2023-2024 Graduate Catalog Master of Business Administration

The MBA degree assumes an undergraduate knowledge base in business and economics which students with undergraduate degrees in business will normally have acquired.

Students admitted with nonbusiness undergraduate degrees may have to complete Pre-MBA Program courses before enrolling in the MBA core courses. Specific requirements will be determined by the Associate Dean for Academic Programs and Curriculum (hereafter referred to as "Associate Dean"). The responsibility for demonstrating prior academic coverage of the material at the appropriate level rests with the student and should be completed at least one month prior to the beginning of the first semester of course work. Students who have not taken college algebra, economics, accounting, finance, and/or statistics within the past five years are strongly encouraged to take the Pre-MBA Program courses as a refresher prior to their first core course.

Students with a non-business undergraduate degree should expect to complete some or all of the following Pre-MBA Program courses online. 

• Fundamentals of Economics 
• Financial Accounting
• Managerial Accounting 
• Principles of Management 
• Principles of Marketing 
• Business Math and Statistics 
• Understanding Corporate Finance 
• Business Law Essentials

In addition to any Pre-MBA Program courses required, some or all of which may be waived based on an individual's previous academic work, all MBA candidates must complete one of the following sequences:

Traditional MBA Sequence

36 semester hours required:

• 9 hours of beginning skill core courses: MBA 411, MBA 412, MBA 416 
• 15 hours of central core courses: MBA 421, MBA 427, MBA 430, MBA 440, MBA 450; Students who have successfully completed 12 or more undergraduate semester hours in a required core area may be eligible to substitute a 400-level elective in that area for the required core course. 
• 3 hour capstone course: MBA 485 
• 9 hours of 400-level graduate business or other pre-approved elective courses. (Graduate courses at the 300-level may not be taken to fulfill the MBA elective requirements). In consultation with a Master of Business Administration advisor, students can choose from among a wide offering of elective courses to design a Plan of Study. The choice should be congruent with each student's goals. Elective courses are offered based on student demand. Elective courses taken outside the College of Business require prior approval by the Associate Dean and often involve additional course work to fulfill prerequisites.

Corporate MBA Sequence (CMBA)

36 semester hours required:

• 9 hours of beginning skill core courses: MBA 411, MBA 412, MBA 416
• 15 hours of central core courses: MBA 421, MBA 427, MBA 430, MBA 440, MBA 450
• 3 hour capstone course: MBA 485
• 9 hours of 400-level graduate business or other pre-approved elective courses. The CMBA is a cohort program. Students vote to choose which three electives the cohort will take.

Panama MBA Sequence

42 semester hours required:

• 9 hours of beginning skill core courses: MBA 411, MBA 412, MBA 416
• 18 hours of central core courses: MBA 421, MBA 427, MBA 430, MBA 440, MBA 450, BIS 468; 
• 3 hour capstone course: MBA 485
• 12 hours of 300- and 400-level graduate business or other pre-approved elective courses. They include; FIL 344, MKT 433, MKT 439.15 and MGT 430.

Students in any of the MBA sequences, without relevant full-time work experience, are encouraged to consider a professional practice internship as an elective choice; up to three (3) hours of professional practice credit (498 in the ACC, FIL, MKT, and MGT departments) may be used in the Plan of Study toward the degree. A thesis may be substituted for up to six hours of elective course work. Please refer to the thesis section elsewhere in this catalog for Graduate School policies on thesis work.

Course Limitations

No more than a total of three (3) credits can be counted from any 400 (Independent Study) and 498 (Internship) courses. Exceptions must be approved by the Associate Dean. Credit will not be given for course numbers below 400 (no 300-level graduate course will be counted in a Traditional or Corporate MBA Plan of Study). All core and elective courses must be completed within six years from the time of taking the first core course.

Credit-Hour Limitations for Non-Business Graduate Students

While other graduate programs on campus may require and/or give elective credit for selected MBA courses, non-MBA graduate students will not be permitted to exceed 12 credit hours of MBA course work. Non-business students seeking to enroll in MBA courses will first need to obtain their major advisor’s permission to register for classes and then must submit to the MBA Office an online override request form. Permission to enroll is dependent upon space availability in the requested course(s) and prior completion of prerequisites. MBA students will have priority in registration.

Courses

Descriptions of courses leading to the MBA degree are found under the Departments of Finance, Insurance and Law; Management; Marketing; Accounting; and Master of Business Administration.

Repetition of Courses in the MBA Program

A student may register officially for an MBA course (core or elective) only twice. A student who completes a course or drops a course after census day (the tenth day of the semester) may officially enroll in the same course only one additional time.