Adobe's Analytics Student Challenge will use data from The Walt Disney Company with the aim of improving the media and entertainment giant's e-commerce strategy.

Adobe has stepped up its outreach to universities with curriculum and access to Adobe Analytics. The student challenge is another part of that education program.

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Typically, analytics challenges involve a corporate partner to supply data. I've been a judge for Temple University's Analytics Challenge. Analytics challenges have proliferated as data platforms and corporations see them as a good avenue to recruit talent.

The primary theme for the Adobe Analytics Student Challenge is nurturing customer loyalty through digital channels. Disney+ has been a hit and Disney has stepped up its direct-to-consumer services.

Students will use Disney data to deliver recommendations on how to drive repeat and multiple purchases and analyze issues like shopping cart abandonment. In addition, students will be asked to analyze customer journeys.

Adobe Analytics Student Challenge announced its six finalist teams drawn from an application pool of 8,300 globally. Willamette University, Yale School of Management, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, University of California (Davis), Brigham Young University and Universit