Master in Business Analytics and Big Data at SPbU

The interest to the experts in big data is on the rise, so is the interest to the sizes of data we have collected. By 2003, the world had collected five exabytes of data (1 EiB = 1 bln GB), as the IBS Group puts it. By 2008, it increased up to 0.18 zebibytes (1 ZiB = 1.024 EiB). In May 2015, the global data exceeded the level of 6.5 ZiB and by 2020 the global data is predicted to reach the point of 40–44 ZiB. The educational programme in Master of Business Analytics and Big Data is designed to educate and prepare students who are ready to work with big data and make decisions.

What is big data? Why does the University open the programme? What can you learn by pursing the programme? To answer these questions, we talked with the directors of the technological companies that use big data, SPbU’s graduates, and members of the councils of the programme — Boris Kaptelov, an operations director of the Youla.ru of the Mail.ru Group, Aleksandr Kulikov, Director Deputy of Segmento that is a platform for Internet-advertising targeting, and Elena Samuilova, a co-founder of Mechanica AI, a company that creates AI- and machine-based solutions for optimization of industrial processes.

Big data is much spoken and written about. Yet there is not a single approach to what the big data is and when data become “big”. What data do you work with?

Aleksandr Kulikov, Director Deputy of Segmento

Big data has several parameters: volume, diversity, and speed. Let us take as an example the data we work with. The system has over 400 mln profiles of those who use the Russian Internet. Each time you visit a page, click, or put an advertisement are “quanta” of data. For example, during just one day we collect over 4.5 bln “quanta” in the Russian segment of the Internet, while during a month the number can increase up to 202.8 bln. What we have to do is analyse this colossal amount of data in milliseconds. While you open a site (it takes about 100 milliseconds), we have to analyse the user and decide whether you will need an advertisement.

What experts do you need to work with big data?

Elena Samuilova, a co-founder of Mechanica AI:

If analytics is to benefit business, you should have, apart from the technical expertise, a deep understanding of the specific field and an ability to see what business stands behind the data. On the labour market, there is a demand for both highly qualified experts in the data science and managers who have basic knowledge in engineering. They pursue different career paths: if we talk about the experts, we mean developing computer-assisted instruction models and professional and personal development as data scientists. When it comes to management, it is primarily about working as an advisor, business analyst, manager of data science projects, or a specialist in the department of strategic management. You can continue your career in management or in cross-functional teams.

Is the programme intended to prepare such specialists?

Boris Kaptelov, an operations director of the Youla.ru of the Mail.ru Group:

We are looking for students with a real flair for engineering, which they will develop into skills that can be used in communication, strategic planning, and management.

Aleksandr Kulikov, Director Deputy of Segmento:

Students will also gain practical problem-solving skills and in depth understating of what influences business. Common roles for graduates include those in project management as graduates are well equipped with the skills to analyze and form hypotheses and are goal-oriented. Besides, MiBA is a business school, which means that graduates will gain practical skills in working in teams, building an effective team, and manage the teams.

What are the advantages of the MiBA over on-line or short-term courses?

Elena Samuilova, a co-founder of Mechanica AI:

They may seem as complementary. The courses aim to develop specific skills, for example, to work with new equipment and tools. Data analysis is dynamically developing, skills become outdated and obsolete, new and new products are emerging on the market. What I am talking about is that you should learn throughout your professional life rather than just have a refresher training every five years. Short-term programmes are a perfect solution here.

The university education provides a holistic approach. You should set tasks, interpret and use the results rather than just know how to programme in Python or R, work with the Tableau, or know the difference between gradient boosting and neural network. You need therefore management skills and an in-depth understanding of how business works. This is what the programme focuses on.

Boris Kaptelov, an operations director of the Youla.ru of the Mail.ru Group:

Among the key advantages of the off-line education is your ability to work in a team. Bear in mind that most graduates will have to work in teams. The learning process at the SPbU’s business school is designed in such a way as to enable students to work in teams from their early days at the University. So you know how to communicate and interact with people from the very beginning. It is a skill that is very much sought after by the employers.

As you communicate and collaborate with other people, you are more likely to complete your studies. The statistics of the on-line education is far from being high in terms of how many people complete their on-line two-year courses.

The duration of the programme is two years and it focuses on a wide range of aspects. You have to gain various basic skills, programming-related skills, skills in finance and economics as lack of them won’t let you move from gaining audience to earning money. You should also gain competences in project management as you must be ready to work in teams and have a clear view of the business strategy to avoid the situations when performing an analysis is just for the analysis’s sake. These are just a few of the pieces of the big jigsaw puzzle that we should make during two years.

What is the role of the council in opening the MiBA?

Boris Kaptelov, an operations director of the Youla.ru of the Mail.ru Group:

The MiBA is based on the real business needs, and graduates are highly sought after by the employers in the sphere. We, as members of the council, will make education as close to business as possible. If you want to build your education trajectory, chances are small that the quality remains as high.

Elena Samuilova, a co-founder of Mechanica AI:

Big data is developing at an increasingly rapid pace. When I was studying at the Graduate School of Management at SPbU, little, if any, was known about artificial intelligence, not to mention big data. Just a few years have brought up a whole new area in business. Education should be quick to respond to such changes. I would be happy if I can use my practical experience and knowledge to consider what market needs should be incorporated into education and how to teach students necessary skills. Being a member of the council is a good way to look at your professional experience from a different perspective.