"It shows that we are at the forefront of the business analytics domain."
Industry accreditation is a desirable seal of approval for any educational institution, and putting it at the forefront of your mind when choosing where to study, will without doubt pay off down the track.
Deakin Business School’s (DBS) Master of Business Analytics recently became Australia’s first and only program to be accredited by the Australian Computer Society (ACS), putting it leaps ahead of similar degrees in the field.
Prime-position for job applicants
Professor Matt Warren, Chair in Information Systems at Deakin Business School (DBS) says that this unique endorsement is of utmost importance.
‘Business analytics as a discipline is becoming increasingly recognised by industry and burgeoning business analytics professionals studying at Deakin, will thus benefit from having a degree accredited by a professional body.
‘To be internationally recognised, will place our graduates in a fantastic position in a rapidly growing job market,’ he says.
Achieving industry recognition of this calibre requires an eye for detail. Prof. Warren explains that for a course to be accredited by ACS, it has to adhere to specific IT industry requirements, which are communicated through what is known as the Common Body of Knowledge (CBOK).
‘There is nothing higher to aim for other than ACS – it’s our peak body in terms of accreditation. What we did, was structure the course in order for it to actually fulfil the requirements of the ACS CBOK in the first place,’ Prof. Warren says.
‘Now, if someone has a Deakin Master of Business Analytics, they’re automatically accredited by ACS, which is in turn recognised in many different countries around the world. It’s a major step forward in the professionalisation of business analytics.’
Fostering industry professionalisation
Professor Rens Scheepers, Head of Department, Information Systems and Business Analytics, further explains that ACS accreditation reiterates Deakin University’s focus on offering high-quality degrees that reflect the requirements of industry.
‘The accreditation reinforces the professionalisation of this relatively new discipline and that as a business school we are dedicated to also foster the professionalisation of our degrees on as many levels as possible.
‘On a discipline level it means that DBS is now not only the first to the market with a Master of Business Analytics, but also the first to have professional accreditation for it. It shows that we are at the forefront of the business analytics domain,’ Prof. Scheepers says.
Dr Dilal Saundage, Course Director of the Master of Business Analytics, adds that obtaining this professionalism, means both the possession of knowledge and skills as well as the possession of a code of conduct.
‘In this big data and digital environment, it is important to provide guidance to analytics professionals about ethical and professional behaviour. Thus, accreditation means our course covers both aspects very well.’
Bright future for business analytics graduates
ACS is the ICT industry’s peak body, has over 50 000 members in Australia and represents on government policy and engagement. It has unique responsibilities such as handling ICT migration applications on behalf of the Australian Government. Associate Professor Jacob Cybulski says that for international students having an ACS accredited degree thus means they’re placed competitively for ICT related jobs in Australia.
‘As this is the first accreditation available in a very new area of the work force, international students who want to have a career path in business analytics and who want to come to Australia, will find it invaluable,’ he says.
Looking into the future of this prolifically expanding field, Prof. Warren says that analytics is moving into different directions, including marketing, customer behaviour, and health and sport analytics. ‘It’s developing into a whole other number of exciting disciplines, which we look forward to explore.’
‘Every business organisation wants to gain a competitive advantage by unlocking the hidden insights in their data, and this means that graduates with business analytics skills are in high demand across the globe.’