by The School of Business February 27th 2024 Share Facebook Twitter Devdeep Aikath conducts teaching and research in the domain of Business Technology and Analytics (BTA), where business understanding meets analytics skills and data drives better business decisions.What led you to PSU?A third generation educator, I have always been passionate about teaching and coaching. What led me to PSU, or in fact back to PSU was my experience here as a student and graduate assistant some years back. I knew this was an amazing inclusive and collaborative environment, that the faculty were committed to student growth and teaching innovation, and The School of Business was a great place to balance teaching and research. An alignment with organizational values, a great work environment and a job that I was passionate about - it was a great fit for me.What makes PSU a perfect place to study?At PSU, my colleagues and I are very intentional about ensuring:The course content incorporates the cutting edge of (business) education that empowers the student when they go out seeking jobs or promotions.An inclusive environment where it doesn't matter what knowledge you start with as long as you have potential and the drive to learn. A safe and collaborative learning atmosphere where you will not be judged and your feedback welcomed and incorporated. An empathetic system that facilitates an all-round growth of the student and allows them to balance life and academia. A support system outside the classroom that complements the learning and sets you up for professional success. When I was a student at PSU, I felt that this place provided knowledge, empowerment and support, and that made it a perfect place to study for me.How can the classes you teach help prepare students for a successful career?The program I teach was driven by an unmet need from our industry partners - they are actively looking for graduates that can understand business needs of an organization while being fluent in the data analysis that helps understand and address those needs. They needed someone who can act as a conduit between the business decision makers and the analysts, and that's what the BTA program is designed to train. As more and more organizations understand the competitive advantage data-driven decision making provides, more and more job listings require the technical skills that we teach in the class along with real-world applications. By staying in touch with the industry and the job market, we keep the education current and relevant.What makes the Business, Technology and Analytics program unique to our institution? What are the strengths and advantages to the program?Business schools have traditionally focused on domain-specific knowledge even for technical areas like finance and accounting. As a result, someone interested in learning analytics either has to join a technical program or self-learn. For business graduates, it becomes difficult to gain momentum at the beginning of their career; they have to spend additional time gaining technical skills. The BTA program provides the new graduates with a running start by providing them the dual expertise in business and analytics, not taught as two separate disciplines but as components of the same core education.Are there any new developments in your program that students should be excited about?At PSU, we are always innovating and trying to bring the latest and best into the classrooms. The BTA program has now become zero-cost (Z degree) for textbooks and classroom materials, making learning more accessible through the use of high-quality open source educational material. We have also started on-campus classes for the first time for BTA and in a full-scale for the first time since COVID. Finally, we are taking advantage of the buzz on generative AI and incorporating lessons on artificial intelligence into our curriculum.What excites you the most when each term starts?The students! It is always the students for me who drive my passion for teaching. It is such a pleasure being able to facilitate their journey and watch them grow into independent professionals! Related Links: Download the PDF economy, business and finance community impact Return to all news