Data Analytics for Public Policy and Social Good
Typically associated with business and tech, analytics is quickly being adopted as a vital tool for government and nonprofit organizations to maximize their impact, despite small teams and constrained budgets. This course will show how organizations collect and produce meaningful data, as well as teach how the tools and methods of data analytics are used to inform decision-making in the public sector. It will identify the ways in which data can be used to drive decisions related to spending, organizational efficiency, innovation and reporting.
The course centers on developing ethical, equitable, and engaging data practices to drive performance management, policy-making, decision-making, all key areas of focus as the public sector aims to advance and innovate business practices to better serve the public into the future. The collection and release of data on essential government activities will be evaluated, and students will learn how to build visualizations and data stories of trends in government and non-profit service delivery to help evaluate and advance outcomes.
This class will help students understand how organizations and analysts should leverage data - including what kind of measurements they should focus on or ignore - in order to help transform society for the better.
COURSE TOPICS:
? Applied statistics, including descriptive analysis related to impact assessment
? Common analytical techniques (e.g., percentiles) deployed in the social sciences
? Understanding different dimensions of data and differentiating between cross-sectional and longitudinal studies
? Data visualization, presentation, and storytelling techniques (histograms, column/row charts, tables, etc.)
? The role of ethics, equity, and engagement in quality data analytics
? Quality assurance approaches (e.g., PDSA and CQI)
? Testing and assessment design
This course is eligible towards the completion of the Certificate in Data Analytics
. Bundle your coursework and earn a professional credential that communicates knowledge and skills gained. Declared Certificate students receive 10% off of courses within the program.
You'll Walk Away with
- An understanding of the ways in which organizations and governments set out to quantify social measures and policy outcomes through various modes of assessment
- The ability to use statistics to understand and explain complex issues and drive decision making
- Examples of data-driven decision-making in the public sector
- Exposure to broadly used technologies as well as industry-specific methods for gathering, cleaning, analyzing, and reporting data
- Disaggregated data skills to advance equitable decision-making and ethical
- storytelling
- A special focus on performance management and evaluation and how it informs decision-making in public administration and policymaking
- An understanding of best practices to mitigate errors, omissions, biases, and unintended consequences in the application of data and evidence to policymaking and administrative decision-making
Ideal for
- Professionals working in the fields of public policy, public administration, social science research, and other related fields
- Students seeking career opportunities in research, public policy, public administration, and related fields
1 section
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Fall 2024
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Section
001 -
Semester
Fall 2024 -
Date
Sep 9 - Dec 2 -
Day
Monday -
Time
6:30PM-8:30PM -
Sessions
12 -
Faculty
Auld, Mykella -
Location
Instructor Led
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-
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Section
2 -
Semester
Summer 2024 -
Date
May 21 - Aug 6 -
Day
Tuesday -
Time
12:00PM-2:00PM -
Sessions
12 -
Faculty
Dunks, Richard -
Location
Instructor Led
Tuition $995 -