Business Concentration

Coordinator:
Betty T. Kane, Business Management Department

The Business concentration provides students with basic business concepts and tools that can be applied to enhance the application and marketability of their liberal arts education, as well as prepare them to understand and participate more effectively in the world of work. This concentration will provide grounding for non-management majors in practical applications that will serve them well throughout their lives and will assist them in relating and using their liberal arts majors in personally and professionally rewarding careers. Students will gain a basic understanding of the world of business, its global aspects and ethical issues. This concentration should be a helpful addition on a transcript for job applications in any field.             

The Business concentration provides a structure within which students gain an exposure to business concepts and tools through introductory coursework and apply them in an experiential and/or interdisciplinary component. Students may complete an internship that is focused on the student's particular area of interest; alternatively, students with prior applicable work experience may do an independent study that requires them to integrate their coursework with the work experience. Students may substitute an approved business-related IDS 400 course for the internship or independent study.   

This concentration in Business is not available to Business Management majors.

Requirements

A minimum of 17 credit hours is required:

  • ACCT 201: Introduction to Accounting
  • BUS 120: Introduction to Business or BUS 249: Principles of Management
  • BUS 215: Business Law
  • Focus Course (see below)
  • Experiential and/or Interdiscipinary Component - can be fulfilled by one of the following:
    • Internship (2-4 hours) in area of focus
    • Independent study (1-4 hours) supervised by a full-time business faculty member and relating to and processing prior work experience
    • IDS 402: Business Ethics, or another business-related IDS course approved by the concentration coordinator.

The focus course may be chosen from a wide variety of courses to provide each student with more depth in a particular area. Examples of current courses that could serve as the focus course include: BUS 331: Sales Management, BUS 321: Human Resource Management, BUS 371: Nonprofit Management, SPST 130: Introduction to Sport Management, and BUS 349: International Management. Students should consult with the coordinator to select an appropriate focus course for the concentration.