Lucia, MSA Class of 2018Since its inception in 2007, the MSA has attained an unparalleled track record for placing graduates in the Analytics professionAre you seeking an education with a strong return on investment that will set you on the right career path? The Master of Science in Analytics (MSA) is a cost-effective program with rapid time to completion and a proven track record. Benchmark studies of starting salaries and placement rates show MSA student outcomes rival, if not surpass those of comparable programs at other leading universities. The ROI payback period is estimated to be two years on average.

Professional development and career services are an integral part of the MSA experience, including assistance with resume writing, interview and presentation skills, and professional networking. All career services are staffed and coordinated by the Institute and provided exclusively to MSA students. Dozens of employers visit the Institute each semester with the sole purpose of interviewing our students. Most job interviews are conducted on campus and arranged with the assistance of the Institute.

If becoming a data scientist is your aspiration, let your choice of where to study be a data-driven decision. The Institute was founded on a principle of transparency in providing prospective applicants with relevant data on student outcomes. We believe in letting the numbers speak for themselves. The employment report is a complete and carefully curated census of our annual placement results. It is published promptly upon graduation each year. We invite you to download the employment report and to inquire with any questions you may have about it.

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Samantha and Iqra, MSA Class of 2020

MSA EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES
Reported as of May 15, 2020 (graduation)
Total number of graduates (97% degree completion rate):
 119
Graduates seeking new employment:
 116
Candidates with one or more employment offers:
 83%
Candidates employed at graduation:
 79%
Number of employers interviewing (number interviewing on site):
 186 (36)
Median number of initial job interviews:
 11
Median net increase in earnings:
 73%
Estimated ROI payback period:
 25 months
Number of reported job offers:
 197
Job placements based in North Carolina:
 37%
Job placements based in U.S.:
 100%
Candidates reporting job offer data:
 99%

Placement Highlights

ANNUAL BASE SALARY
SIGNING BONUS
Experience Level: All 0 Years 1-2 Years 3+ Years All
Mean:
 $99,800 $95,000 $100,700 $110,900 $10,400
Maximum:
 $130,000 $115,000 $130,000 $130,000 $25,000
75th Percentile:
 $110,000 $100,000 $110,000 $115,000 $10,000
Median:
 $98,000 $95,000 $100,000 $112,000 $10,000
25th Percentile:
 $90,000 $90,000 $90,000 $107,500 $8,000
Minimum:
 $74,400 $74,400 $75,000 $85,000 $3,000
N:
 91 49 23 19 74
% Reporting:
 99% 54% 25% 21% 81%

Katie and Heqing, MSA Class of 2020

EMPLOYERS MAKING OFFERS
Aetna CVS
Aktana
Allstate
Ankura*
Asurion
BAE Systems
Bain & Company*
Bank of America
Beghou Consulting*
Cigna*
City of Charlotte, NC
Delta Airlines
Deutsche Bank
DISH Network
Duke Clinical Research Institute
Elder Research*
Elevate Credit*
Elicit Insights
EY*
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Fidelity Investments*
Fifth Third Bank*
GoDaddy*
Guidehouse*
Hanesbrands
Health Care Services Corp.		 JPMorgan Chase*
LearnPlatform
Lowe’s Companies
Marathon Petroleum
McKinsey & Company
Mercy Health
MetLife
North Carolina Joint Underwriting Association*
PenFed Credit Union*
Progressive Leasing
Putnam Investments Q2ebanking
Radiance Technologies
Red Hat*
Red Ventures
RTI International
SAS
Slalom Consulting
State Employees’ Credit Union*
T. Rowe Price
The Home Depot*
Tresata
Truist Financial (formerly BB&T)*
Varonis
Verizon*
Wake Forest Baptist Health
Wells Fargo
Bold denotes employers that succeeded in hiring one or more candidates, and (*) for employers that hired more than one candidate. The list does not include agencies of the federal government making conditional offers of employment.

Notes: Data with respect to salaries and bonuses are self-reported by graduates (without anonymity) and whenever possible verified by employers in cases where placement is arranged by the Institute (i.e., most candidates). One graduate was on leave and returned to public service. All other job placements are full-time paid positions.

Data are made public here to guide prospective students and employers. Annual base salary figures do not include signing bonuses, relocation allowances or other forms of one-time compensation guaranteed upon signing. Conditional job offers (i.e., those requiring security clearance prior to employment) or other public sector employment are not included in salary data. As a STEM-qualified degree, international MSA graduates are eligible for Optional Practical Training (OPT). Commencement is typically held on the first Saturday in May.

DISCLAIMER: The Institute has a proven track record for placing graduates in the analytics profession, but it does not under any circumstance offer a guarantee of employment upon completion of the MSA degree.

Statement on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

Types of Positions Filled

Student Placement Visualization Tool

Below each circle represents a graduate by class year. Connected circles represent a group of graduates with a common demographic property. Changing the demographic to visualize in the pull-down menu will rearrange the circles in the graph to match the demographic distributions. Hold and drag circles to change their positions. Use the calendar bar to select a particular class year or a span across multiple years.

Variable Description
Work Experience
Having 3 or more years of professional work experience.
Degree Level
Bachelor; Advanced (e.g., MS, MBA, PhD)
NC Residency
Legal residency in North Carolina prior to entry.
Institute Placed
Institute directly involved in the student’s job placement.
Job Interviews
The number of first-round job interviews with employers.
Job Offers
The number of job offers received.
Employed at Graduation
Students accepting a job offer prior to graduation date.
Position Type
Major types of job positions graduates accept for employment.
Industry
Major industry segments in which graduates are employed.
Region
Geographic distribution of employment by U.S. Census region.
Starting Salary
Annual base starting salary (not including signing bonus).
Signing Bonus
One-time compensation for signing, including relocation packages.
Inflation-Adj. Salary
Starting salary adjusted for inflation (2018 dollars).

Data Scientist Job Tracker

The following chart provides real-time data on the number of job postings in the U.S. for entry-level data scientists with salaries of $80,000 or higher posted in the past 30-days. While “data scientist” job openings are only a subset of a larger category of positions for which our students typically qualify (download the MSA Employment Report for more details), the data may provide a good barometer of the overall employment conditions for analytics professionals. It’s to be expected the trend in job postings will have seasonality.

Many articles written about the abundance of high-paying jobs for data scientists typically overestimate the number of openings by reporting all posted open positions. By restricting search queries to entry-level positions, recently posted (within 30-days), and with an expected salary level above $80,000 (M.S. or Ph.D. required), the data here provide a more accurate estimate of the employment market facing new graduates from masters programs. Our research shows that a naive query (without restrictions) will overestimate the number of open positions by a factor of ten. (See more data highlighting the employment market for data scientists.)

Annual Employment Report

Employment reports for each graduating class provide additional information about hiring employers and types of positions filled.

Dr. Villanes and Sam, MSA Class of 2020