University of New Haven at the Forefront of Business Analytics Education

Divya Gade ’20 MBA says she has always had an interest in “big data,” and she worked as a senior system analyst in her native India before beginning to pursue her MBA at the University of New Haven. Endeavoring to advance her career in the growing field of data science, she enrolled in the University’s STEM-certified MBA program with a concentration in data analytics.

“In today’s job market, most positions require a combination of business and technical acumen,” said Gade. “The best thing about the MBA program at the University of New Haven is the STEM-certified concentrations.”

A background in the STEM fields of science, technology, engineering, and math is increasingly important for business students, says College of Business dean Brian Kench, Ph.D., and the University of New Haven is at the forefront of incorporating these principles across its undergraduate and graduate business programs.

“We believe that STEM-certified business programs are the 21st century’s answer to the exponential explosion of raw data that businesses large and small need to make sense of,” says Kench. “Because of our commitment, we are becoming a destination school for students looking to study business analytics.”

The University offers the only STEM-certified business analytics undergraduate program in the United States, and it is currently developing a STEM-certified master’s degree in business analytics that is expected to enroll its first class in fall 2020. The University also has the only master’s degree program in sport management in the country that includes a concentration in business analytics.

The University’s MBA program is among a select group across the country that is STEM-certified, as are its master’s degrees in finance and accounting, the latter which includes an innovative concentration in artificial intelligence/analytics.

"We believe that STEM-certified business programs are the 21st century’s answer to the exponential explosion of raw data that businesses large and small need to make sense of. Because of our commitment, we are becoming a destination school for students looking to study business analytics"Brian Kench, Ph.D.

The federal government created the STEM designation program to help employers deal with the shortage of qualified workers in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math. (Estimates indicate employers in the United States will have to fill 3.5 million STEM jobs by 2025.) To earn the STEM designation, at least 50 percent of the coursework in a program must be in the fields of science, technology, engineering, or math.

STEM designated educational programs also enable international graduates to remain stateside for an additional 24 months after graduation and receive training through work experience.

In a story by Poets&Quants, a news website devoted to the coverage of business schools, Dean Kench discussed the importance of STEM education and how it can help students to differentiate themselves in the job market.

“You’re getting a really interesting set of skills, which is clearly in demand,” he said. “There are several national reports that say there’s going to be a shortage over the next five to ten years of qualified individuals who are trained in analytics. There is a clear demand for this set of skills.”

Although STEM programs within business degree programs are relatively new, Dr. Kench is optimistic they will play an important role in preparing students for the jobs of the future.

“Students are spurred by the labor market shortage and the salaries that go along with business analytics,” he said. “It’s very attractive to the price-sensitive student who’s really concerned with return on investment, which is just about every first-year student that’s coming into college these days.”