Big Data Analytics Master's Degrees: 20 Top Programs

Degree: Master of Business Administration

School: The MIT Sloan School of Management

Description: Curriculum and degree requirements encourage choice and experimentation. After a shared first-semester "core," students design a personalized course of study. Students receive either an MBA degree or, with the completion of a thesis, a Master of Science in Management. Specialized tracks are offered in Finance, Entrepreneurship & Innovation, Enterprise Management and Sustainability.

Sloan is the home of the MIT Center for Digital Business, which pursues research on the digital economy. The center works with well-known MIT researchers, such as Professors Erik Brynjolfsson, Glen Urban, Andy McAfee and Michael Cusumano, and draws on MIT Sloan students to drive research projects.

Prerequisites: Proven academic excellence and achievement as reflected in test scores, academic records and personal recommendations. Work experience is not required, but those who have it "generally get more out of the program," according to admission guidelines. College graduates from all areas of concentration are accepted, but applicants may be required to take courses in microeconomics, calculus or financial accounting before starting MBA studies.

Full-time program: 2 years.

Part-time options: Yes. MIT Executive MBA (20 months part-time).

Distance learning options: No

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Research: Big Data, Smart Data

Research: 2012 Big Data and Analytics Staffing Survey