University of Edinburgh Business School

MSc Data and Decision Analytics (Online)

An overview of the MSc Data and Decision Analytics (Online) programme structure, including details of the course information across the two years of this part-time degree.

The online Data and Decision Analytics MSc is delivered part-time with a start date in September each year. The programme takes 24 months to complete and combines academic study with practical application.

Please note that live sessions will be scheduled to take place on Mondays and Tuesdays during term time (c.20 weeks each year). These live sessions will be a maximum of 4 hours per week and scheduled 09:00–18:00 GMT.

The programme encompasses a number of compulsory and option courses and your studies will culminate with a dissertation.

In year 2, through the selection of various option courses, you can tailor your studies towards your career interests. Your MSc dissertation brings all of the year’s learning together in a piece of work unique to you. The dissertation is an in-depth study of a topic in which you are particularly interested in within the field of Data and Decision Analytics. Undertaking the dissertation requires you to develop a deep level of analysis and understanding of the theory and processes of organisations and the business environment through the completion of a piece of individual research.

Timetable for year 1 and year 2 in 2025/26

Year 1

Semester 1 (September–December)
Compulsory courses

• Data Analysis and Statistics for Business
• Programming and Data-Driven Storytelling

Semester 2 (January–May)

Compulsory courses

• Applied Decision Optimisation
• Applied Machine Learning

Year 2

Semester 1 (September–December)

Option courses

Choose 1, 2 or 3

• Data Management
• Heuristic Optimisation
• Data Analytics for Web and Social Media

Semester 2 (January–May)

Option courses

Choose 1, 2 or 3

• Understanding Planetary Health & Data
• Making science relevant to policy and decision-making
• Time Series Forecasting

Semester 2 (May–August)

Dissertation

Details of the Dissertation

The programme aims to provide students with an understanding of cutting-edge business analytics and computing tools to make data-driven decisions in a range of business areas.

The specific education aims of the programme are:

• Enable students to recognise, understand and apply the language, theory, and models of the field of business analytics.
• Foster an ability to critically analyse, synthesise and solve complex unstructured business problems related to data and decision analytics.
• Encourage an aptitude for business improvement, innovation, and entrepreneurial action.
• Instil a sense of ethical decision-making and a commitment to the long-run welfare of both organisations and the communities that they serve.

It is anticipated that by the end of the programme students will be able to:

• Understand and critically apply the concepts and methods of business analytics.
• Identify, model, and solve decision problems in different settings.
• Interpret results/solutions and identify appropriate courses of action for a given managerial situation whether a problem or an opportunity.
• Create viable solutions to decision-making problems.

Career development

It is anticipated that demand for data analytics employees will continue to grow as analytics is viewed as a key competitive resource by many companies. Our dedicated Student Development Team within the Business School will be an integral part of your student experience from day one. We are here to help you become equipped to maximise your potential in the global market.

Graduate employment

Organisations hold more information about their business environments than ever before. Increasingly, these organisations are recognising the role of data in gaining insights and out-thinking competitors. The worldwide big data analytics market was valued at US$ 37.34 billion in 2018 and is anticipated to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 12.3% to arrive at US$ 105.08 billion by 2027. This will inevitably lead to further growth of the market for employees in the area of analytics.

The MSc Data and Decision Analytics will offer students from a range of degree backgrounds the opportunity to equip themselves with an artillery of concepts, methods, and applications of data analytics, along with hands-on and practical experience in applying them. It is not just about being able to analyse and digest the data available, but to then translate this into effective decision-making.

We expect the programme to open a range of career pathways in analytics for our graduates or to allow them to progress further within their existing careers. Roles we anticipate to be among these pathways include:

• Business consultants
• Business analysts
• Data analysts
• Business intelligence and analytics consultants
• Metrics and analytics specialists
• Analytics associates
• Solution architects
• Business process analysts
• Management consulting associates
• Operational research consultants