Certificate Program in Business Analysis
Business analysts serve a critical function in helping organizations improve operational efficiency and profitability. Responding to the rising need for well-trained analysts in the public and private sector, UC Davis Extension is proud to announce a new Certificate Program in Business Analysis.
Learn to identify needs and create solutions that move your organizations forward. Acquire the skills to elicit, analyze, communicate and validate requirements for developing structures that really work. Understand how to translate functional requirements into technical specifications. Develop strategies for gaining stakeholder support.
The curriculum is endorsed by the International Institute of Business Analysis, an international association whose vision has led to the development of standards for the practice of business analysis and the certification of practitioners (see www.theiiba.org for more details).
Program Details
Program benefits
- Explore the fundamental concepts and theory of business analysis
- Learn to identify business opportunities and design solutions
- Achieve optimum results from your project investments
- Develop strategies used for gaining stakeholder approval when designing and implementing business solutions
- Learn to assess your business solutions
- Prepare for the Certified Business Analysis Professional Certification examination
Who should attend
This program is designed for business analysts, government analysts, quality assurance analysts, systems analysts, business system planners, project managers, product marketers and other engaged in the improvement of products and processes.
Certificate requirements
Courses may be taken individually or as part of a certificate program. Participants will be awarded a Certificate in Business Analysis upon the successful completion of 6 required courses (14 units) plus any two courses (each 1.5 units or more) in the Business and Management program area and submission of the application form and fee. Any approved course in Business and Management may be used to fulfill the elective course requirements. It is possible to complete this program in a year or less. Please call (530) 757-8895 for more information.
Tuition for the entire Business Analysis Certificate Program is $5,150 to $5,500, depending on when you enroll. The certificate application fee ($45) and textbooks are not included in the tuition fee.
| UNITS | F | W | SP | SU | ||
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| REQUIRED COURSES | Fundamentals of Business Analysis | 2.5 | 
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| Enterprise Analysis | 2 |
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| Requirements Elicitation | 2 |
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| Requirements Planning and Management | 2.5 |
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| Requirements Analysis, Documentation and Communications | 3 |
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| Solution Assessment and Validation | 2 |
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| ELECTIVE COURSES | Effective Negotiation Strategies | 3 | 
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| Introduction to Project Management | 1.5 | 
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| Project Integration and Scope Management | 2 |
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| Systems Design, Implementation and Support for Today's Business Systems | 3 |
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Classroom format
Online Learning format
Classroom and Online Learning formats |
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Electives: Any two courses (each 1.5 units or more) in the Business & Management program area may apply.
Required Courses
Fundamentals of Business Analysis
2.5 quarter units academic credit, X433.1. 25 PDU Hours
Develop the knowledge and skills you need as a business analyst as well as your ability to create solutions to business problems. Explore the fundamentals of business analysis using the International Institute of Business Analysis's (IIBA) Business Analysis Body of Knowledge (BABOK).
Learn the techniques, methodologies and core competencies
required of effective business analysts. Explore best practices,
strategies,
needs and opportunities, system requirements, and the implementation
and
operational support of business solutions.
Sections of this course open for enrollment:
- Fundamentals of Business Analysis
starts September 15 - Fundamentals of Business Analysis starts January 5, 2009
Enterprise Analysis
2 quarter units academic credit, X433.2.
Before developing solutions to business problems, analysts must fully understand the context of a project and how it will function within the entire enterprise. Examine the pre-project and early project activities necessary to develop effective solutions.
Specifically, learn to conduct an investigative feasibility study; create and maintain a project’s architecture; and determine the scope of a project. Also, discover how to design business opportunities; prepare a business case; conduct an initial risk assessment; and prepare a decision package.
Prerequisites:
Fundamentals of Business Analysis, or equivalent experience.
Sections of this course open for enrollment:
- Enterprise Analysis starts September 15
Requirements Elicitation
2 quarter units academic credit, X433.4.
Choosing the appropriate technique for extracting necessary information is critical to successful business analysis. Explore the most effective techniques for figuring out, or eliciting, project requirements and the steps involved with each technique.
Examine the most worthwhile techniques such as brainstorming, document
analysis, focus groups, interviewing, observation, prototyping,
workshops,
reverse engineering, and the best uses of surveys and questionnaires.
Prerequisites:
Fundamentals of Business Analysis, or equivalent experience.
This course is not currently scheduled.
Requirements Planning and Management
2.5 quarter units academic credit, X433.3.
Throughout the requirements definition process, it is critical to examine the elements and procedures involved in your project. Learn to define the resources and tasks associated with the planning and management of the requirements gathering activities throughout the requirements process.
Gain a better understanding of
team and individual roles in managing a requirements definition
project; how to
develop an initial risk profile; and how to identify planning options
and
considerations. Learn to select a requirements strategy and estimate
costs and
benefits; manage a project’s scope (including change
management); and measure
and report on activities.
Prerequisites:
Fundamentals of Business Analysis, or equivalent experience.
Sections of this course open for enrollment:
- Requirements Planning and Management starts September 15
Requirements Analysis, Documentation and Communications
3 quarter units academic credit, X433.5.
The
increasing need
to properly analyze and document stakeholder requirements and find
solutions to
identified business needs and opportunities has given rise to improved
processes and communication strategies. Explore current
best practices for analyzing, documenting and
communicating business requirements through modeling techniques.
Prerequisites:
Fundamentals of Business Analysis, Enterprise Analysis, Requirements Planning and Management, Requirements Elicitation, or equivalent experience.
Sections of this course open for enrollment:
- Requirements Analysis, Documentation and Communications starts September 15
Solution Assessment and Validation
2 quarter units academic credit, X433.6.
Business
analysts are accountable for solutions that meet
defined needs. They must also have the ability to assess projects after
implementation. Gain an understanding of how to facilitate the
selection of a solution;
develop alternate solutions; ensure the usability of the solution; and
support
the quality assurance process and the implementation of the solution.
Prerequisites:
Fundamentals of Business Analysis, Enterprise Analysis, Requirements Planning and Management, Requirements Elicitation, or equivalent experience.
This course is not currently scheduled.
Elective Courses
Effective Negotiation Strategies
3 quarter units academic credit, X422.10.
Anyone
negotiating with others who have
strong opinions knows how difficult it can be to reach a
mutually
beneficial resolution. Through the use of skill-building
exercises, case
studies and simulations, examine the interest-based negotiation model
through
practical and theorical perspectives. Focus on the interest-based
process to address
the different values, priorities and goals of each party.
Discover how to
create effective strategies and achieve win-win
solutions.
Examine the
principles that won
President Jimmy Carter his Nobel Prize for Peace with the Camp
David
Accords and that create successful labor/management
negotiations and
enable complex multi-party, decision-making situations to be
successful.
This course is not currently scheduled.
Introduction to Project Management
1.5 quarter units academic credit, X455.23. 15 PDU Hours
Being
an effective project leader requires a clear understanding of the
essential
elements of the project management framework and processes. Using the
Project
Management Institute’s A Guide to the
Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK®
Guide),
learn the basic characteristics of projects and project management,
with
emphasis on the five process groups of initiating, planning, executing,
controlling and closing.
Sections of this course open for enrollment:
- Introduction to Project Management starts September 15
Project Integration and Scope Management
2 quarter units academic credit, X455.24. 20 PDU Hours
Successful project outcomes depend on an effective project management plan, development and execution, as well as adherence to a scope management process. They also need to begin with the proper integration of related project elements across project process groups and knowledge areas.
Building on your knowledge of the
project management framework and processes, explore in depth the
processes and
activities required to define and coordinate the projects within the
project
process groups, particularly where individual processes interact, and
when
competing objectives and alternatives require trade-offs. Examine the
processes
that ensure all the work, and only the work, required for successful
project
completion, is included within the scope of your projects.
Prerequisites:
Introduction to Project Management.
Sections of this course open for enrollment:
- Project Integration and Scope Management starts September 15
- Project Integration and Scope Management starts October 21
Systems Design, Implementation and Support for Today's Business Systems
3 quarter units academic credit, X491.19. PDU Hours
The design
and implementation of business information systems are more challenging
than
ever. Rapid advances in information technology, the greatly expanded
scope of
interactive net-centric business systems, and the complexities of
merging
commercially-available software products with in-house developed code
require
an unprecedented breadth of knowledge from the systems designer.
Prerequisites:
Systems Analysis for Today's Business Systems.
This course is not currently scheduled.
For More Information
Download a Business Analysis Certificate Program brochure for a list of current quarter courses and enrollment information. 
(337 KB)
This program is approved by:
testimonials
"The UC Davis Extension Business Analysis Program has been instrumental in expanding my understanding of software development, the development lifecycle and the management of projects. Since my enrollment, I have been able to implement better change control and project tracking in my office and on my team. The only thing more valuable than the class activities are the class discussions—sharing perspectives with people more experienced than I am has been invaluable."
Geoff Lilley
