Goa Institute of Management: Fostering Data Science Through Post Graduate Program in Big Data Analytics

Today, we live in an age where data is anointed as the new fuel. Every day 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are created, and 90% of the data in the world today has been generated in the last two years. Every industry which is a part of digital signage relies on data and valuable insights derived from it. This affinity to power strategic decisions with data-driven information has given the rise of big data analytics.

With companies aiming to boost their market share, profitability, and procedural efficiency, the demand for big data analysts and managers is continually increasing. Though we have a vast number of institutions that offer skilling from a technical view, there is a deficiency in ones that help with imparting managerial knowledge and training. Ranked 2^nd among Top 10 Post Graduate Programs in India by Analytics Insight, Goa Institute of Management (GIM) has been consistent in delivering leaders of tomorrow who can build a sustainable business by incorporating Big Data Analytics (BDA) in its new course without losing the management orientation.

Why Goa Institute of Management?

Through its PGD in Management with Specialization in Big Data Analytics, GIM aims to create future-ready, data-fluent managers, who will be fully equipped to manage the new paradigm of data-driven decision-making. The learning activities on this program offer the students a critical understanding of management's distinct areas with the application of big data analytics tools and techniques to solve business problems. Students will have exposure to statistical theory, data management including big data, and business intelligence systems including machine learning, artificial intelligence and deep learning and related tools, techniques and algorithms.

The major emphasis will be on providing hands-on training to students using all major software tools and working on actual industry projects. At the end of the program, the students will be fully capable of comprehending today's data-driven business situations and harnessing appropriate tools and techniques of BDA to get enhanced insights into/around the real-world problems sensed by them so as to devise optimum solutions. The program is structured to have a 40:60 mix of business knowledge and BDA related experience. GIM's state-of-the-art Data Science Laboratory is equipped with all software and cloud service to enable students to have hands-on training on actual datasets. The lab sessions has been designed in conjunction with SAS, the global leaders in data analytics, whose data mining and business intelligence platform is widely used in academia and industry.

The PGD program is tailored for current professionals in the data industry who wish to extend their knowledge and expertise. Its globally benchmarked curriculum has been validated by a board of studies comprising eminent practitioners from India and abroad. Also, it is underpinned by GIM's versatile research projects and strong industry links. Further, the faculty team at GIM is research-active and cover a wide range of specialisms within the subject area. The BDA PGDM programme also offers a unique five-month long structured industry internship to its students. The students spend their summer break and the entire Term 4 in various organisations doing real-life analytics projects.

As the students return to the campus for their fifth and sixth term, they can select electives that shall help them in their jobs. Most electives are taught jointly by the practitioners and in-house faculty, the former contributing the use case illustrations and the latter deepening the domain depth.

Apart from that, the 2018-2020 batch students have received 100% placements via summer internship and final placements. The average placement salary at GIM for PGD-BDA is INR 12,25,000 per year and the average stipend (summer internship) is INR 37,500 per month.

Today, GIM is a well-known name in data science education, for its inclusive classroom culture, agile big data analytics programs, strong placement support and influential alumni community. For its exemplary efforts and contribution to data analytics education and upskilling, GIM has been consistently ranked top 15 among private B schools by the likes of 'Dalal Street', 'Business Today', 'India Today', 'MBA Universe', 'Times B-school survey' and more.

Besides the scholastic proficiency, the GIM also has a diaspora of sports and cultural activities planned and conducted by the students. The range of activities is an amazing mosaic of film making, choir, orchestra, movie club, theatre, quizzing, celebration of festivals and 'learning with fun' for village children from the neighborhood. Even veteran and emerging leaders, both national and international visit GIM and share their insights with students and provide invaluable knowledge and motivation.