MSc Business Analytics and Technologies

• You should have at least a lower second class (2.2) honours degree (or equivalent) in any subject or five years of relevant work experience. You do not need prior experience in computer programming or data analytics.
• You must also have GCSE Mathematics at grade C or above or grade 4 to 9. Please get in touch with us for details of other acceptable qualifications. You'll need to attain a minimum mark in a diagnostic mathematics test if you don't have an acceptable mathematics qualification.
• If you wish to gain admission on the basis of five years of relevant work experience, you'll be required to attend an online or face-to-face interview and present evidence in the form of a portfolio of work and examples that demonstrate your suitability and aptitude for the course. The evidence should be presented in electronic format and attested by an independent person. The independent person could be a current or former lecturer or an employer with a more senior role than yourself. The University is looking for candidates who can demonstrate a clear style and commitment to their professional practice and who will benefit from experiencing this area of study.
• You may be required to attend an interview and/or provide a portfolio of work.
• We'll consider applications where appropriate work experience can be demonstrated in lieu of, or in addition to, the published academic qualifications in line with the University’s Recognition of Prior Experiential Learning (RPEL) procedures.
• If English isn’t your first language, you’ll also need IELTS 6.0 with no less than 5.5 in any band (or equivalent). We also accept a range of other English language qualifications – please visit our English Language Requirements web page for more details.

Where changes are made to material information contained in this course description or a decision is taken to suspend a course between the offer of admissions and enrolment, we will inform applicants at the earliest possible opportunity and will outline the various options available to the applicant.

Companies the world over are harnessing the power of big data to understand business performance, identify market trends and gain competitive advantage. The demand for workers with the skills to transform raw data into actionable insights to improve business decisions is growing and highly-skilled, competent, creative professionals are needed by organisations across the economic spectrum.

Our MSc in Business Analytics and Technologies offers a postgraduate route into this in-demand and varied career. It's an ideal bridge into business data analysis and technologies, whatever your undergraduate degree specialisation. Additionally, it's an excellent option if you've worked in a relevant field, gaining degree-level knowledge through experience and self-study rather than formal education.

As a graduate of this master's degree, you'll possess a solid theoretical and practical understanding of business analytics and technologies. You'll be able to demonstrate essential interpersonal and people skills, such as collaboration and teamwork, coupled with commercial awareness and business-relevant knowledge. You'll also possess high-level academic skills in research, critical thinking and curiosity. Moreover, you'll have the lifelong learning, problem-solving and decision-making skills needed to adapt to new challenges throughout your career.

What can I do with this qualification?

As a graduate of this industry‐focused, hands-on MSc, you'll possess strong skills in business analytics and technologies. Depending on your prior qualifications and experience, a wide range of career opportunities will be open to you, as will the option of further study towards a PhD should you choose a career in research or academia.

Business analysts are in high demand, and business analytics roles are diverse. Big data has intensified the need for business analysts who can create data dashboards, graphs and visualisations to communicate insight to managers and stakeholders. You may find employment looking for trends and patterns that help companies make business decisions or predict demand for goods or services. There are also many roles in marketing and marketing research; for instance, in analysing trends in consumer feedback, determining the effectiveness of customer reward and loyalty schemes, and search engine optimisation for websites. Moreover, small and medium-sized enterprises need consultants to help them make data-driven business decisions on an ad hoc basis, so you could consider starting your own business to support their needs.

Alternative career options

Depending on your prior qualifications and experience, after graduation, you can also use this master's degree as a stepping-stone into a range of other careers. Some of these roles may require relevant experience and/or postgraduate study. Some possibilities include:

• Leadership and management
• Use of technology in enhancing business and industrial processes
• Solutions driven business and industrial investigation
• Marketing and public relations
• Social media management
• Information systems management
• Cyber security
• Social enterprise
• Policy management
• Education and teaching
• Advising and consultancy

Home students starting this course in the first year will be required to pay a Home fee of £8,496 for the academic year 2024/25.

Overseas students starting this course in the first year will be required to pay a Overseas fee of £15,950 for the academic year 2024/25.

Important note regarding tuition fees for the 2023-2024 academic year: EU nationals who meet residency requirements (have settled or pre-settled status) may be eligible for 'Home' fee status. If you do not meet these residency requirements, overseas fees will apply. Irish citizens living in the UK or Ireland will be eligible for 'Home' fee status under the Common Travel Area arrangement. Please read the student finance for EU students web page on www.gov.uk for information.

The fees for a student's course of study will be set for the normal duration of that course subject only to inflationary increases – measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) recorded in March each year to take effect for subsequent start dates.

Bursaries

Click here for more information on our Master's Bursaries.

We use a blended learning approach, combining face-to-face sessions and practical work as appropriate. You can expect lectures, seminars, tutorials, discussion groups, guest speakers and master classes.

We'll also expect you to undertake considerable guided independent study; for instance, background reading, online activities, assessment work and preparation for sessions. We're committed to supporting you throughout your learning journey. Over time, our guidance will purposefully become less structured and prescriptive. This will encourage you to develop confidence and independence in your studies and take responsibility for managing your own learning time as you increase in autonomy.

Regarding assessment, you can expect a combination of written coursework, project work, oral assessments and portfolios. Summative assessments contribute to your final marks and are your chance to show you've met the learning outcomes for the course. Formative assessments, on the other hand, feature throughout your studies. While they don't contribute to your module or final marks, they inform and support your development by helping you build on your strengths, overcome any perceived weaknesses, and find the study strategies that best support your ultimate success.

This programme adopts a blended learning and teaching style, including online delivery and engagement where appropriate.

Modules

The modules listed below may be a mixture of compulsory and optional. You may not have the opportunity to study all the modules shown as part of the course.

• Professional Practice
• Research Methods
• Project
• Business Analytics
• Programming for Data Analytics
• Technological Innovation in Business
• Marketing Analytics
• Data Analysis and Visualisation
• Data Mining and Machine Learning

Assessment methods

Learning activities

Disclaimer

The university will use all reasonable endeavours to deliver your course as described in its published material and the programme specification for the academic year in which you begin your course. The university considers changes to courses very carefully and the university will minimise any changes. Please be aware that our courses are subject to review on an ongoing basis and changes may be necessary due to legitimate staffing, financial, regulatory and academic reasons. The content of course modules and mode of associated assessments may be updated on an annual basis. This is to ensure that all modules are up-to-date and responsive to employment and sector needs. The published course material and the programme specification contain indicative ‘optional modules’ that may be subject to change due to circumstances outside of our control. For this reason, we cannot guarantee to run any specific optional module.