Business analytics – the art and science of advanced statistical analysis popularized by the movie Moneyball and the bestselling book, Competing on Analytics: The New Science of Winning – is a tool increasingly used by businesses looking to gain a competitive edge.

Murat Kristal

“The Schulich Master of Science in Business Analytics will fast-track students with a background in engineering, computer science or math to leverage their skill sets for business,” says Murat Kristal, program director of Schulich's Master of Science in Business Analytics and a professor of Operations Management & Information Systems.

Ninety-seven per cent of companies with revenues of more of $100 million are now entering this new frontier, according to Bloomberg Businessweek. Business analytics is also the fastest growing category of global IT software expenditure, according to a recent Forrester Research study, and a McKinsey & Company report forecasts a shortage of professionals in the field of business analytics by 2018.

“Business analytics is one of the most sought-after skill sets in the business world right now. It’s the new business frontier,” says Schulich alumnus Babar Chaudhry, vice-president, financial planning, marketing analytics & strategy at a major Canadian international bank. “Companies are capturing vast amounts of data on their customers, products and the environment, but they need more highly trained professionals to analyze and identify patterns and trends for value creation; value creation for their customers as well as their shareholders.”

Schulich’s intensive program will combine mathematical and statistical study with instruction in advanced computational and data analysis to ferret out the data that drives decision-making in business. During the final semester, students will be embedded within business operations to work on real-world, real-time data analysis projects.

Business analytics students will learn to identify patterns and trends; interpret and gain insight from vast quantities of structured and unstructured data; and communicate their findings in practical, useful terms, says Kristal.

Students will emerge from Schulich’s Master of Science in Business Analytics program with skills in forecasting, business intelligence and data mining, and optimization and simulation. Graduates will be qualified to apply for a wide variety of career positions as managers, consultants and analysts in the fields of strategy, research, marketing and sales.

For more information, visit the Schulish School of Business’ website or contact Schulich School of Business Professor Murat Kristal, program director of the Master of Science in Business Analytics, at ext. 44593 or mkristal@schulich.yorku.ca.

Republished courtesy of YFile– 91��ɫ’s daily e-bulletin.

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The event will take place Jan. 13, from 2:30 to 5pm, on the 5th Floor of the Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) Building, Keele campus. In addition, there will be some short remarks at 3:30pm in 5084 TEL Building, at the south end of the hallway. Refreshments will be served.

The open house will showcase faculty- and student-led research projects, along with short presentations by researchers.

The LaMarsh Centre conducts interdisciplinary research in health, education, relationships and development of infants, children, adolescents, emerging adults and families. Its particular focus is on the health and well-being of Canada’s youth, preventing youth violence and promoting positive development. The aim is to foster a centre of learning, productivity and exchange for new and senior scholars and to create a critical mass of related research activity.

The YIHR takes a determinants approach to health research with sub-areas including diversity and health, health equity and social justice, health and the environment, health law and ethics, health care and health governance. YIHR draws together a range of social, biomedical, environmental and behavioural scientists, as well as researchers from business, law, education and the physical sciences, bridging the divide between the sciences and social sciences to deliver real-world solutions.

The houses the largest university-based survey centre in Canada, conducting major surveys on population health, education, gender, the environment and voting behaviour. It conducts more than 25 survey research projects annually, as well as a range of qualitative research, including focus group studies. ISR staff complete all stages of the survey research process from questionnaire design, sample selection and data collection to the preparation of machine-readable data files, statistical analysis and report writing.

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“The First (Known) Statistical Graph: Michael Florent van Langren and the 'Secret' of Longitude” will take place Tuesday, Nov. 30, from 12:30 to 2pm in Norman’s, 203 Bethune College, Keele campus. All are welcome to attend. Light refreshments will be served.

Right: Michael Friendly

Chair of the graduate program in Quantitative Methods at 91��ɫ and an associate coordinator with the , Friendly knows a thing or two about statistics. He has broad experience in data analysis, statistics and computer applications.

In addition, he is the author of SAS System for Statistical Graphics, 1st Edition, and Visualizing Categorical Data, both published by the SAS Institute. He is also an associate editor of the Journal of Computational and Graphical Statistics.

His recent work includes the further development of graphical methods for categorical data and multivariate linear models, as well as work on the history of data visualization.

Republished courtesy of YFile– 91��ɫ’s daily e-bulletin

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The process takes anywhere from six months to 15 years.

A new law passed this year, Bill C-11, is expected to expedite applications and reduce the current wait-list of about 55,000 claimants. Canadian refugee claimants either stay with family or friends, at homeless shelters or, if the government considers them a security threat, in jail. The onus is on the claimant to prove that he or she faces persecution in the country of origin. Rejected applicants are deported, though many stay in Canada illegally.

The country is on track to receive about 20,000 refugee claims in 2010. Canada once accepted as much as 89 per cent of the applicant pool but now admits half that.

Republished courtesy of YFile– 91��ɫ’s daily e-bulletin.

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