Syllabus in 60: Intro to Business Analytics in R

MSBA 6131: Intro to Business Analytics in R

R is a powerful programming language, but business analytics is more than just delivering lines of code. That’s a lesson Associate Professor of Information and Decision Sciences Mochen Yang aims to impress upon his students. “This is a problem-solving course,” says Yang. “We just happen to use R.”

In the course, students learn how to leverage data to create business value. After learning the foundational framework of predictive machine learning and data analytic techniques, the students take on a live business case to make a real-world impact. The course challenges students to apply critical thinking to their new data skills to navigate business decisions.
 

5 Takeaways

1. Students take the course in their first semester of the Master of Science in Business Analytics (MSBA) program.
    
2. The course provides opportunities for students to develop their presentation skills so they can provide clear, solution-oriented insights to managers.
    
3. Once students learn the foundational principles, faculty encourage them to use artificial intelligence tools to support their growth.
    
4. In one live case, students helped Hennepin County and Second Harvest Heartland better connect vulnerable populations to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) food benefits.
    
5. “What makes a difference isn’t how complicated your data model is, it’s about how accurately you can identify the business problem and translate that into a data problem,” says Yang. “Even simple techniques can deliver a lot of value.”

Illustration by Greg Mably