First Experts in Big Data Analytics Graduated from Arcada

The first students from the Master's Degree Programme in Big Data Analytics are now ready for working life. The one-year programme is offered in close collaboration with industry and focuses on solving real-life problems and challenges.



Arcada has offered specialisation studies in Big Data Analytics for two years, and last autumn the first students in the same Master's degree programme began their studies. This is the first degree programme of its kind in Finland and there is a huge demand for experts in this field.



- I wanted a degree that in addition to theoretical knowledge, also gave me the opportunity to develop my practical skills and focused on solving existing challenges, says Salvatore Della Vecchia, who is newly graduated from the programme.



He works at the company 720 Degrees, which offers analytics for monitoring indoor air quality. Della Vecchia realised early on the opportunities BDA could give his company.



- By gaining the latest knowledge, it helps both my own career development and my employer. I am particularly happy with the link between research and education offered at Arcada and how the latest competencies have been incorporated into the courses, says Della Vecchia.

The needs of the companies in focus

One of the main strengths of the Master's degree programme is the connection between teaching, research and working life.



- The collaboration between higher education and companies can be an important and efficient solution for implementing complex things, says Degree Programme Director Magnus Westerlund.



Arcada's goal has been to help students with service development answering real needs. It gives value to the companies on several levels, as the students have been able to both create completely new services and rework current ones to reduce costs.



- The entire IT-industry is moving towards solving existing problems and working with real data. Previously, the most important thing was understanding the data. Now we focus on what we can create with the data, says Westerlund.

Hot topic of the future

The practical approach is important in all programmes at Arcada and students are able to complete all Master's degree programmes alongside work.

- The need to learn does not end because you start working. According to me, working life consists of lifelong learning. The employer has an important role in supporting its employees in this, says Kurt-Eerik Ståhlberg, who works at ReadPeak, a start-up company that focuses on digital content marketing.

Ståhlberg, together with another colleague from the company, has just completed the Master's degree programme after first doing the specialisation studies in BDA.

- Big Data Analytics is extremely trendy and the demand for knowledge is huge. The studies gave me a broad knowledge within the field, but at the same time, I had the opportunity to specialise in what was relevant for me and my company, says Ståhlberg.



The application to our popular specialisation studies in Big Data Analytics is open until 23.8.2019. Read more here! More information about the Master's degree programme in Big Data Analytics can be found here.