My decision to join Purdue’s business school stemmed from my love for math. After completing high school, I took a gap year and took a few math courses at a Colombian university. However, I quickly realized that although I like the subject, it wasn’t what I wanted to dedicate my life to. I wanted a combination of business and applied math. I’m curious to know how exactly math affects the business world. This, along with my interest in computer science, is what ultimately led me to Purdue. I was attracted specifically to the Business Analytics and Information Management (BAIM) program offered here and decided to join the business school.
Here, I’m with my friends that I met in the BAIM program. I’m glad to be with them throughout my career at Purdue!
Not many universities offer this major. It’s mostly offered as just a minor, or only for master’s students. Purdue is one of the few that had the major I wanted, and I’m grateful to be a part of it.
Because I was part of the first class of BAIM students, I didn’t know how the program would be laid out and didn’t have an idea of what to expect. However, after spending a year taking the courses and being involved, I think it’s very well structured. All of the information we learn correlates with each other. For example, I’ll often learn about a topic in multiple courses, and I love seeing how each class interacts with one another.
The BAIM program will prepare me well for my ultimate goal in the future—working with Google Maps. When I think about it, I realize that there is so much data that goes into this specific function. Using my technological computer science skills, I would be able to better understand more about what the data represents in Maps. I’ve had my own ideas on what could be implemented into Maps, and my personal and professional interest in this app is fueled by my major.
Not only does this program have great courses—it also has opportunities for students to get involved with each other. When I first came to Purdue, I didn’t know many people studying the same things as me. However, after joining the BAIM association, I’ve made friends, many not in the same part of the journey as me. It’s helpful to meet students who are more experienced because I can learn a lot from them.
I know that this major will be useful for me in my career. It’s already helping me—I was an intern at the Office of Undergraduate Research at Purdue during the spring 2023 semester. This role was based on data analysis, and I used skills that I learned in the introductory courses in the program. The internship taught me how to analyze data and apply it to the real world. It helped me practice what the data actually represents in the world around us.
In the job market, there is a high demand for business analysts, a relevant career field for this major. By taking the courses offered in this program, I’ll be able to not only read data, but also use it to solve problems. I think that the business school is trying to make students who study business analytics into problem solvers.
I’m glad to have joined Purdue’s business school to pursue this major. Even though I knew the program was relatively new and didn’t know what to expect, I’m happy with my decision. I think anyone who is interested in business analytics and math should certainly think about coming to the Daniels School for this major.
Filippa Rodriguez, from Colombia, is an upcoming sophomore with a major in Business Analytics and Information Management and minors in accounting and real estate finance. She is the senator representative of the Daniels School of Business for the Purdue Student Government, part of the Larsen Leaders Academy and the technology committee for the BAIM Association, and a member of the Purdue Real Estate Society. She is a business operations intern at Caterpillar Financial Services Corp for the summer of 2023.
