There is currently more information in the world today than there are trained specialists able to process and utilize it for a company's benefit. A recent projection by the Bureau of Labor Statistics reveals that growth in business analytics and information fields will grow at a rate of three-times the national job growth average with a continued 11% growth rate through 2024. With such a great need for professionals able to analyze and make business decisions based on information and data, many elite business schools now offer specialized online Master's of Business Administration degrees in business analytics.
These degrees are designed to train online students in how to be successful at acquiring and analyzing data from a multitude of sources in order to grow a business and manage effectively. With such varying degrees of information being shared through global markets, there are a vast number of occupations open to professionals with an online MBA with a concentration in Business Analytics. Here are two jobs that are on the rise and are projected to remain relevant within the ever-changing landscape of business and management.
Statistician
While a fair percentage of statisticians are employed by the federal government or within scientific research, the job typically centers on the use of "statistical methods to collect and analyze data and to help solve real-world problems in business, engineering, healthcare, or other fields." While some employees may begin a career in statistics with only a bachelor's degree, a greater job market will be available to those with a graduate degree with strong ties to mathematics, accounting, and other quantitative fields. An MBA graduate with a business analytics degree can be marketable in the area of statistics as the profession is desirable in business, management, healthcare, and many other fields. Featuring an incredible projected growth rate of 34%, the profession of statistician offers a median salary of $80,500, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. One of the nation's strongest online MBAs that can train a distance learner for a career as a statistician is offered through the Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. This 66-credit hour online MBA program with a specialization in Data Analytics and Decision Making is backed by the business school's excellent business accreditation and national recognition as one of the very best in the United States.
Marketing Analyst
While the title of "marketing analyst" may not conjure up visions of a dynamic and interactive career, the work of a market analyst might surprise you. As Sinead Hasson writes, "as a market analyst your job is to study information to help your employer or client make informed decisions about their market. This could range from what markets to launch a product in, to the price you might charge for something. The information you analyze could be presented as numbers or words. For the former you need to be highly numerical and able to make sense of large sets of numbers. Statistical skills are useful – math and analytics qualifications are also key. To analyze text, it's about digesting large quantities of information to understand what's relevant and what's not." So whether the data analyst comes from a math or a marketing and management background, the need for strong data organization, interpretation, and communication shows the profession requires strong relational and management skills. While the median salary for a marketing analyst is $53,000, companies like Morgan Stanley Investment has reported annual salaries of almost $100,000 for the position. The Spears School of Business located at Oklahoma State University, highly regarded as one of the nation's strongest online MBAs, offers an online Master's of Business Administration with a Marketing Analytics specialization. This 42-credit hour program is offered 100% online, holds the elite AACSB accreditation, and resident students can complete the program with a tuition cost of only $8,232.
