Business course professors can supplement coursework with projects whereby students define and solve problems using analytic tools and then develop business-focused presentations on their results.

“By 2018, the McKinsey Institute estimates that the United States alone could face a shortage of 1.5 million business people — not data analysts — who know how to analyse Big Data to make better decisions,” said Stuart Wells, executive vice president and chief technology and products officer at FICO. “Universities must address this critical need as they prepare the leaders of the future. Our program seeks to give students the chance not only to perform analysis, but also to translate their findings into the kind of clear, action-oriented presentations that business leaders need.”

FICO has piloted this program with about 150 students, with overwhelmingly positive results. At FICO World 2016 in April, two students from Georgetown University shared their work using FICO software to analyse transaction data from three campus businesses, get a better handle on their customers’ buying patterns, and bundle and promote products to grow revenue.

Students participating in the program can work individually or as part of a cross-functional team, and can share knowledge, ask questions, and interact with FICO professionals in a secure, university-specific online community. Students receive comprehensive data sets based on actual business scenarios, detailed workbooks, tutorial videos and interactions with FICO professionals. They access FICO’s analytic tools - the same tools used by the world’s top businesses - via the FICO® Analytic Cloud.

The FICO Academic Engagement Program is complimentary for a select number of universities worldwide each semester.