College of Business

business.usi.edu

Mohammed Khayum, Ph.D., Dean

Brian McGuire, Ph.D., C.P.A., C.M.A., C.B.M., C.I.T.P., Associate Dean and MBA Director

Tim Schibik, Ph.D., Assistant Dean

Abbas Foroughi, Ph.D., Chair, Department of Management and Information Sciences

Leslie Nunn, J.D., Chair, Department of Accounting and Finance

Sudesh Mujumdar, Ph.D., Chair, Department of Economics and Marketing

The College of Business offers bachelor degree programs in the following business majors: accounting and professional services, business administration, business education, computer information systems, finance, management, and marketing. The major in economics leading to the Bachelor of Arts degree or Bachelor of Science degree is conferred by the College of Liberal Arts. However, faculty and staff in the Department of Economics in the College of Business handle all student advising and administrative matters. The business education teacher certification program is offered in cooperation with the Bower-Suhrheinrich College of Education and Human Services for students who desire to teach secondary school business subjects. The major in computer science is not a business program but is administered by the College of Business, which confers this Bachelor of Science degree. A concentration in International Trade and Business includes a language major in French, German, or Spanish with the Business Core and an internship in an international business or organization is required.

The College of Business also offers an Associate of Science degree in business and minors in accounting, computer science, business administration, computer information systems, economics, entrepreneurship, finance, management, and marketing. The business administration minor is restricted to non-business majors. Business and other majors may take minors in computer science or economics. Post-baccalaureate certificates in professional accountancy and computer information systems are offered.

The College of Business undergraduate academic programs are designed to assist students in understanding and developing leadership qualities required by an environment where workforce and market diversity, innovation through technology, ethical behavior, and understanding global issues have become increasingly important. Each program provides the student with the background to participate effectively in business and other organizations which require a high degree of leadership, communication, and decision-making skills. The programs also provide the undergraduate education required for admission to graduate study in professional fields such as business, economics, law, public administration, urban planning, hospital administration, and business teacher education.

The undergraduate business programs offered by the College of Business include four interrelated phases of course work:

• University Core Curriculum requirements designed to provide learning which should be the common experience of all educated men and women and which builds communication and critical thinking skills necessary for success;
• Business Core requirements to provide an understanding of all business disciplines in the context of the society in which businesses operate;
• business major requirements which provide for a degree of specialization in the student’s area of interest; and
• elective courses chosen from either business or other academic areas to broaden the student’s perspective and educational background. Business and economics courses are open to all students in the University who have the required prerequisites.However, students who are not business majors are limited to no more than 31 hours of business courses, excluding economics.

The economics major establishes a core of knowledge in intermediate economic theory and statistics. The student then may specialize by selecting course work in such areas as environmental and resource economics, money and banking, international trade and finance, labor economics, public economics, the economics of sports, or games and strategic behavior.

The computer science program will prepare graduates for computer software development, software engineering, software development management, system development, and computer entrepreneurial positions in businesses and scientific organizations. It also will prepare students for graduate study in computer science. Graduates of the program will develop an understanding of algorithms, data structures, artificial intelligence, computer organization and architecture, numerical computation, operating systems, networking, programming language theory, and software engineering. Since the program is offered by the College of Business, unique opportunities for business management, marketing, accounting, and management information systems electives are offered.

College of Business Advisement and Graduation Requirements

Meeting graduation requirements is each student’s responsibility. Each student who is a candidate for a degree must meet the general requirements of the University (see General Requirements for Graduation ). In addition, students pursuing a major or minor offered by the College of Business must fulfill the specific program requirements as stated in the following sections.

Upon entry into a business, economics, or computer science major program, each student is assigned to a faculty advisor who approves the student’s proposed program of courses each semester. Assigned faculty advisors are changed when a student changes the major program of study. Other advisory changes may be made with consent of the student, the faculty advisor, and the dean of the College of Business.

The College of Business major and minor program requirements are revised periodically. The revised requirements are published on updated Business Program check sheets available from the College of Business office. Students may choose to meet all of the stated requirements of a later revised program in effect at the date of graduation.

Students who change their major program of study to another major within the college must meet all the requirements of the new major. The dean of the College of Business must approve petitions for permission for exceptions to any program requirement. After entry into a College of Business major or minor program, courses for transfer of credits may be taken at other institutions or campuses only upon prior approval of the dean.

Transfer-Credit Policy

Courses in advanced business and economics subjects not open to freshmen and sophomores, which have been taken in other institutions in the freshman and sophomore years, will not be accepted as equivalents of the courses offered at the University unless the student passes the College of Business special examinations in such subjects. Credit from non-collegiate organizations is not acceptable for application to meet business or economics course requirements of the College of Business programs. In some cases, the experience from these programs may provide the basis for applying for a special credit examination (see Credit Examinations ).

Business Degree Requirements

All bachelor candidates must successfully complete a minimum total of 124 credit hours. A minimum of 50 percent (62 hours) must be taken in courses offered outside the College of Business; however, ECON 208 , ECON 209 , and ECON 241  are applied toward meeting this 62-hour minimum requirement. All students majoring in accounting and professional services, business administration, computer information systems, finance, management, marketing, and business education enroll in from 55 to 62 hours of business courses which are divided into three segments:

• 31 credit hours in core requirements taken by all business majors,
• major field requirements totaling 24 to 33 hours, and
• elective courses.

Business majors wishing to complete a second major must complete a minimum of 12 additional hours in the second major. A business major wishing to complete a second baccalaureate degree must complete a minimum of 30 semester hours in addition to those required for their first degree and must fulfill all requirements for the second degree. Transfer students must complete at least one-half of business course work required for graduation in residence.

Business students must achieve a grade point average of at least 2.2 in the first 62 hours of course work to enroll in upper division business courses. Business students must achieve a grade point average of at least 2.0 in all required business course work to be eligible for graduation.

University Core Curriculum Requirements

50 credit hours

All majors must complete a minimum of 50 credit hours in the University Core Curriculum.

Required University Core Curriculum Courses Hours

Critical thinking and information processing are overall goals, which pervade the entire UCC. (For specific courses to satisfy these requirements, refer to the The University Core Curriculum .)

College of Business majors must complete specific courses in mathematics, social behavior, global communities, and synthesis to provide the necessary background in analytical tools and behavioral sciences upon which the advanced study of management is based.

The following courses should be completed during the freshman and sophomore years:

PSY 201  is not required of majors in business teacher education. These courses also satisfy University Core requirements.