Graduate Certificate in Business Data Analytics

Business intelligence analysts — employees tasked with studying and analyzing large amounts of data generated by businesses — are one of the top best-paying science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) positions. In the business data analytics module, students will (1) learn core intranets: electronic data interchange, electronic banking and payment systems, security and firewalls, software agents, and the social, legal, and international issues of electronic commerce; (2) review business intelligence and analytics technologies; (3) define and frame the business context for decisions, decision models, data issues, business intelligence, building analytics capability, cloud computing, making organizations smarter, and measuring the value of analytics; and (4) study analytics software and techniques: data preparation, data exploration and visualization, predictive analytics techniques, text analytics, and spatial analytics. 

One of the core problems in the broad arena of Information Technology is the extraction of useful information from massive amounts of data that is collected and stored. Two closely related disciplines lie at the head of the problem. The first is the construction of efficient, logically organized databases that reflect the physical and organizational realities that comprise the problem domain; and the second is the extraction of useful business intelligence from those databases.  

This set of three courses in the Business Data Analytics certification will provide students with the specialized knowledge required to attack this problem domain. 

Target Audience:

The target audience is professionals in organizations or fields that require business data analytics and would pursue the certification for job knowledge and career enhancement. Those students will be admitted as non-degree seeking, MIT-Commonwealth students.

We also expect graduate students, full- or part-time and currently enrolled in a VT graduate degree program related to business data analytics, to be interested in adding this certification as a supplement to their degree.

How To Apply:

External applications should complete the VT-MIT online application as a certificate-seeking student at https://vtmit.vt.edu/admissions/apply-now.html

MIT Graduate Certificates

Admissions Requirements for the Graduate Certificate in Business Data Analytics

Virginia Tech requires admission to the Graduate School and completion of a Graduate Certificate Application for both degree- and non-degree seeking certificate applicants. 

Degree-seeking applicants: The Graduate School requires completion of a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution with a GPA of 3.0 or greater for admission to Certificate Status. MIT applicants with an undergraduate GPA less than 3.0 may qualify for Commonwealth Campus admission and will need to comply with MIT requirements of Commonwealth Campus status prior to admission to Certificate Status. Students pursuing a degree and a certificate simultaneously are classified within their degree program.

For students interested in pursuing both the MIT degree and the certificate(s), no more than fifty percent of certificate courses will be included toward completion of the MIT degree. 

Non-degree seeking applicants: Applicants that wish to obtain a graduate certificate only, without being enrolled in a VT degree program, may apply by completing an abbreviated application to MIT's Certificate program. The Graduate Certificate Application Form is required after admission.

Applicants must meet the following criteria:

• Earn a GPA of 3.0 or greater or credits earned during the last half of their undergraduate degree.

• Submit official transcripts.

• Meet the academic background requirements of the admitting academic unit.

• International Applicants must submit scores from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or International English Language Testing System (IELTS). 

• Earn a minimum TOEFL score of 577 paper-based (PBT) or 90 internet-based test (iBT). For the iBT, earn a minimum of 20 on each subject test (Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing).

• Earn a minimum IELTS score of 6.5.

• Some departments have higher TOEFL or IELTS score requirements than those set by the Graduate School.

Course Requirements for the Graduate Certificate in Business Data Analytics

Number of Credit Hours: 

A total of nine credit hours are required. Transfer credits are not permitted. Students must maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0 in the designated courses.

Required Courses: 

ACIS 5524 Advanced Database Management Systems: Relates database theories and practices to concepts from other areas such as programming languages, algorithms, data structures, and information systems. The relational, network, and hierarchical models are introduced. A major portion of the course deals with data manipulation languages for the relational model, design theory for relational databases, and query optimization. Pre: ACIS 5504. 

BIT 5524 Introduction to Business Intelligence & Analytics: Overview of business intelligence and analytics technologies and their strategic use including defining/framing the business context for decisions, decision models, data issues, business intelligence, building analytics capability, cloud computing, making organizations smarter, and measuring the value of analytics. 

BIT 5534 Applied Business Intelligence and Analytics: Development of business intelligence and analytics solutions and applications to various types of decision-making problems. Analytics software preparation, data exploration and visualization, predictive analytics techniques, and text analytics, spatial analytics. Pre: BIT 5524.