Online Master's in Data Analytics and Data Science Programs in Illinois

In the state of Illinois, there are currently six schools offering eight online master’s in analytics programs: DePaul University; Elmhurst College; Illinois Institute of Technology; Lewis University; Northwestern University; and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Based on how OnlineEducation.com classifies master’s degrees in the field of analytics, two of these schools offer online master’s in data analytics programs, and six offer online master’s in data science programs.

The College of Computing and Digital Media (CDM) at DePaul University offers a Master of Science in Data Science (MSDS) program that can be completed in 21 months by students who enroll full-time, and as many as 39 months by students who enroll part-time. The program utilizes asynchronous online instruction and has four annual start dates, in the fall, winter, spring, and summer.

The Illinois Institute of Technology, through its College of Science, offers a Master of Computer Science (MCS) with a Specialization in Data Analytics program that has a data analytics focus, and a Master of Data Science (MDS) program. Both programs are designed to be completed in about two years by students who enroll part-time, and both programs utilize asynchronous instruction. The online master’s in data analytics program admits students three times a year, in the fall, spring, and summer, and the data science program has two annual start dates, in the fall and in the spring.

Elmhurst College offers an online Master of Science in Data Science (MSDS) program that utilizes asynchronous instruction. The curriculum includes an applied data-mining project, and the program can be completed in two-years of part-time enrollment. Elmhurst College’s online MSDS program admits new students in the fall, spring, and summer terms.

The College of Business at Lewis University offers an online Master of Science in Business Analytics program that has three data analytics curricular options: Marketing Analytics; Healthcare Analytics; and Operations Analytics. This program can be completed in 15 months by students who take two courses per eight-week session. Students also have the option of taking just one course per session on a part-time basis. Lewis University uses a mix of synchronous and asynchronous instruction, which means that most but not all lectures and course materials are available on-demand to online students; however, some classes may include scheduled real-time sessions. The program accepts new applicants on a rolling basis, five times a year.

Lewis University also offers an online Master of Science in Data Science program with two concentration options: Computer Science; and Computational Biology and Bioinformatics. The data science curriculum includes a final project or a master’s thesis option, and can be completed in two years of part-time enrollment by students who take one or two courses per eight-week term. The program utilizes asynchronous instruction and has multiple starts dates each year.

Northwestern University offers two online master’s in data science programs: a Master of Science in Data Science (MSDS) program, and a Master of Science in Information Systems (MSIS) program with a Data Science specialization. The MSDS program has a general data science curriculum and four optional specializations: Analytics and Modeling; Artificial Intelligence; Data Engineering; and Analytics Management. The MSIS program’s Data Science specialization features general information systems coursework as well as courses in core data science topics like machine learning, artificial intelligence, and deep learning. Both programs utilize asynchronous instruction and are designed to be completed in two-to-three years of part-time enrollment. The master’s in data science programs offered by Northwestern University have four start dates per year, in the fall, winter, spring, and summer.

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s Department of Computer Science (CS@Illinois) offers an online Master of Computer Science in Data Science (MCS-DS) program. The program utilizes asynchronous instruction, and it includes a capstone project in Data Mining or Cloud Computing. Full-time students can complete the program in one year; part-time students have up to five years to finish the requirements. CS@Illinois admits students to its online MCS-DS each fall.

While students from Illinois have several in-state options, there are also 69 out-of-state schools offering master’s in analytics programs that accept applicants from Illinois. This gives students a lot of options to ensure that they find a program that will best suit their needs and professional goals. Several schools charge the same tuition rates for in-state and out-of-state online students. However, prospective applicants should contact the programs directly to confirm tuition costs for non-residents of Illinois. To research all master’s in analytics programs, check out our Online Master’s in Data Analytics page and our Online Master’s in Data Science page.

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Online Data Analytics and Data Science Programs in Illinois

*Programs with fully online instruction do not require students to visit the campus during the program.