text: W. P. Carey School offers new degrees for evolving business world
  Thousands of students are descending on the Arizona State University campuses for the new school year. Those coming to the highly-ranked W. P. Carey School of Business will have a few brand-new degree options available to them. The three degrees are designed to address the needs of a rapidly changing business world.
  “We always try to evaluate what businesses and recruiters are telling us they want in the workplace,” says Amy Hillman, dean of the W. P. Carey School of Business. “They say they’re looking for talented individuals to analyze the mountains of ‘big data’ now coming in from social media and other technology. They’re also looking for great hires in HR, and we’re rounding out the new offerings with a degree in sports and media studies, which should be popular with students.”
  The new graduate-level program starting this fall is the Master of Science in Business Analytics. The “big data” program is a joint effort between the school’s Information Systems and Supply Chain Management departments, both ranked top 20 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. The nine-month program was created largely for those who recently graduated from college, but who want to position themselves for faster advancement in the booming information field.
  “The business-analytics program is an opportunity to jumpstart your career in using big data and computer models to solve complex business problems and really add value to your company,” says Michael Goul, professor and chair of the school’s Information Systems Department. “Only about a dozen master’s programs like this exist in the United States. It’s estimated 4.4 million data analysts will be needed worldwide by 2015, so it’s a big area of career growth.”
  At the undergraduate level, the W. P. Carey School is introducing a Bachelor of Arts in Business with a human resources concentration and one with a sports and media studies concentration:
  • The HR degree focuses on learning how to help an organization of any size manage its personnel and make informed decisions about employees. This includes learning about staffing and employment law, as well as developing critical thinking and writing skills for effective corporate communication.
  • The sports and media studies degree covers fan loyalty, strategically leveraging communication channels and increasing revenue. Classes include sports administration, sports relationship management and sports media. The concentration courses for this degree are offered through ASU’s prestigious Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
  Both of the new undergraduate programs are offered at ASU’s Polytechnic campus in Mesa. That’s also where the school is offering bachelor’s degrees with a focus on agribusiness, communication, food industry management, management and technology.
  The W. P. Carey School of Business is currently ranked among the top 30 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report for both undergraduate and graduate business programs. For more information on the school’s programs, go to www.wpcarey.asu.edu.