Montclair State University Online M.S. in Business Analytics and Artificial Intelligence

S. in Business Analytics and Artificial Intelligence is a business degree with an AI label, and it asks for a 3-5 day domestic trip. You can finish online in as few as 21 months.

The data shows only 6 awards, so it's a small program. Pick it for the practicum and the cohort. If you work in business and can travel for the trip, it's worth a close look.

Montclair State is a public university in Montclair, New Jersey. Its program page calls this a 30-31 credit, cohort-based master's, offered in both online and hybrid formats. We list it as online with an onsite requirement, because even the online path includes the trip.

The title includes artificial intelligence, but this is a business analytics program first. If you want to build models from scratch, a computer science degree is a closer match. If you want to use data and AI to make business decisions, keep reading.

The school's graduation rate is 65% and its admit rate is 88%.

Montclair says you can study online for flexibility, in as few as 21 months, and it also offers a hybrid version. Because the program is cohort-based, you move through with the same group of classmates, which suits people who like having peers to lean on.

Before you start, you complete an online Basic Statistics Foundation Module that runs 25-30 hours. Plan for that time before your first term begins.

Ask whether classes meet live or run on your own schedule. The trip is the part that's not flexible: you'll need time off work and a travel budget.

Who It Fits

• You work in business and want analytics plus AI. The program centers on solving data-driven problems for real organizations through an embedded practicum.
• You can travel for 3-5 days. The domestic trip shows how leading organizations apply analytics.
• You're comfortable with numbers. Montclair expects strong quantitative abilities and an online Basic Statistics Foundation Module of 25-30 hours before you start.
• You like an applied finish. The embedded practicum puts you on problems for real organizations instead of ending with an exam.

Who Should Skip It

• You can't travel for 3-5 days. The trip is part of the program.
• You want a technical AI degree. Montclair's 12-credit AI Systems certificate or a computer science master's is a closer match.
• You need to know the full price before you apply, and Montclair will have to give it to you directly.

Montclair's page describes the degree as centered on an embedded practicum, where you work on data-driven problems for real organizations. That's the finish, in place of a comprehensive exam.

Ask Montclair for the full course sequence before you apply. The program includes a 3-5 day domestic trip to see how leading organizations apply analytics.

That's different from Montclair's separate Artificial Intelligence Systems Graduate Certificate, which is a 12-credit hybrid program built around courses such as Foundations of AI Systems, Machine Learning and Deep Learning. If you want the technical AI content, the certificate lists it by name. This degree leans toward the business side.

Standout Features

• 3-5 day domestic trip to leading analytics organizations
• Accelerated 4+1 option for eligible Montclair undergraduates, as few as 12 months after the bachelor's
• Embedded practicum solving data-driven problems for real organizations
• STEM-designated degree
• Workshops and events with industry leaders and executive speakers

Get the tuition, credit count and fees from Montclair before you plan. Until you have a real price, you can't compare it with other programs.

Add the trip to your budget. Travel and lodging for 3-5 days are on top of tuition. Ask whether online and hybrid students pay the same rate, since Montclair offers both.

The degree is a Master of Science from Montclair State University. The program page we reviewed doesn't name a program-specific accreditation or an industry certification you'd be prepared to take.

The practicum is the credential value you can point to in an interview. Working on a problem for a real organization gives you a project to describe, and it gives you something concrete to talk about.

Where this degree can lead: Data Scientist Jobs, Jobs You Can Get With an AI Degree.

The full rubric is on the methodology page.

• The 3-5 day domestic trip is required, even in the online format.
• You must finish an online statistics module of 25-30 hours before you start.
• It's a business analytics degree with AI in the title, so it won't go as deep on machine learning as a computer science degree.
• Montclair printed no tuition on the program page, so you can't compare cost until you ask.
• Few students complete it, with only 6 awards reported.

• What does the 3-5 day trip cost beyond tuition, and when does it happen in the program?
• Who are the practicum partners, and can I propose my employer?
• Does the 21-month online path run on a fixed schedule, and are classes live?
• What is the per-credit tuition, and do online and hybrid students pay the same?
• How many credits is the degree, and which courses make up the sequence?
• Is the statistics foundation module graded, and can I test out of it?

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Also at Montclair State University, but not counted here because they are not fully online: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Systems Graduate Certificate (graduate certificate, hybrid).

• Christian Brothers University

  Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence (Online)

  Tennessee Score 35.7

• Pennsylvania State University-World Campus

  Master of Artificial Intelligence, AI Engineering Option

  Pennsylvania $1,089 per credit Score 41.2

• Pennsylvania State University-World Campus

  Master of Artificial Intelligence, Applied and Generative AI Option

  Pennsylvania $1,089 per credit Score 41.2

• University of Michigan-Dearborn

  Artificial Intelligence, MS

  Michigan Score 47.4