With surging demand for data and business analysis skills, you may be wondering if business analytics is a good choice for your major? Is it easy enough and does it produce good job outcomes and an interesting career?
Yes, if you have an analytical and curious mind, business analytics is an excellent choice for a major. You’ll earn a versatile degree that will make you immediately employable. Graduates also gain an inside track on an interesting area of business that will only keep growing.
With the increasing importance of data analysis, plenty of job opportunities are available for graduates with strong analytical skills. Business analytics majors can pursue careers as data analysts, business analysts, data scientists, business intelligence analysts, managers, and more.
Let’s explore the challenges and opportunities from majoring in business analytics.
Business Analysis Skills Are In Demand
If you’re interested in a career in this field, plenty of job opportunities are available. And high demand is expected to continue in the future.
With the explosion of big data, companies are seeking professionals with strong data analysis and business acumen skills. They need analysts to help make data-driven decisions and gain a competitive edge. Careers in business analytics, such as data scientist, data analyst, business analyst, and business intelligence analyst, have bright prospects in terms of salaries and stable employment.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of operations research analysts, a related occupation to business analytics, is projected to grow 23 percent from 2021 to 2031. That’s much faster than the average for all occupations. On the job site Indeed, I found 28,011 job postings for Business Analyst at the time of publishing.
Business Analysts Are Paid Well by Most Standards
In the United States, business analysts earn an estimated total pay of $108,225 per year. The median base salary of $87,214 per year is topped up with additional pay of $21,011 in form of bonuses, commissions, etc. These statistics are derived from Glassdoor user data.
A Business Analytics Major Is Not That Hard
If you’re meant to work as a business analyst or in a similar career, you should find earning the major more than achievable. It is no harder than earning a degree in other business, statistics or information technology fields.
Earning a degree in business analytics can be challenging for some people due to the technical nature of the coursework. You should be comfortable working with data, and have strong math and analytical skills. Also, be prepared to tackle advanced coursework in areas such as machine learning, predictive analytics, and data visualization.
But you should also be aware that most business analytics graduates start by enrolling in a general business, science or information technology program. They later specialize in business analytics through their coursework and electives.
Choosing this major won’t make your bachelor degree, or master’s, much harder than it would have been anyway. So, don’t be put off by the difficulty level. If you’re a solid student and suited to the field, you should be able to comfortably pass business analyst courses.