In the Spotlight 2

Decision Time:

New Graduate Certificate Program Teaches Valuable Skills

If you’ve been trying to decide on a graduate program that will give you and your organization an upper hand in today’s competitive marketplace, Webster’s new graduate certificate in Decision Support Systems could be the right choice.The program’s main objective is to teach professionals how to efficiently and effectively cull through vast amounts of their company’s data to unearth trends, opportunities and problems that will better the bottom line.

“The program is designed to help people make better decisions based on the data they already have,” explains Al Cawns, chair of the School of Business & Technology’s Math & Computer Science Department. “Their organization’s data base becomes a strategic asset instead of just another cost.”

Taught by computer professionals throughout Webster’s international campus network, the program is offered exclusively online to accommodate the work and travel schedules of working adults. The 18-credit-hour program is made up of six, nine-week courses. Students who have earned a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited four-year college or university are eligible to apply for admission. “You don’t have to be a techie with a pocket protector to succeed in this program, but techies are welcome, too,” says Cawns. “It’s for anyone who wants to increase their value within an organization.”

Courses on data mining and data warehousing will help students do just that.

“Every organization has accumulated large amounts of data about customers, suppliers, products, divisions, sales offices and warehouses,” Cawns explains. “Inside of all of this data, there are relationships that may not be readily seen because of the sheer quantity of the information—it’s the old forest and trees analogy. If we could understand at least some of these relationships, we might be able to gain a competitive edge, or find new uses or markets for our products.”

For all of the emphasis on bits and bytes, Cawns says the main take-away of the program is decidedly non-tech. “It isn’t magic or a silver bullet that guarantees success,” he says. “In the end, people will make the final decisions. The tools just help them gain a better understanding of the relationships and help them become better decision-makers.”

For more information about the graduate certificate in Decision Support Systems, click here or call 1-800-75-ENROLL.