Enrolled Program: Master of Science in Business Analytics (MSBA)
Current Role: Business Intelligence Developer, The Hartford Financial Services Group
Hoping for career advancement in her current job, Emily Bigwood began the University of Hartford’s Master of Science in Business Analytics (MSBA) program in the summer of 2020. By joining this program, she intended to develop her skill sets and accelerate her career. Just a few weeks into the program, Emily got exciting news about her job promotion.
Bigwood states that she owes her recent promotion to Barney School of Business and adds that, “I was recently hired into my current role after graduating from The Hartford’s Early Career Leadership Development Program, a rotational program for young professionals. Pursuing a master’s degree in UHart’s MSBA program helped position me to obtain the job I was most excited about.” Currently, she is working as a business intelligence developer at The Hartford Financial Services Group, where she helps business partners make actionable decisions by providing them with tools like Tableau dashboards that help them understand the story behind the data.
Earlier, Bigwood completed her bachelor’s degree at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, Massachusetts, where she majored in the mathematical sciences. With an urge to make math approachable to everyone, she volunteers as a math tutor for fourth graders. She is a passionate individual who has also participated in the Girls in Tech Boston mentorship program. On her decision to join UHart and the Barney School of Business, she says, “I had heard great things about the program from friends and coworkers in the Hartford area. What especially appealed to me about the MSBA program was the focus on not only learning technical skills but applying them to solve problems.” She adds, “I also was excited about the idea of an interactive capstone where I would have the opportunity to work on a project for a company in the area. My favorite thing about the program so far has been being able to network with other professionals.” Bigwood admits that managing her work and studies has been challenging, but being organized and planning ahead of time has helped her to balance both. Also, professors who were really accessible for questions have helped her with the program.
After the program, she hopes to expand her current business intelligence developer role to encompass more data science projects. She believes that this program has helped her realize her love for coding, so she wants to welcome this opportunity to build on her skill set. Summing up her experience so far at UHart, Bigwood says, “I would recommend Barney’s MSBA program to anyone who enjoys problem-solving and is interested in taking the next step in their career! A data-driven culture is becoming an integral part of many organizations, and the quantitative, analytical, and visualization skills taught in the MSBA program are invaluable.”
Emily Bigwood MSBA'22, Business Intelligence Developer, The HartfordI would recommend Barney’s MSBA program to anyone who enjoys problem-solving and is interested in taking the next step in their career! A data-driven culture is becoming an integral part of many organizations, and the quantitative, analytical, and visualization skills taught in the MSBA program are invaluable.