SAS Business Intelligence Certification

SAS is a multibillion dollar global corporation that specializes in business analytics software and services. The company’s well-honed certification program offers nine credentials across programming, information and data management, advanced analytics and business intelligence.

Three SAS certifications worthy of note are the SAS Certified Predictive Modeler using SAS Enterprise Miner 7 Credential, the SAS Certified Statistical Business Analyst Using SAS 9: Regression and Modelingand the Business Intelligence Content Developer. For purposes of this article, we concentrate on the SAS Certified Predictive Modeler using SAS Enterprise Miner 7 and SAS Certified Statistical Business Analyst Using SAS 9 credentials.

Candidates for the Predictive Modeler certification should have deep knowledge of and skills in predictive modeling using SAS Enterprise Miner 7. The certification identifies individuals who can prepare data, build, assess and implement predictive models, as well as score new data sets. Candidates must take a performance-based exam using SAS Enterprise Miner to answer multiple-choice questions. See the details in Table 6.

The Statistical Business Analyst certification is aimed at the true statistician. The exam consists of multiple-choice and short answer questions on topics such as ANOVA, regression, predictive modeling and logistic regression. More information is listed in Table 7.

SAS doesn’t require candidates to take certification courses as a prerequisite for exams, but the company offers an official curriculum for those who have the budget and need the extra preparation.

 SAS Certified Predictive Modeler using SAS Enterprise Miner 7 Credential Facts & Figures

Certification Name	SAS Certified Predictive Modeler using SAS Enterprise Miner 7 Credential
Prerequisites/Required Courses	None requiredRecommended training: Applied Analytics Using SAS Enterprise Miner Course options: Live (3 days, $2,400 USD), live Web class (6 half-day sessions, $2,400 USD), and e-learning (available 24 hours a day, up to one year to access materials, $1,440 USD)
Number of Exams	One exam, Predictive Modeling with SAS Enterprise Miner Exam (61 multiple-choice questions, three hours, min. 70 percent passing score)Candidates use SAS Enterprise Miner during examExam offered only at SAS training centers
Cost per Exam	$250 USDFaculty, staff and students of academic institutions eligible for an exam discount; US candidates receive a 50 percent discount; candidates in other geographies should contact SAS directly for discount informationRegistration:support.sas.com/edu/schedules.html?ctry=us&id=1528
URL	support.sas.com/certify/creds/pm.html
Self-Study Materials	SAS Training options: Mentoring, on-site training, e-learning, live Web classes, live instructor-led courses and sample exam questionsPredictive Modeling with SAS® Enterprise MinerTM: Practical Solutions for Business Applications, 2nd Edition, by Kattamuri S. Sarma, PhD, SAS Institute, December 2013, $69.95 USD (from SAS)

SAS Certified Statistical Business Analyst Using SAS 9: Regression and Modeling Credential Facts & Figures

Certification Name	SAS Certified Statistical Business Analyst Using SAS 9: Regression and Modeling Credential
Prerequisites/Required Courses	None requiredRecommended training: Statistics 1: Introduction to ANOVA, Regression, and Logistic Regression Course options: e-learning (free); live Web-based classroom ($2,100 USD); instructor-led classroom ($2,100 USD)Predictive Modeling Using Logistic Regression Course options: e-learning ($960 USD); live Web-based and instructor-led classroom ($1,600 USD each)
Number of Exams	One exam, A00-240 (60 multiple-choice and short-answer questions, two hours, min. 68 percent passing score)
Cost per Exam	$180 USDExam administered through Pearson VUE
URL	http://support.sas.com/certify/creds/sba.html
Self-Study Materials	SAS Training options: Mentoring, on-site training, e-learning, live Web classes, live instructor-led courses and SAS 9 sample exam questions