The groundbreaking Master of Science in Business Analytics program at York’s Schulich School of Business has just been furnished with a comprehensive package of the world’s leading data analysis software thanks to SAS Canada.
The leader in business analytics software and services, SAS Canada has donated 500 teaching licences for three years’ use of SAS Education Analytic Suite, an integrated bundle of 20 software programs. The software will be used by faculty and students in 
Schulich’s one-year Master of Science in Business Analytics program, which launched in September 2012.
Murat Kristal
The software allows users to efficiently consolidate data from disparate sources and analyze it for use in data-driven decision-making, including statistical analysis, forecasting, econometrics, optimization, scheduling and simulation, quality improvement and seamless data integration.
There are four students enrolled in the one-year program, one of the first of its kind in the world. A larger cohort of students is set to begin the master’s program in the fall. All of the students have already been hired prior to graduating this spring, including two students who will join SAS Canada.
“We’re pleased that our faculty and graduate students will have unlimited complimentary use of this state-of-the-art analytics software, along with technical training and support, thanks to this generous gift by SAS Canada,” says Deszö J. Horváth, dean of the Schulich School of Business.
Murat Kristal, professor of Operations Management & Information Systems and director of Schulich’s new Master of Science in Business Analytics program, says the donated software will help students capture larger data sets and write their own code. “SAS Analytics is a tremendous learning tool for our students. It is one of the best statistical software programs in the industry. Anything you think of as being done by analytics and big data, this is the software program that does it.”
Proficiency in SAS Analytics will also give Schulich graduates an advantage in the job market since the software suite is considered the industry standard in data analytics, says Kristal.
“SAS Canada is committed to leading the way for integrating technology and education,” says Carl Farrell, president of SAS Canada and executive vice-president of SAS Americas. “We are happy to provide the faculty and students of Schulich’s Master of Science in Business Analytics program with unlimited exposure to the sophisticated tools they will be using as future analytic professionals. Schulich MSc BA graduates will hit the ground running when they re-enter the workforce.”
SAS is the largest independent vendor in the business intelligence market. Through innovative solutions delivered within an integrated framework, SAS helps customers at more than 60,000 sites improve performance and deliver value by making better decisions faster.