The Undergraduate Business Program provides students with an education to facilitate their access to management employment track positions, entrepreneurial ventures and/or other graduate educational programs.
The key features of this educational program include: international orientation of the business curriculum, faculty and student body; class size, faculty interaction and innovative pedagogy conducive to an efficient learning environment; course work that promotes abilities to communicate and perform effectively as decision makers; core curriculum that exposes students adequately to the major business disciplines of accounting, mathematics and statistics, economics, finance, management and organizational behavior, law, marketing, information and technology, and operations; and the opportunity to develop further expertise in a concentration area through specific business majors.
Curriculum Overview
The McLaren School of Management continually updates its curriculum to satisfy the latest AACSB requirements and to assure that its students receive the full experience of studying at an excellent liberal arts university. Recognizing our students as individuals with unique interests and talents, the faculty have designed the business curriculum to support the focus and breadth each individual student requires. Course requirements are divided into the following areas:
- University Core Curriculum
- General Electives
- Business Core Curriculum and Foundation Coursework
- Major Courses
Core Curriculum — University
To assure a broad liberal arts education and a solid grounding in the basics of business, all business students must complete 44 credits in the Core Curriculum. The Core Curriculum is required of all USF undergraduates and covers topics ranging from a foundation in the liberal arts, communication and math skills through the social sciences and ethics. Core Curriculum course requirements are listed under the Core Curriculum section in this catalog.
General Electives
A minimum of 22 credits of general electives may be taken from various areas of interest. Elective courses range from languages to exercise sports to computer skills. Electives may also be used to fulfill prerequisite requirements.
Business Core and Foundation
The business core and foundation courses cover the basic business topics needed for a career in business. Consistent with the direction of business today, the business core at the McLaren School of Management highlights issues related to the global business environment, diversity and ethics. Oral and written communication and critical thinking are also stressed throughout the curriculum.
All Business majors must complete a set of business foundation and core courses. The required foundation courses are also used to satisfy University Core Curriculum requirements (see faculty advisor or CASA). Students must maintain at least a C (2.0) cumulative grade point average in their foundation and business core coursework.
Required Foundation Courses / University Core
Business Core Courses (40 credits)
Senior Capstone Course:
Major Courses
To permit greater depth in an area of personal interest, students may concentrate in a specific business major. The curriculum for each of the majors includes 20 credits of major coursework. Undergraduate business majors select a major from Accounting, Business Administration, Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Finance, Hospitality Industry Management, International Business, Organizational Behavior and Leadership, and Marketing. All Business majors must complete 20 credits of major coursework and must maintain at least a C (2.0) cumulative grade point average in the coursework applied to their major. Business students may elect to complete multiple majors as part of their business degree, but must complete 20 unique credits and the course requirements for each major. Faculty Advisors work with students to help select elective work within their major.
