas. The main topics covered in this course include: advanced regression techniques, resampling methods, model selection and regularization, classification models (logistic regression, Naive Bayes, discriminant analysis, k-nearest neighbors, neural networks), tree-based methods, support vector machines, and unsupervised learning (principal components analysis and clustering). Students will apply both supervised and unsupervised machine learning techniques to solve various economics-related problems with real-world data sets. No prior experience with R or Python is necessary.

Pre-requisite: ADEC 7310 Data Analysis and ADEC 7320 Econometrics, or department approval.

This course will expose students to the most popular forecasting techniques used in industry. We will cover time series data manipulation and feature creation, including working with transactional and hierarchical time series data as well as methods of evaluating forecasting models. We will cover basic univariate Smoothing and Decomposition methods of forecasting including Moving Averages, ARIMA, Holt-Winters, Unobserved Components Models and various filtering methods (Hodrick-Prescott, Kalman Filter). Time permitting, we will also extend our models to multivariate modeling options such as Vector Autoregressive Models (VAR). We will also discuss forecasting with hierarchical data and the unique challenges that hierarchical reconciliation creates. The course will use the R programming language though no prior experience with R is required.

Pre-requisite: ADEC 7310 Data Analysis and ADEC 7320 Econometrics, or department approval.

FAQs

Talk to an Application Specialist today for more information about how the Boston College Online Graduate Certificate in Data Analytics can help you achieve your professional goals at 1-617-360-7327.

A: There are three convenient start dates offered per year: Fall, Spring, and Summer. Contact a Boston College Application Specialist at 1-617-360-7327 to find the next start date that works with your schedule.

A: No, there is no application fee for the data analytics certificate.

A: The tuition for the graduate certificate is $15,576.

A: Students will be prepared for a variety of careers in fields where there is a demand for analytical precision and significant technical proficiency.  These industries include:

  • Educational Services
  • Financial Services
  • Chemical Manufacturing
  • Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
  • Insurance Carriers and Related Activities
  • Hospitals and Health Care
  • Electrical Equipment, Appliance, and Component Manufacturing
  • Miscellaneous Manufacturing
  • Merchant Wholesalers, Durable Goods
  • Credit Intermediation and Related Activities
  • Social Assistance

A: 4 courses are required (12 credits total)

A: These elements are required to complete an application for admission:

  • Online application
  • Bachelor’s degree from regionally accredited college/university
  • Personal statement
  • Letter of recommendation
  • Resume
  • Application fee ($45, non-refundable)
  • Prerequisite course: College-level statistics or completion of statistics module

A: Yes, international applicants are welcome to apply.

A: If you have not completed the pre-requisites you may still apply. We offer the opportunity for you to complete all your prerequisites within the Woods College. If you complete your prerequisites with a GPA of 3.0 or better, you will be eligible to receive a conditional acceptance. If you have prior work-related experience, we will ask you to provide a demonstration of your level of mastery of skills. Please contact us for details of this process.

A: We do not accept graduate course credit from other institutions. Credits from this certificate program can transfer to the Master of Applied Economics degree program at Boston College.

A: Virtually all of our faculty hold doctoral degrees in Economics or Statistics and are accomplished practitioners. Their specializations range from work with the International Monetary Fund, to large consulting firms in the Greater Boston area, to academic departments that shape industry standards. Each faculty member is committed to equipping students with real-world skill sets that are applicable to a variety of workplaces.

A: Applications are accepted on a rolling basis with a December 10th deadline for spring enrollment and June 15th deadline for fall enrollment.  In particular circumstances, applicants may be approved to take summer courses and should inquire with the program director for more information.

Note: International students seeking a visa should apply at least 3 months prior to their intended start term, and can only be admitted for fall and spring semesters.

A: Yes. We have designed the program to be flexible to accommodate a variety of scheduling needs.

A: Yes. The priority application deadline is December 10.

A: Most students will complete the graduate certificate program in 8 months.

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Online Graduate Certificate in Data Analytics

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