Course Overview for the Predictive Business Analytics Certificate, Northwestern University School of Professional Studies - Northwestern School of Professional Studies

Program Courses

To limit our community's exposure to COVID-19, the spring quarter will now commence on April 4. Online courses may have adjusted dates, but will otherwise run as usual. On-campus courses will be conducted remotely until April 27; University leaders will decide by April 17 whether to continue remote teaching or to return to in-person instruction on April 27. Updated information for affected courses can be found in the scheduling notes area under the course description.

BUS_ANLY 202-DL : Modeling Concepts for Business Analytics

Description

Modeling Concepts for Business Analytics is tailored to the needs of non-practitioners who interact with statisticians and data scientists, including managers, technology partners, and business users. We will present the basic statistical and machine learning techniques that are used by data scientists to analyze and model data, but will not spend time on the intricate details of each model or how they are coded. Instead, students will learn the basics of each technique with an emphasis on understanding what the algorithm does, what it is used for, and the pros and cons of each. We will also cover best practices for managers and information technology professionals who are upstream or downstream from the analysts.

Course Objectives

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

• Describe applications of key data mining methods for business decision-making.
• Articulate data mining terminology.
• Explain what to look for when evaluating various data mining methods.
• Interpret results from various data mining methods.
• Communicate methods and strategies with internal or external business data stakeholders.

Prerequisites

Students must complete BUS_ANLY 201-DL before registering for this course.

Registered students can access their online course site here. An activated NetID and password is required for login. *Please note: It may take up to 24-hours for registered students to be added to the online course platform.