BBA Data, AI & Management

A unique blend of expertise in Management and Data Engineering to meet business needs.

The BBA Data, AI & Management* is a fully accredited four-year bachelor programme combining Management and Engineering to meet company needs. Co-created by Centrale Nantes and Audencia, the BBA Data, AI & Management is a high quality academic programme with a strong international focus (minimum of 12 months abroad) and excellent employment prospects for its graduates.

Fully taught in English, the programme welcomes a mixed cohort of French and international students. The curriculum is structured into courses coordinated by each school in its field of expertise, followed by jointly run practical courses that link Management and Engineering.  

The synergy between the two schools offers a favourable environment and access to two strong alumni networks. The support provided by the Careers Services and close links with partner companies help each student to build his or her own career path. 

*previously entitled BBA Big Data & Management

• A fully accredited 4-year bachelor’s degree, 240 ECTS
• Mixed cohort of French and international students
• Open to applicants with a high school diploma or equivalent
• Fully taught in English
• 12 months minimum of international experience
• Location: Audencia Atlantic campus & Centrale Nantes
• Next intake: no recruitment in 2026/27

Programme Overview

The BBA ‘Bachelor in Business Administration’ is a four-year post-secondary qualification at bachelor level with a strong international focus. It prepares students to successfully enter the workforce or, for those who wish to so, to pursue their studies with a Master’s or Advanced Master's degree. The BBA Data, AI & Management programme is fully accredited by the French Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation (diplôme visé bac+4).

Students will be prepared to take on cross-functional management positions. They will acquire both strong managerial skills (finance, management, marketing, strategy) and advanced technical skills in the collection, analysis and use of data for business performance.

Jointly developed by Audencia and Centrale Nantes, this course draws on the academic excellence of both institutions to offer a programme with a strong international and professional focus.

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Programme overview

	Fall Semester	Spring Semester	Summer
Year 1	Core Courses*	Core Courses*	8 week internship
Year 2	Core Courses*	Advanced Engineering Abroad (Casablanca or partner university), courses taught by Centrale Nantes
Year 3	Advanced Business Abroad (China or partner university), courses taught by Audencia	Hybrid Courses; project-based learning*	16 week internship
Year 4	Hybrid Courses; project based learning*	24 weeks internship

One of the 3 internships must be undertaken abroad.

*Audencia-Centrale Nantes half-day or co-hosted courses

Contribution to sustainable development goals

 

Learn more about Centrale Nantes' commitment to the 17 sustainable development goals

Course Content

Year 1: Acquire basic principles

The aim of the first year is to understand the basic principles in Management, AI and Data. Courses are jointly coordinated by the two institutions with each school delivering the courses within its field of expertise.

Semester 1

• Accounting / Finance
• Algorithmics
• Introduction to scientific computing
• Marketing Mix
• Mathematics I: analysis I
• Mathematics II: linear algebra I
• Principles of Microeconomics
• Sales techniques
• English / French
• Sport

Semester 2

• Cost analysis
• Data structures management
• Market study
• Mathematics III: analysis II
• Mathematics IV: linear algebra II
• Product innovation
• Sales communication
• Scientific programming
• Internship
• Chinese / French
• Sport

The year ends with an 8-week internship which can be undertaken in France or abroad. This is designed to develop students' openness and adaptability.

Examples of first year internships:

• Support for the deployment of Qlik Sense, a visual and interactive data analysis tool, SOCOMORE (USA)
• Support for the deployment of the RGPD in companies, PIXWAYS (France)
• Management of the various networks of the crypto - NFT platform, participate in the preparation of strategies related to the launch of new products YOH VIRAL LTD (Malta)
• Planning, coordinating and supervising the implementation of automatic reporting in the new business unit of UBIK, using data analysis tools UBIK LTD (Taiwan)

Year 2: Consolidate the basics and acquire advanced scientific knowledge

The first half of the year is designed to consolidate the basic principles covered in the first year. Courses continue to be jointly coordinated by the two institutions.

Semester 4 focuses on acquiring advanced scientific knowledge. These courses are taught exclusively by Centrale Nantes faculty on its Casablanca campus in Morocco.

Semester 3

• Business Ethics
• Consumer study
• Databases
• Information systems management
• Data analysis and business intelligence
• Mathematics V: probabilities and statistics
• Negotiation
• Operating systems
• Chinese / French
• Sport

Semester 4

• Artificial Intelligence Fundamentals
• AI and Data Mining for Digital Business
• Cloud Computing
• Data analysis
• Data cleansing and data quality
• Data mining
• Systems security information
• Machine and deep learning
• Natural language processing
• Scientific visualization

Year 3: Acquire advanced management skills and apply knowledge

Semester 5 focuses on advanced management courses. These courses are taught exclusively by Audencia faculty and are held on its campus in Shenzhen, China.

The focus in semester 6 turns towards more applied learning. Students will undertake project-based work and put their knowledge into practice. 

Students complete the year with a further 16-week internship period. During this internship students will be tasked with undertaking in-depth analysis of an issue linked to their responsibilities within their company and to formulating recommendations.

Semester 5 at Audencia Campus, Shenzhen

• Macroeconomics
• Chinese Economy & Markets
• Internet of Things
• Financial decision making with Excel
• Introduction to Fintech
• Blockchain & Business Analytics
• Chinese Language

 

Semester 6

• Quantum Computing
• Digital marketing
• Complements on Blockchain
• Customer Relationship Management / Enterprise Resource Planning
• Crypto and online currencies
• Data and business strategy
• Strategy and Innovation
• Responsible AI - Ethics
• Research methodology 
• Internship

Examples of third year internships:

 

• Implementation of a cybersecurity monitoring solution using Power BI (SYD CLOUD AI & AZURE)
• Building a prototype for the use of generative AI in a SaaS application (Kshuttle)
• Modelling of passenger forecasts for the Charles de Gaulle Express rail line (Hello Paris Service)
• Management of data collected over the last 2 years on the site of the new university hospital in Nantes (SAS SOGEA ATLANTIQUE BTP)
• Development of tools to translate between different programming languages with the help of Large Language Models (Keyrus NV) 
• Marketing analysis to develop a new business development activity (HPROBE)

Year 4: Continue to apply knowledge and build up professional skills

Semester 7 gives students the opportunity to work on tangible new projects, thereby applying the skills acquired throughout the first three years. 

The final year internship takes place over a period of 24 weeks during semester 8. It is a project-based internship, whereby students are required to undertake and manage a project independently. At the end of the internship, students produce an internship report, which must include a research approach through problem definition, a methodology for dealing with the problem and a literature review.

Semester 7

• Research methodology II
• Responsible AI II - Energy and sustainable business
• Advanced Fintech
• Supply chain management and Big Data
• Operations management and Big Data
• High Performance Computing
• Industry 5.0
• Management of international trade operations
• Innovation in Business intelligence
• AI and decision making

Download syllabus | BBA Data, AI & Management

• BBA year 1
• BBA year 2
• BBA year 3 - coming soon
• BBA year 4

 

International experience

Students are required to acquire a minimum of 12 months of international experience during the programme

All students will undertake at least one of their internships abroad and spend two academic semesters abroad in:
 

• The second semester of year 2, at Ecole Centrale Casablanca, Morroco
• The first semester of year 3, at Shenzhen Audencia Business School, China

Students have the opportunity to spend as much as 24 months abroad via academic and professional experience, as follows:
 

International Experience

	Duration	International
First-year internship	8 weeks	optional (at least one of the three internships abroad)
Semester 4	6 months	mandatory
Semester 5	6 months	mandatory
Third-year internship	16 weeks	optional (at least one of the three internships abroad)
Final-year internship	24 weeks	optional (at least one of the three internships abroad)

Semester 4 - Ecole Centrale de Casablanca, Morocco

Semester 4 of the BBA Data, AI & Management is taught on the Ecoles Centrale Group offshore campus in Casablanca.

The Casablanca site is located on a new campus in Bouskoura, close to a large eucalyptus forest. It is a quiet environment with classrooms, auditoriums, laboratories, library, student accommodation, administration offices, canteen and gymnasium. Students will be offered accommodation in a residence located on campus. In addition to the faculty team in Casablanca, visiting faculty from the Ecoles Centrale Group also teach on site.

Semester 5 - Shenzen Audencia Business School

Semester 5 of the BBA Data, AI & Management is taught on Audencia's Shenzen campus in China.
Shenzhen is one of the most dynamic and innovative cities in the world, to the extent that it is now widely considered to be a Silicon Valley in the making, as evidenced by the 20% growth recorded in 2019 in the following sectors: biotechnology, internet, new energies, new materials, information technology and cultural activities. 14 permanent faculty teach on the campus and are part of Audencia's faculty.
 

NB

Extra costs associated with transport, food, accommodation, books, miscellaneous expenses and medical/repatriation insurance, etc., are at the student’s expense.
For some international destinations, tuition fees at the host universities may be payable by the student.
There are mobility support schemes in place to facilitate international study semesters (admission/tuition fees and funding).

After the BBA

At the end of the programme, students can choose between entering working life or continuing their studies. Students benefit from individual careers guidance from the Careers Services at Centrale Nantes and Audencia. Face-to-face or online careers sessions, mentoring sessions with graduates, webinars, online forums, etc. help future graduates to find their path.

Pursue your studies

The opportunities for further study are numerous in France or abroad on a one- or two-year Master's programme. At Audencia, for example, students are ideally placed to pursue their studies with the MSc in Data Management in Corporate Finance: Learn more

Career Prospects

The BBA Data, AI & Management fully prepares its students for entry into the workforce. Companies are looking to recruit graduates with cross-functional skills to meet their needs in an increasingly digital environment. Partner companies contribute to programme workshops in order to provide students with hands-on training. Here are a few examples of career paths that students can pursue after the BBA:

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Business/management focused:

• PROJECT MANAGER - Use data-driven business to plan, budget and oversee projects
• MARKET RESEARCH ANALYST - Use data analysis to evaluate market intelligence
• FINANCIAL ANALYST - Advice to businesses and individuals in investment decisions
• OPERATIONS RESEARCH ANALYST - Solve business problems and improve business processes through data

Dual business/management and engineering focused:

• BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE ANALYST - Develop strategies based on data analysis and data-informed decision making
• DECISION SCIENTIST - Solve business problems with massive data analysis
• CHIEF DATA OFFICER - High level view of the company's data and improve business through high-tech solutions
• DATA PRODUCT MANAGER - Develop best product using data analysis

Engineering focused:

• DATA ARCHITECT - Design secure data frameworks and ensure relevant, accurate and accessible data
• DATA ANALYST - Analyze raw data and derive insights to improve business
• DATA SCIENTIST - Data impact in company and build predictive models for business
• DATA ENGINEER - Collect, store, analyze, visualize data for business

Learn more about the careers accessible after the BBA Data, AI & Management

Meet Eneric Lopez, AI National Initiative & Social Impact Director at Microsoft

Patron of the BBA Class of 2026

As an Engineer by training, I have accumulated 25 years of diverse experience in the digital world, tackling technical, commercial, marketing and strategic roles. Today, my mission is to support businesses and contribute to national challenges in the responsible adoption of AI in France, with a focus on skills, ethics and positive impact. I see that the key to this success lies in a solid grasp of business and data issues.

As class patron of Audencia and Centrale Nantes' 'BBA Data, AI & Management', I see this program as a bridge to a future where Artificial Intelligence and strategic management converge to create value responsibly and sustainably.

Admission and Tuition Fees

No recruitment in 2026-27

Tuition Fees

Four-year bachelor programme: €12,000 per year
Tuition fees are guaranteed for the duration of the programmes and for both schools (including membership of alumni networks)

Scholarship opportunities 

Scholarship opportunities within the framework of certain international agreements, may be available for periods of international mobility within the programme.

Unique resources: Supercomputer

Since the end of 2015, Centrale Nantes has been responsible for one of France's most powerful regional computing centers in its category (Tier2 class), which houses the new Nautilus supercomputer installed in 2023. Giving access to unprecedented levels of precision, this state-of-the-art equipment is a real game changer which will release new potential for innovation.
Intensive numerical calculation is an indispensable tool for both research and industry: it reduces the cost of testing, facilitates optimization and promotes creativity and the search for new solutions. The means of calculation are also an indicator of the research and development of a region, or a nation.

High Performance Computing (HPC) consists of using software for acquisition, modeling or analysis on supercomputers of several thousand processors capable of executing several billion operations per second to model complex phenomena, process or characterise large volumes of data. It is also a set of servers designed to run long-term processes to massively and intensively calculate programs. These supercomputers can be seen as a large number of machines (computing servers) linked together by very high-speed networks.

Centrale Nantes is the only higher education establishment in France to have such a powerful supercomputer which is open to different users.

Learn more: Supercomputer