Business Analytics

The broad aims are:

• To develop advanced and systematic understanding of the complexity of data, including the sources of data relevant to business, alongside appropriate analysis techniques
• To enable students to critically review and apply relevant business analytics knowledge to practical situations
• To develop a critical awareness of current issues in business analytics which is informed by leading research and practice in the field
• To develop a conceptual understanding of existing research and scholarship to enable the identification of new or revised approaches to business analytics practice
• To develop creativity in the application of knowledge, together with a practical understanding of how established, advanced techniques of research and enquiry are used to develop and interpret knowledge in business analytics.
• To develop the ability to conduct research into business analytics issues that requires familiarity with a range of business data, research sources and appropriate methodologies and ethical issues
• To develop advanced conceptual abilities and analytical skills in order to evaluate the rigour and validity of published research and assess its relevance to new situations
• To extend the ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing, using a range of media.

Please note: Current modules are indicative. Information for future academic years may change, for example, due to developments in the relevant academic field, or in light of student feedback.

Entry requirements

The MSc in Business Analytics programme is designed for graduates from either a business background (with evidence of strong quantitative content) or a tech background (including numerate scientific disciplines with strong computational content). You will need a UK first or upper second class honours degree or international equivalent in one of the following:

• Business
• Computer science
• Related subject with strong quantitative component.

As there is a high demand for this programme with a finite number of places available, we operate a staged admissions process with application deadlines throughout the year for MSc Business Analytics. Due to the competition for places we give preference to applicants from high ranking institutions and with grades above our minimum entry requirements.

• Applications received after our final application deadline will be considered at our discretion if places are still available.Whilst we aim to give you a decision on your application by the listed date, due to the high volume of applications that we receive, this may not always be possible. All deadlines are 23:59 UK time (GMT)
• Applications for each stage open immediately after the deadline for the previous stage

All offer holders will be automatically assessed for a scholarship and if successful will be notified by separate email within 14 days of receiving an offer.Please note that we may issue a small number of offers to exceptional candidates in advance of each deadline.

The University is under no obligation to make an offer of a place on the programme to any applicant, nor is the University obligated to fill all spaces available on the programme.

NB Chinese Applicants: Applications will be considered from students who have graduated from a prestigious university in China. Entry requirements may vary depending upon the reputation of the university you have graduated from and the academic programme you have applied for. As a guide, applicants are expected to have achieved an overall average of 85%.

The equivalent of a UK first or upper second class honours degree. Check the full list of equivalent qualifications. If you are an international student who does not meet the requirements for direct entry to this degree, you may be eligible to take a pre-Masters pathway programme at the Durham University International Study Centre.

How do I apply?

You will need to complete an online application form.

Fill out the online application form

To support your online application form, you will need to provide the following documents.

• Official transcript of marks
• Copy of degree certificate (if available)
• Copy of English test results (if available).

You can either upload your supporting documents with your online application or email or fax them to the Postgraduate Admissions Office using the contact details below.

Note:

Only files of type .doc, .docx, .gif, .jpg, .pdf, .png, .rtf are permitted to be uploaded.

The maximum file size is 5MB.

Application fee

Once we receive your online application form, you’ll get an automatic email within 48 hours asking you to pay the £60 application fee* which is required to progress your application.

You’ll need to follow the link in the email to the webpage where you can confirm your details and make the payment using a debit or credit card. This is a secure website operated by Secpay, which will send you an automatic receipt of payment.

Once we receive confirmation that your application fee has been paid, we’ll be able to progress your application. If you do not pay the application fee your application will be automatically withdrawn.

*Please note you will only be able to make a payment for one programme in each suite i.e. one MSc Finance programme, one MSc Management programme, one MSc Marketing programme.

College membership

All students of Durham University will become a member of one of our Colleges. Here is more information about what college membership means to our students. Once you have accepted your postgraduate offer, the Accommodation and Allocations Office will contact you with further information regarding how to express college preferences. You can also apply for college accommodation if you wish to.

Admissions process

Here are the steps in the admissions process:

1. We will let you know when we’ve received your application.
2. Once we’ve received all of your supporting documents, we will email you to let you know our decision.
3. If the decision is to make you an offer of a place on the programme we will let you know by email shortly after the deadlines mentioned above. Please note we do not issue hard copy offer letters as these are not required to obtain a student visa.
4. You should confirm the acceptance of your offer as soon as possible. In order to secure your place, you are required to pay a deposit within six weeks of the date of your original offer (check your offer documents for details of payment methods).

International students requiring a student visa will receive a CAS (Certificate of Acceptance of Studies) via email once all offer conditions are met, acceptance and deposit have been received and you are within five months of the start date of your programme.

Whilst we aim to give you a decision on your application by the relevant deadline date, due to the high volume of applications that we receive, this may not always be possible. In some instances, it may be necessary for us to roll your application forward to the next deadline date.

English language requirements

Full Time Fees

The tuition fees shown are for one complete academic year of full time study, are set according to the academic year of entry, and remain the same throughout the duration of the programme for that cohort (unless otherwise stated).

Please also check costs for colleges and accommodation.

For further information on career options and employability, student and employer testimonials and details of work experience and study abroad opportunities, please visit our employability web pages.

Our courses cover topics including data analysis, machine learning, big data, advanced algorithms, scientific computing and business analytics. You will have access to extensive and diverse research facilities, for example a Tier-3 supercomputer, several smaller compute clusters with various architectures, a visualisation suite, GPGPU machines, and large-scale data acquisition kit (telescopes, for example).

Rankings

• Joint Number 1 in the UK for student employability in The Complete University Guide 2023
• 6th in The Complete University Guide 2023
• 6th inThe Guardian University Guide 2023
• 8th in The Times and Sunday Times University Guide 2023

Staff

For a current list of staff, please see the School's web pages.

Research Excellence Framework

• 97% of our research outputs are world-leading or internationally excellent (REF 2021)

Facilities

We have now moved into a purpose-built £40M new building at Upper Mountjoy in Durham, which is indicative of the major investment the University is making in Computer Science. The building will also include colleagues from Mathematical Sciences and will mean we can further develop joint teaching and research strategies.

The building has academic offices, offices for research staff and students, open-plan space for undergraduate students to work, breakout spaces to collaborate, labs, computer rooms and, of course, a café.

Learn more about our facilities and equipment.

Start your application now.