Applied
StatisticsCornell Certificate Program

Much of business involves translating data into insights that others can grasp and act on. To do this effectively, you need to excel in the art of presenting data-based insights in a clear, accessible way.

In this course, you will build a solid foundation in basic statistical concepts. You’ll discover how to model unpredictable events and incorporate them into your decision-making processes. You’ll also interpret the importance of random events. Finally, you’ll develop effective graphs and learn to model a decision or process, helping you make sound decisions for your teams.

In a business environment, the main objective of gathering information is to harness it for decision making. By integrating data with statistical and probabilistic principles, you can make decisions that have a higher likelihood of yielding desired outcomes for your team and your organization as a whole.

In this course, you will develop skills in decision analysis. You’ll construct a decision tree, a process that also aids in determining the extent of effort required to collect information. In processes like these, some calculations may be carried out manually, while others can be streamlined with the use of spreadsheet software. You’ll be guided through both types of solutions, enabling you to select the right tool for each task in your future projects.

When aiming to construct a model, the goal is to strike a balance among accuracy, ease of use, and audience comprehension. Interestingly, numerous phenomena in both the natural and business worlds can be captured using the renowned bell curve. Harnessing the power of the bell curve will set you up for success in your business forecasting efforts.

In this course, you will employ the normal distribution as a new tool to generate more effective forecasts. You’ll identify cause-and-effect relationships that are relevant to your business decisions. You’ll also discover how to recognize when the accuracy of this tool falls short of expectations and employ corrective adjustments accordingly.

By the end of this course, you will have the necessary skills to apply normal distributions when forecasting for your business.

Businesses rely heavily on data to make informed decisions, yet data collection comes with its own costs. To optimize this process, it’s key to assess how much data you truly need to gather to make precise decisions.

In this course, you will apply the science of sampling, using data from a sample of a population to draw conclusions about the entire population. You’ll identify the appropriate sampling method for a particular scenario and business goal. Once you have this data, you’ll utilize it to predict outcome probabilities with improved accuracy. Finally, you’ll explore the reverse process: understanding how much data collection is required from a set accuracy goal.

Both these methodologies hold substantial value in business planning and will set you up for a more optimized approach to data collection for your business.

Basic statistical tools provide a starting point, but when it comes to tackling complex business scenarios, you often need more. Making informed decisions frequently requires the ability to devise and test hypotheses.

In this course, you will practice creating and testing hypotheses. You’ll examine how to construct a hypothesis that is rigorous and testable then test your hypotheses using different types of statistical data. Combining this skillset with your foundations in statistics and probability, you’ll enhance your understanding of potential outcomes.

By the end of this course, you will be equipped with the skills necessary to back up business decisions with solid mathematical justification and foster improved communication about your decisions with stakeholders.

By integrating several tools and concepts in applied statistics, you are now ready to make even more precise future predictions. The process of fitting these tools into a model that represents your data accurately is known as regression. Despite the term “simple regression model,” it can prove to be a formidable tool in business decision making.

In this course, you will practice working with regression models. You’ll discover how to construct a linear model of the relationship between two variables. You’ll also use a simple regression model to calculate statistics of interest for your business question or hypothesis.

Finally, you will make predictions about the future behavior of a system based on the regression model. Since a multitude of situations can be accurately explained and predicted using this type of model, this skillset will set you up for success in your future business analysis efforts.

A simple regression predicts outcomes based on the correlation between two variables; in the real world, however, most decisions are far more complex, often influenced by numerous factors. Multiple regression allows you to consider these additional factors when making decisions. By building on the foundational techniques, you can create a model that more accurately reflects reality, thus enhancing the confidence in your managerial decisions.

In this course, you will discover how to improve a predictive model by incorporating more variables and use a variety of statistical tools to verify the validity of your model. Since there might be situations where your system doesn’t perfectly fit as you factor in more variables, you’ll also examine how to identify such scenarios and compensate for them when constructing your predictive model.

As you introduce multiple regression analysis into your skillset, you will gain a more comprehensive approach to the decision-making process, helping you overcome challenges in your business.

eCornell online Workshops are live, interactive learning experiences lasting 1 to 4 hours and led by Cornell faculty experts. These premium, short-format sessions focus on AI topics and are designed for busy professionals who want to gain immediately applicable skills and strategic perspectives. Workshops may include faculty presentations, breakout discussions, and guided hands-on practice.

The AI Workshops All-Access Pass provides you with unlimited participation for 6 months from your date of purchase. Whether you choose to attend one Workshop per month or several per week, the All-Access Pass allows you to customize your AI journey and stay on top of the latest AI trends.

Hosted by Cornell faculty at the forefront of their fields, Workshops cover a range of cutting-edge AI topics applicable across industries. Workshops are offered at three levels to allow you to choose topics that match your experience.

• AI Foundations
  • These Workshops introduce core AI concepts, terminology, capabilities, limitations, and practical applications. No prior AI experience is required.
  • Best for: Beginners, AI-curious professionals, and teams starting their AI journey.
• AI in Practice
  • These Workshops focus on practical skills, workflows, and strategies that help participants use AI more effectively in their day-to-day work. Some familiarity with AI tools is recommended.
  • Best for: Professionals who have experimented with AI and want to build confidence and capability.
• AI Leadership and Transformation
  • These advanced Workshops explore emerging technologies, strategic implementation, governance, organizational impact, and specialized applications. AI fluency is expected, and some Workshops may have prerequisites.
  • Best for: AI leaders, transformation teams, executives, and advanced practitioners.