The Evariant Networking Event, conducted on 12th October, 2015, was a great way to network with analytics professionals and learn about today’s industry analytics. Evariant helps leading hospital networks make sense of big data, giving marketers and physician relationship teams actionable insights to drive volume and engagement. The experts from Evariant who presented and explained about big data analytics also included 2 Alumnis from MSBAPM Neeraj Nagendra and Sumit Jain. Other professionals working at Evariant were Sudha, Neil, and Basant.

The professionals from Evariant in the networking event revealed about the company’s background and its culture. There are more than 170 employees and the company is growing rapidly. Although the company has a very serious approach when it comes to their work, and they are dedicated to strive for best results for their clients, but at the same time, everyone have their part of fun in the company and enjoys their work with enormous extra-curricular activities and flexibility.

Professionals from Evariant explained about the best practices and different types of Propensity Models they use for better results and to reduce the cost of their clients. Neil, the Digital Media Expert expressed how propensity modeling is used in Marketing Analytics, how data is collected and displayed and how media is placed through different vendors and outlets on the internet.

    

    

 

   

 

    

SAS skills are more in demand than ever before. SAS is a software suite developed for advanced analytics, multivariate analyses, business intelligence, data management, and predictive analytics. To handle the increasing reams of data that technology throws out with lightning speed you need a SAS specialist or two. Thanks to our very own SAS specialists in the MSBAPM program, Piyush Rohella and Dilip Naidu, who volunteered to share their knowledge and provide hands-on training in the software to students of MSBAPM.

The ‘Introduction to SAS’ workshop was conducted as two one and half hour sessions each. The workshop was conceptualized to provide hands-on to students on the SAS software and train them on basic commands of the Base SAS programming.  Agenda for session-1 was designed to introduce the following topics to students, namely, introduction to user interface of SAS interface; the import and export functions explaining delimiters, fixed widths, etc; exploratory procedures that include proc and data steps; merge and append procedures. The agenda for Session-2 was designed to cover procedures like proc means, proc tabulate, proc freq; univariate and multivariate analysis; and some statistical tests.

Students showed immense interest in the workshop. There was an overwhelming number of attendees for the first session, more than 70 enthusiastic students. We also had one student from the FRM department attending the workshop. The presenters shared data sets and code files with the students prior to the session. They conducted the workshop by covering syntax and commands to import, create and export data files, manipulate date, and label and format files. Dilip and Piyush conducted the presentation projecting the codes they were writing in SAS and students followed his lead. The session was a great start for everyone new to the software. Session-2 was a following up on session-1, lot of the students that attended session-1 attended the second session of the workshop. In the session-2, Piyush presented on performing data exploration and manipulation techniques using Base SAS. He taught the class syntax for exploring mean, median, quantiles of variables using proc means command, appending and merging procedures data sets and variables, writing SQL codes in SAS, and a few more SAS procedures. Dilip then taugh the class procedures to perform univariate and multivariate analysis, and touched upon the significance of different statistical tests and how they are performed on SAS.

Students thought it to be a great session and very informational. We conducted a survey to get opinions of attendees on how they would rate the workshop, how well it was organized, how much information they gained from the session, clarity and brevity of the presenter and what they would like to learn in a future session of the workshop. The responses we received were greatly positive. However, students responded that the workshop was somewhat short. We agree that workshops like these have to be conducted over a longer period and we will plan for it in the future. We encourage all the students of MSBAPM to actively engage and participate in sessions like these to expand their knowledge about subjects closely related to Big Data and Analytics.

 

By Tanya Wang  – September 27th

The Chinese Mid-Autumn festival. The 2015 Fall BAPM Chinese students got together and celebrated their first month survival into the new environment! In China, the festival is the time for families’ reunion, wishing the next year’s happiness, and watching the full moon. However, since these students are studying abroad, everyone was so excited to get to know other classmates through the dinner party and they became each other’s’ new family members!

Because of celebrating the traditional festival, they soon get to know each other and look forward to spending next two years together on their life journey!

By Heather McLarney and Matt Ruggeri – 08/31/2015

This workshop introduced basic US etiquette, culture, and soft skills using PowerPoint slides, real life examples, videos clips, student participation, and interactive exercises. During this workshop Heather touched upon US working culture, everyday communication, and dress code and work etiquettes. This workshop benefitted a lot of students to a great extent.

by Shardul Bajpai – 09/23/2015

Knowledge of Statistics is one of the corner stones in the field of data science. Though the use of data science varies by industries, the basic application of statistics remains the same. This workshop touched upon some basic concepts of statistics like Probability Distribution and Hypothesis testing.

Shardul began the workshop with an introduction to statistics defining the terms Descriptive and Inferential Statistics. He then explained the concepts of Random Experiment, Random Variable, Expected Value and Estimator. After which he covered in detail with real life examples, the concepts of normal distribution, central limit theorem, hypothesis testing, significance test and t test, and confidence intervals. The workshop was scheduled for a duration of 1.5 hours and was attended by 35 students.

Students thought it to be a great session and very informational. Though this workshop benefited students with little or no knowledge of statistics, it was also a refresher for those with sound statistical background.

By MSBAPM Career Advisor: Katherine Duncan

By now you have probably heard that our School of Business Career Fair is coming up on October 23rd in Hartford. It will be a great opportunity for you to learn about companies and industries you are interested in, and to practice networking. This newsletter article will help you prepare for the career fair BEFORE you attend. Next month’s article will focus on what to do DURING the fair, and in the following month it will describe how to follow up AFTER the career fair.

Here are some things to do before the Career Fair. Make sure you have your polished resume in a folder or portfolio so it doesn’t get bent or folded. You may also want to have business cards made so that you can hand out your contact details quickly, but this is optional. You will want to be dressed appropriately in business attire to make a strong first impression. Make sure to leave any backpacks or duffel bags at home, but a nice briefcase or purse is fine.

A very important part of preparing for the Career Fair is to do your research and know which companies will be attending. More importantly, which do you want to speak to or learn more about? There might not be ample time for you to meet with every single company that interests you, so have a list of “A” and “B” companies to prioritize. Have your pitch perfected (20 to 30 seconds) so that as you meet those new company reps you’ll be able to tell them more about you! Take it one step further by preparing questions for those company reps, you’ll come across as thoughtful and proactive! A good rule of thumb is to avoid any questions that you could easily have found the answers to by doing your own research.

If you are someone who might get nervous in this setting then practice, practice, practice!

This info session started with Jitender Thakur covering some basic definitions of terms like Big Data, Business Intelligence (BI), Analytics, Data Mining, BI versus Data Science,etc. And then the class took a quick look into evolution of data analytics over the last 5-7 years to understand its significance in the 21^st century.

A high level overview on Data Analytics Lifecycle, various technologies and tools presently used in the field of Data Science was provided. A few examples on Analytics were discussed to showcase the wide range of application of Analytics in Business, Sports, Education, Social Social Networks, Healthcare, Elections, and Governments.

Next, the class went on to understand the inter-disciplinary nature of Data Analytics, getting familiar with Big Data Ecosystems and the role played by a Data Scientist. A brief sneak peek into different mathematical methods employed in data mining was given.  Lastly, Jitender talked about the different skill requirements for aspiring data science professionals, and some recommendations on using online resources on acquiring these required skills.

A big warm welcome to the new students who joined MSBAMP in Fall 2015! The international orientation was conducted from 24th August – 28th August. The orientation had informational sessions from International Advisors, Career Advisor, Technology Team, Program Director and exciting events like Icebreakers Games and Scavenger Hunt. We are excited to share a few impressions of the Fall Orientaion 2015!

    

   

   

   

By MSBAPM Career Advisor: Katherine Duncan

Internships are one of the best ways to get your foot in the door and real-world experience! Take advantage of that! Whether you’re making copies, shadowing an employee, or getting to do your own work remember that this is your first step into the workplace so take it seriously.

Be the first in and last out. Although you may not be getting paid you should still show that you want to be there. Trust me, this won’t go unnoticed. You’ll be exposed to more, learn more, and be seen as a reliable member of the team.

 

Exceed expectations. Go the extra mile! It’s the little things that matter just as much as big ones so proof-read, double check for spelling and grammar, make sure never to cut corners!

 

Take initiative. Your boss may be busy with projects and deadlines so if you’re not getting enough direction to keep you busy then think of ways you can be useful. Even if it’s a small task it can show a lot about your work-ethic. Volunteer when possible to take on more responsibility.

 

Follow instructions to the letter. It might sound simple but attention to detail is important. No matter how small the task it shows that you’re up for the challenge!

 

Take a genuine interest in the job. Even if you don’t think that the internship will turn into a fulltime job you should still get invested in the work you do. Get the most out of your experience so you can take valuable skills with you!

 

Ask for feedback to improve. I’m sure you’re doing a great job, but you don’t know what you don’t know! You’re just getting started in your career so ask for ways that you can keep improving! Make sure not to inundate your boss with requests for feedback, but once in a while or right after a project is best! Your peers may have feedback for you as well that can be helpful.

 

Network with your coworkers. Start to cultivate connections now to help you in the future. Get to know those around you so that even if you don’t get a fulltime role perhaps they can offer guidance as you continue your search.

When your internship is coming toanend, schedule a meeting with your manager in order to reflect on your work. This is also a time to ask about company opportunities which shows interest and initiative. If there are no possibilities to turn your internship into a fulltime job then at least ask for a letter of recommendation. (Which is equally as valuable to help you in your future job search!)

“One important key to success is self-confidence. An important key to self-confidence is preparation.” –Arthur Ashe

The career workshop held at UConn School of Business on June 2, 2015 and June 3, 2015 was about getting the students prepared for jobs and the real world job market. The workshop was led by Katherine Duncan who is the Career Advisor at UConn School of Business. This insightful workshop was about how to get ourselves prepared for the job market and job scenario in 2015. Katherine explained how one should focus on the target jobs and target profiles. She explained while searching jobs it is very important to stay organized and create an excel sheet of the list of jobs you have applied to and what is working, what is progressing and what is not and why! To measure your performance while searching the jobs, it is very important that you keep a track on it.

The workshop was about how to build your resume appealing to the interviewers, how to practice interviewing questions, be it a telephonic interview, in person interview or a Skype interview, how to practice behavioral questions and technical questions to maximize your chances to get a job. For eg she mentioned that one should always be prepared with the accomplishments they have made in career life, as that is one frequent questions that comes across in different ways. Also, it is not just about getting prepared, but also following-up. It is very crucial to network and follow-up with people in the job market so that it gets your results faster. She talked about how SEO and job search engines helps you to search for the right job roles. Wordle.net is an example of a website where it is easier to get the right kind of job listing with the keywords. But at the same time, staying motivated, organized and prepared for the opportunities is the key. Also, if you have missed the workshop, you can find the details of the workshop on the community page.

In the future workshops Katherine is going to talk about how to build an impressive cover-letter, how to develop and use soft-skills at the time of interview, how to practice interviews, the job search engines, and the presentation skills. She also plans to talk to the students one-on-one and help them improve on these skills. The students believed that it was very helpful and gave them a better idea of how to proceed further. All the students were very keen to attend the future workshops on soft-skills, resume, interviews and behavioral questions. Some of them expressed that they haven’t really started working towards getting a job and these future workshops would be very helpful for them and they want to learn more about it. Overall, it was an excellent start for getting the students prepared for opportunities and all the students appreciated the workshop.