Master of Business Administration

The School of Business and Management offers a Master of Business Administration degree. The Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional program of study to develop managers and leaders to be innovative in an ever-changing environment. The MBA curriculum combines advanced knowledge with fundamental practical skills of leadership, quantitative analysis, and theory with the aim of giving our students the widest range of opportunities to apply them to real business situations. The program provides for broad study in functional areas of business organization with concentrated study in the emphasis areas of Finance, Human Resource Management, and Marketing.

The MBA offers an articulated program with undergraduate Business Administration.  The qualified undergraduate business administration student applies in advance of the last semester of undergraduate work to begin study for the master's degree while completing the bachelor's degree.  The student is allowed to enroll in up to six units in selected graduate courses that fulfill undergraduate major requirements while also counting towards the master's degree.

Program Requirements

The MBA program requires 36 semester units of graduate course credit and completion of foundation courses or equivalents.

Foundation Courses These courses provide students with a common body of knowledge in the major functional areas of Business Administration. Students who have not previously had these courses must complete them early in the program.		Units
BA201A	Financial Accounting	3
BA201B	Statistics	3
BA202A	Macroeconomics	3
BA202B	Microeconomics	3
Foundation courses must be/have been completed with a grade of C- or better.
MBA Core Courses These courses are designed to prepare students in the functional areas traditionally comprising the field of Business Administration. Students must enroll in all of the courses:		Units
BA200	Organizational and Management Theory	3
BA205	Enterprise Information Management Systems	3
BA212	Legal and Ethical Dimensions of Business	3
BA230	Management Accounting	3
BA260	Marketing Planning and Analysis	3
BA280	Global Operations Management	3
BA283	Corporate Financial Management	3
BA292	Business Policy (Capstone)	3
Core Total		24
Area of Emphasis		12
Total		36
AREAS OF EMPHASIS
The emphasis courses consist of twelve additional graduate units in one or a combination of the following areas:
Finance In order to qualify for a specialization in Finance, students take at least three finance courses plus a fourth elective that may be chosen from any MBA area.		Units
BA225	Derivatives and Risk Management	3
BA227	Investments	3
BA228	Government Budget and Finance	3
BA231	International Finance	3
Human Resource Management In order to qualify for a specialization in Human Resource Management, students take BA220 Human Resource Management and at least two human resource management courses plus one elective that may be chosen from any MBA area.		Units
BA215	Conflict Management	3
BA219	Managing Diversity	3
BA220	Human Resource Management (required)	3
BA221	Labor Management Relations	3
BA235	Recruitment, Training, and Development	3
Marketing In order to qualify for a specialization in Marketing, students take at least three marketing courses plus one elective that may be chosen from any MBA area.		Units
BA256	Advertising Management	3
BA264	Business to Business Marketing	3
BA266	International Marketing	3
BA261	Spatial Analysis for Policymakers	3
General Emphasis		Units
Any 12 units of electives approved by the graduate program advisor.		12

Course Descriptions

BA200 Organizational and Management Theory (3)
A systematic and experimental approach to the analysis of structural components of organizations as well as the behavior of people in them from private to public and nonprofit organizations. The purpose of the course will be to provide the student with a thorough understanding of management theories, contemporary management application issues, and organizational models as they relate to organizational culture and structure. Cross-listed with PA200 and SY200.

BA201A Financial Accounting (3)

Cross-listed with AC003.  See Business Administration Day listings for course description.  AC003A recommended as prerequisite if have not taken AC002 or equivalent.  See Intensive Business Administration listings for course description.

BA201B Statistics (3)

Cross-listed with EC102.  See Business Administration Day listings for course description.

BA 202A Macroeconomics (3)
Examines forces and factors which impact overall performance of the national economic system. Includes national income accounting, monetary and fiscal policy, the banking system, and approaches to economic analysis. Cross-listed with EC001A (Intensive).

BA202B Microeconomics (3)
Examines the behavior of industries, firms, and households as they relate to supply and demand. Profit maximization, equilibrium prices and outputs, competition and monopoly, and techniques of economic analysis are explored in detail. Cross-listed with EC001B (Intensive).

BA205 Enterprise Information Management Systems (3)
Prerequisite: BA200
Focuses on how the enterprise manages the strategic and operational decision-making for organizations in private and public sectors.  Topics cover role of management information systems in finance, research and development, marketing, production, sales, and customer support value chain.  Knowledge management principles and practices for enabling the strategic alignment and for promoting collaborative problem-solving between virtual enterprise stakeholders are emphasized.

BA206 Business Systems Modeling (3)
Partial online course. Cross-listed with SY221. See MSM listings for course description.

BA207 Decision Support: Forecasting and Optimization (3)

Partial online course. Cross-listed with SY225. See MSM listings for course description.

BA208 Managing Information Systems (3)
Partial online course. Cross-listed with CS263 and SY263. See MSM listings for course description.

BA209 Global Management of Virtual Teams (3)
Partial online course. Cross-listed with SY269. See MSM listings for course description.

BA210 Business Telecommunications: Data, Voice, Multimedia (3)
Partial online course. Cross-listed with SY267. See MSM listings for course description.

BA212 Legal and Ethical Dimensions of Business (3)
Studies the legal, ethical, and value dimensions of the business enterprise. Attention is given to such legal concerns as the court system, regulatory agencies, and specific topics affecting decision-making in commerce. The concept of ethics is viewed from a business perspective while focusing on issues of modern-day relevance.

BA215 Conflict Management (3)
Prerequisite: BA290.

Cross-listed with PA215. See MPA listings for course description.

BA219 Managing Diversity (3)
Cross-listed with PA285. See MPA listings for course description.

BA220 Human Resource Management (3)
Offers an overview of the full personnel function, emphasizing professional responsibilities for employment, compensation, employee and labor relations, benefits administration, legal compliance matters, and human resources planning.
Cross-listed with PA270.

BA221 Labor/Management Relations (3) Prerequisite: BA290.
Cross-listed with PA221. See MPA listings for course description.

BA223 Functions and Policies of Corporate Finance (3)
Prerequisite: BA283.
Gives an in-depth study of selected topics in finance, including modern portfolio theory, capital structure and leverage, capital budgeting, external financing, reorganization and bankruptcy, and mergers and acquisitions. Particular attention is paid to the theoretical bases of

financial concepts, including the Modigliani and Miller propositions and the Capital Asset Pricing Model.

BA225 Derivatives and Risk Management (3)
Prerequisite: BA283.
Studies theoretical and practical applications in derivatives.  Topics include: forwards, futures, swaps, options, hedging strategies, the random walk (Brownian motion) model of stock prices, the Black-Scholes and analytical model, and binomial models.  Concept of real options is introduced to demonstrate how it can be used in corporate finance.  Financial risk management techniques are emphasized throughout.

BA226 Auditing (3)
Graduate course focuses on principles, techniques, and procedures in auditing.

BA227 Investments (3)
Prerequisite: BA283.

Offers a theoretical approach to investment principles, financial market analysis, and products.  Topics include: efficient market theory, risk and return analysis, various theories of risk with emphasis on modern portfolio theory, equities (stocks), fixed income (bonds), and derivative (futures and options) securities.  Students participate in a simulated stock market investment game; online research and trading skills are emphasized.

BA228 Government Budget and Finance (3)
Cross-listed with PA228. See MPA listings for course description.

BA230 Management Accounting (3)

Prerequisite: BA201A

Examines the vital elements of accounting as part of the management process.  Topics include integrated financial statements, capital budgeting, standards and variance analysis, product costing, activity-based costing, and relevant costing in financial decision-making.  (Note: This is a prerequisite to BA283 Corportate Financial Management).

BA231 International Finance (3)
Prerequisites: BA280.
Considers the international monetary systems and the development of international financial transactions, including international payments, balance of payments, international liquidity, international portfolios, direct investments, and international financial institutions.

BA235 Recruitment, Training, and Development (3)
Prerequisite: BA290.
Cross-listed with PA235. See MPA listings for course description.

BA247 Enterprise Performance Management (3)
Partial online course. Cross-listed with SY247. See MSM listings for course description.

BA253 Supply Chain Management (3)
Partial online course. Cross-listed with SY253. See MSM listings for course description.

BA256 Advertising and Integrated Marketing Management (3)
Prerequisite: BA260.
Gives an in-depth analysis of advertising management and execution processes. The advertising campaign, project planning strategies, and tactics are considered in detail. The processes of account, manufacture, retail, and consumer management are reviewed. The course carefully analyzes the role that the advertising team plays in purchasing, marketing, budgeting, and sales promotions.

BA257 Project Management (3)
Partial online course. Cross-listed with SY257. See MSM listings for course description.

BA260 Market Planning and Analysis (3)
Studies the application of marketing as an integrative process. Topics include analysis of markets, planning and product strategies, and developing a balance in marketing decisions that considers prices, channels of distribution, physical movement of goods, communications, advertising, sales force, and other factors. Techniques of instruction include case studies and a group marketing plan presentation. (Note: This is a prerequisite to enrollment in Marketing electives.)

BA261 Spatial Analysis for Policymakers (3)
Cross-lissted with PA261 and SY261. See MPA listings for course description.

BA262 Marketing Research (3)
Prerequisite: BA260
Focuses on the management of the research process. This course provides an in-depth understanding of the methods and procedures involved in research and its role in the decision support system. Emphasis is placed on special market research projects, student discussion, and research team presentations.

BA264 Business-to-Business Marketing (3)
Prerequisite: BA260.
Considers individual and corporate buying behavior from a management perspective. The key differences between business and consumer markets including market structure and demand, the nature of the buying unit, and the types of decisions and the decision processes are explored. These topics are addressed in detail: the organization of buying centers, buying decision processes, problem recognition, need descriptions and prioritization, producer specifications, supplier relationships, and performance and standards requirements.

BA266 International Marketing (3)
Prerequisites: BA260.
Concentrates on the development and application of the knowledge and skills required to manage the marketing process effectively in various cultural environments. Among the topics covered are: organizational frameworks for developing international marketing strategies, sources of competitive advantage in the international arena, sustainability of an international competitive advantage, and international market structure analysis. The relationship among the international marketing trading blocks and other functional strategies in the corporation receive attention.

BA280 Global Operations Management (3)
Prerequisite: BA205
Focuses on how the global enterprise manages the goods and services value transformation process in a manner that is aligned with corporate goals and business strategy. A value-based management approach emphasizes the relationships between activities for product/process design, sourcing, production, delivery, and support using an integrated strategic planning and performance measurement framework. Partial online course. Cross-listed with SY280.

BA283 Corporate Financial Management (3)
Prerequisite: BA230
Considers the valuation of assets and general problems of asset acquisition, financing, and evaluation of corporate financial performance. Provides application of theory to financial decisions involving cash flow management, capital structure planning, capital costs, and risks involved in short-term and long-term financial decisions. (Note: This is a prerequisite to enrollment in Finance electives.)

BA285 Entrepreneurship (3)
Prerequisites: BA260 and BA283.
Evaluates new venture ideas and their conversion into operating entities. Examines the various stages of development of a new firm from concept to establishment. Explores innovation and the use of entrepreneurship within the established, larger organization. Integrates the disciplines of marketing, finance, operations, and organizational behavior to achieve a focused businesses strategy and plan. Provides a structured approach to understanding the same value of new ventures.

BA292 Business Policy (Capstone) (3)
Prerequisites: BA200, BA 205, 212, 230, 260, 280, and 283.
This course is used to integrate and apply the knowledge gained from previous courses with an emphasis on strategic planning, strategy formulation and implementation, analysis of industry and competitive firms, assessment of internal strengths and weaknesses, and the formulation of alternative strategies.

 

Admission Requirements

Students may enter the program at the beginning of any semester and should meet the following requirements:

• A bachelor's degree from an accredited institution
• A cumulative grade point average of 2.5 or better
• The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT)
• Two academic and/or professional recommendations
• Work experience preferred
• A personal interview with the Program Director may be required
• The satisfactory completion of undergraduate coursework in financial accounting, statistics, macroeconomics and microeconomics
• International students should also refer to the general graduate admission requirements.