A comparison of bachelor degree curricula for business programs in South Carolina.

Tolbert, Samuel H. ; Harvey, Stephan E.

INTRODUCTION

A number of South Carolina schools of higher education offer a Bachelor's degree with an emphasis in Management or General Business. The purpose of this study is a comparative analysis of the courses required for the awarding of that degree at universities and colleges in South Carolina. The goal of the study is to determine what commonalities and differences exist between the schools, so administrators and faculty will have comparative information to evaluate curricula.

The content and focus of business or management education has been debated for at least fifty years and has been the focus of several major studies by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. Goetz (1960) and Luck (1961) provide early examples of the call for curricula to be more relevant to actual business practice and less discipline focused. The call to create more relevant curricula continues today.

For instance, the leading accrediting body for business programs, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, provides great latitude to its member schools in developing curricula to achieve each school's mission and program goals (AACSB, 2011: 70). While a general set of topics are outlined the standards clearly state the list is not prescriptive. Historically, schools of business were encouraged to provide a very specific "common body of knowledge" through a specific set of topics to be covered in typically discipline based courses. Gradually, AACSB moved away from this requirement and adopted this mission/goal driven curricula in a evolutionary process (Miles, 2004).

LITERATURE REVIEW

Literature review revealed comparative analysis of required business courses in selected disciplines. Plutsky and Wilson (2000) addresses business communication courses and validated that a prerequisites of computer literacy positively impacted student performance. Etheridge,

Hsu, and Wilson (2001) completed a thorough analysis of programs (bachelors and masters) in E-Business and compared curricula in this specialized area of business education. An innovative methodology for transforming a human resource management curriculum from the traditional to the strategic is described by Thacker (2000), but did not report a comparative analysis of our HRM curricula in the process.

For decades there has been debate in business media and scholarly journals regarding the practical relevance of business education curricula to the world where graduates work. Schoemaker (2008) presents an excellent summary of the need for business education to be more focused on the real world of business practice. Wylie & Piercy (2010) present arguments for and against the current state of business education. While their discussion addresses MBA programs, the conclusions apply to undergraduate programs. Concern is expressed that business educators are more invested in their academic disciplines than in the practical work graduates are asked to perform. They postulate that very little business scholarly research appears to have much practical value to businesses. Additionally, business education focuses on technical skills that are more scientific and does little to develop softer but much needed skills, such as leadership. In "What's wrong with management education?" Altman (2009) answers this question "The point has to be raised: do business schools want to be relevant to business?" and concludes that very few do.

While there is much debate regarding the appropriateness of business curricula, the authors found no recent research analyzing the actual content of curricula. Therefore this paper should be useful in identifying the topic coverage of undergraduate business administration curricula. In conducting this study the authors hypothesized: Although individual business programs should be mission/goals driven, there will be significant similarities between curricula of different schools of business.

METHODOLOGY

The study was designed to include all of the colleges and universities in South Carolina that offer a bachelor's degree in general business administration or management and that have a total institutional enrollment of at least 1,000 students. Table 1 presents 24 schools met these criteria.

In the first phase of data collection, the curriculum at each school was retrieved from the website of each the schools. All courses were listed for each participating school. A total of 763 courses were categorized. The total credit hours listed were verified with the total hours required as published in the catalog of each school. Once the data from each school was collected, the summary were transmitted to the dean or chair of each business program or college to further verify the data collected was accurate. Some changes were received by the authors and were incorporated into the study. Feedback and suggestions were received from some programs and appropriate corrections were made to the analysis. In addition, all catalogs were rechecked to assure comparisons were accurate.

Similarities in curricula were determined by identifying the category of courses where at least at least 75% of the schools required at least one course in the category. The mode (in credit hours) was calculated to determine the "typical" requirement these course categories. Differences were determined by analyzing the other courses where at least four schools required a similar course.

FINDINGS OF STUDY

Points of Similarity

Curricula were compared to determine similarities. Table 3 presents the course categories where 80% or more of the school require at least one course in the category.

In only four categories was there 100% agreement that at least one course should be required: Accounting, Economics, Finance, and Marketing.

Accounting. Accounting courses are considered a vital part of the basic framework of a business. Accounting is applicable to many different positions in the business world, including accounting functions, auditing, management, marketing, and logistics. Recording, processing, and evaluating quantifiable results is vital to a business endeavor. The importance of accounting to business has also been brought to light by the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. With emphasis of top management being responsible for the presence and enforcement of internal controls, companies are now aware of specific accounting requirements. All of the 24 schools required a minimum of six hours of accounting; one school exceeded the minimum with eight hours of required instruction, one school with nine hours, and one school with fifteen hours. 88% of the schools require the typical two course sequence in accounting.

Finance. A Finance course is required at all schools analyzed in this study. Areas of study in finance include investments, valuation, time value of money, working capital management, cost of capital, capital structure, capital budgeting, forecasting, international finance, financial statements and financial statement analysis, and the relationship between risk and return. Most, if not all, of these areas are required for a business today to balance the use and scarcity of resources to accomplish the goal and objectives established for the entity. Twenty schools (83%) require a single finance course and the remaining four require a second 3-hour course.

Economics. The recent "melt-down" of markets and resulting global recession have reinforced the need for business managers to have a solid understanding of economics. Nineteen of the 24 schools (79%) analyzed require the typical microeconomics and macroeconomics course sequence. One school requires only one 3-hour course, three schools require three courses and one requires 15-credit hours in economics.

Marketing. An old adage says "Nothing really happens in business until something is sold." Since the sale involves marketing, all business managers must have a strong foundation in marketing. All of the schools require at least one course in marketing. Twenty-two schools (92%) require 3 credit hours in marketing; one school requires 6 credit hours and another requires 9.

Computer. Computers have revolutionized the business world. They are ubiquitous, constantly changing the business model, and critical to the operation of all businesses. At a minimum, educators seem to be emphasizing the Microsoft Office Suite applications. Twentythree schools (96%) require at least one course in computer applications. There is less agreement on the number of courses to be required. The mode is 6-credits, which is required by 13 schools (54%). Nine require 3-credits and one requires 9.

Strategy. A business strategy course, often considered the "capstone course" can help students coalesce all of their prior business courses, bringing together the theories and business models taught throughout the undergraduate degree program. Twenty-three schools (96%) require a 3-credit course in business strategy.

Quantitative Methods. As part of developing decision-making skills, courses in quantitative methods introduce the student to research and analysis skills. Data collection, analysis, and interpretation are tools the student may use both in business and research. Twentytwo schools (92%) require at least one course in quantitative methods. There is less agreement on the number of courses to be required. The mode is 3-credits, which is required by 14 schools (58%). Eight require 6-credits.

Legal. All businesspersons need a fundamental understanding of business law. The environment of business in the future likely will require more interaction between business and the legal world. Twenty-two schools require (92%) at least one course in the legal aspects of business. Nineteen require the traditional single course and three require two legal courses.

Communications. The ability to be an effective communicator is essential to be an effective manager. The communication of an organization's goals and strategies must be presented in a clear, concise manner. This course category does not include the traditional English 101 and 102. These are taken as a given general education requirement of nearly all higher education institutions, and as such, were not considered required business courses. This category includes courses in public speaking and/or business writing. Twenty-one schools (88%) require at least one course in communications. There is less agreement on the number of courses to be required. The mode is 6-credits, which is required by 13 schools (54%). Eight require 3credits.

Points of Difference

The study reveals interesting differences in curricula. Table 4 summarizes course requirements where there was 50-79% consistency in the course category being required by the schools.

Five categories fell within the requirement range of 50-79% of all schools: Operations, Management Principles, Organization Behavior/Organization Development, Human Resources, and International Business.

Operations. An important facet of a business student's education is the learning of the importance of the operation role in an organization. Nineteen schools (79%) require at least one course in operations management. Eighteen of these require one 3-credit course and one school requires 6-credit hours.

Management Principles. Planning, organizing, leading, and controlling resources are necessary management principles all business students need to learn in their undergraduate courses. Eighteen schools (75%) require a 3-credit course in basic management principles. However, it is believed the remaining six schools offer management principles in courses that could not be clearly categorized in this topic area based on the course title and/or course description.

OB/OD and HR Management. Eleven of the schools (46%) require at least one course in Organization Behavior/Organization Development and another in Human Resource Management. Two require only a course in OB/OD and two require only a single course in HR. Thus, fourteen schools (58%) have a requirement in one area, the other, or both.

International Business. Thirteen schools (54%) require at least a 3-credit course in International Business. One of those requires 9-credit hours. Given the globalization of business it was surprising to the authors that a higher percentage of schools did not include this as requirement.

Points of Divergence

The study reveals interesting differences in curricula. Table 4 summarizes course requirements where there was less than 50% consistency in the course category being required by the schools.

In the study, the researchers isolated a few required courses of special interest: Internship, Entrepreneurship, Ethics, and Introduction to Business.

Internship. The size of the business program, its location and the availability of internship sites, and/or the external network of its faculty may make it impractical to require an internship for all business majors. Only eight schools (33%) have determined it is feasible to include this as a requirement.

Entrepreneurship. Given the seemingly nation-wide interest in entrepreneurship, it is surprising that only four schools (17%) specifically require at least one course in entrepreneurship. A few schools do offer a separate entrepreneurship major or track in their curricula and certainly most offer elective courses in entrepreneurship.

Ethics. Given the exposure of major lapses in business ethics, it is surprising that only four schools (17%) require at least one course in ethics. Many do appear to offer an ethics course as a business elective, however.

Introduction to Business. This course is viewed generally as a strong foundation course; yet only four schools (17%) require at least an introductory business course.

All 24 curricula studied include additional course requirements, which are summarized in Table 5. These include the requirement to take other specific courses or to select electives from a list of management or business related courses.

Other Management Courses. Thirteen schools (54%) require additional management courses which could not be classified in one of the specified management categories. The requirements range widely from 1 to 18 credit hours.

Other Business Courses. Ten schools (42%) require one or more additional specific business courses. The requirements range widely from 1 to 6 credit hours.

Business Electives. Seventeen schools (71%) require that students select course additional electives from a specified set of courses. For these schools, the requirement ranges widely from 3 to 18 hours.

Based on this analysis, there is strong uniformity between most of the schools regarding what should be required in the "basic" business administration curriculum. The composite shown in Table 6 fits the requirements of the "typical" curriculum profiled in this study.

However, it should be noted that the curriculum at only five schools fell within this profile. The remaining schools (19) had variance from this composite in one or more categories; a few have significant variances, but most had only minor variances.

Attached are two tables (Appendices A and B) showing the underlying data for this analysis. These are included to show the basis for the derivations and conclusions found in this study.

LIMITATIONS OF THIS STUDY

Two issues need to be considered limitations of this study. First, the sample size of 24 schools was not sufficient to allow testing of significant differences. Secondly, the authors' categorization of courses by topic area was based on interpretation based on the printed course description; more input from individual schools would improve the accuracy the categorization and curricula requirements.

RECOMMENDATION FOR FUTURE RESEARCH

Future research may concentrate on two areas of additional study. First, the data collected on the schools included in this study could be linked with a comparison of the program mission and goals of the 24 schools. Significant similarities in mission and goals would explain much of the similarity in curricula. Secondly, there are approximately 40 AACSB accredited schools that offer undergraduate-only programs and a similar study of these schools would reveal the extent to which they have mission-driven curricula as required by AACSB accreditation standards or are following the traditional topic/discipline course requirements.

CONCLUSIONS

This analysis was performed to find similarities and differences of the courses required for a Bachelor's degree with an emphasis in Management awarded by the state-supported schools in South Carolina. The selected schools show very limited differences. Although individual schools have slightly varied requirements, it is very evident that the requirements for a Bachelors degree in Business Administration or Management are similar throughout the colleges and universities in South Carolina.

It does appear that larger schools give students more flexibility in the business courses. This may be feasible due to larger faculty size and the opportunity to offer additional course choices than smaller school. Future expansion of this research may involve comparative analysis of neighboring states or similarly-sized schools. Related areas of research may involve other business degrees, such as accounting, economics, finance, or marketing. Comparative analysis allows each school to determine if their school's degree requirements are staying abreast of local or regional changes, along with professional and market modifications.

Appendix A

Business Course Categories with 80%+ of Schools Requiring at
least One Course

                      Accounting   Finance   Economics

Anderson                      6         6           6
Benedict                      6         3           9
Bob Jones                     8         6           6
Citadel                       6         3           6
Claflin                       6         3           6
Clemson                       9         3           9
Coastal                       6         3           6
C of C                        6         3           6
Coker                         6         3           6
Columbia                      6         3           9
C Southern                    6         3           6
Francis Marion                6         3           6
Furman                        6         3           6
Lander                        6         3           6
Limestone                     6         3           6
NGU                          15         3          12
Presbyterian                  6         3           6
SC State                      6         6           6
SWU                           6         6           6
USC                           6         3           6
USC-A                         6         3           6
USC-B                         6         3           6
USC-U                         6         3           3
Winthrop                      6         3           6
Average                     6.6       3.5         6.5

"% Requiring               100%      100%        100%
# of Schools                 24        24          24
Typical Requirement           6         3           6
% Typical                   88%       83%         79%
# of Schools                 21        20          19

                      Marketing    Computer  Strategy

Anderson                      3         6           3
Benedict                      3         3           3
Bob Jones                     6         6           3
Citadel                       3         6           3
Claflin                       3         3           3
Clemson                       3         6           3
Coastal                       3         6           3
C of C                        3         3           3
Coker                         3                     3
Columbia                      3         3           3
C Southern                    3         6           3
Francis Marion                3         6           3
Furman                        3         3           3
Lander                        9         6           3
Limestone                     3         6           3
NGU                           3        12           3
Presbyterian                  3         3           3
SC State                      3         3           3
SWU                           3         6           3
USC                           3         3           3
USC-A                         3         3           3
USC-B                         3         6
USC-U                         3         6           3
Winthrop                      3         6           3
Average                     3.4       4.9         2.9

"% Requiring               100%       96%         96%
# of Schools                 24        23          23
Typical Requirement           3         6           3
% Typical                   92%       54%         96%
# of Schools                 22        13          23

                      Quant Meth   Legal     Communications

Anderson                      3         3           3
Benedict                      6         3           6
Bob Jones                     6         6           6
Citadel                       3         3           3
Claflin                       6         3           6
Clemson                       6         3           3
Coastal                       3         3           6
C of C                        3         3
Coker                                   3           3
Columbia                                3           6
C Southern                    6         6           6
Francis Marion                3         3           6
Furman                        3                     3
Lander                        6         3           6
Limestone                     3         3           3
NGU                           3         6           6
Presbyterian                  3         3
SC State                      6         3           3
SWU                           3         3
USC                           3         3           6
USC-A                         3                     6
USC-B                         3         3           6
USC-U                         3         3           3
Winthrop                      6         3           6
Average                     3.8       3.1         4.3

"% Requiring                92%       92%         88%
# of Schools                 22        22          21
Typical Requirement           3         3           6
% Typical                   58%       79%         54%
# of Schools                 14        19          13

Appendix B

Other Business Course Required by at least Four Schools

                                   Mgt
                      Operations   Principles   O.B.   HR

Anderson                      3            3
Benedict                      3            3      3     3
Bob Jones                     3            3      3
Citadel                       3            3      3
Claflin                       3            3      3     3
Clemson                       3            3      3     3
Coastal                       3                   3     3
C of C                        3            3
Coker                                      3
Columbia                                   3
C Southern                    3            3            3
Francis Marion                3                         3
Furman                        3
Lander                        3            3      3     3
Limestone                                  3
NGU                                        3
Presbyterian                  3                   3
SC State                      3            3      3     3
SWU                                        3      3     3
USC                           3            3      3     3
USC-A                         3            3      3     3
USC-B                         3            3      3     3
USC-U                         6                   6     3
Winthrop                      3
Average                     2.5          2.3    1.9   1.6

"% Requiring                79%          75%    58%   54%
# of Schools                 19           18     14    13
Typical Requirement           3            3      3     3
% Typical                   75%          75%    58%   54%
# of Schools                 18           18     14    13

                      International   Internship   Entrepreneurship

Anderson                         3            3
Benedict                         3            3
Bob Jones                        3            6
Citadel
Claflin                          3            3
Clemson                          9
Coastal                          3
C of C
Coker
Columbia                         3            4
C Southern                       3
Francis Marion                                                   3
Furman
Lander
Limestone
NGU                              3            3
Presbyterian
SC State                         3            2                  3
SWU                                           3
USC
USC-A                            3                               6
USC-B                            3                               3
USC-U                            3
Winthrop
Average                        1.9          1.1                0.6

"% Requiring                   54%          33%                17%
# of Schools                    13            8                  4
Typical Requirement              3            0                  0
% Typical                      50%          67%                83%
# of Schools                    12           16                 20

                                       Other   Other   Business
                      Ethics   Intro   Mgt     Bus     Electives

Anderson                                                     12
Benedict                                  3                   6
Bob Jones                                 6
Citadel                                   3                  12
Claflin                                           3          18
Clemson                                  18
Coastal                   3               9       3
C of C
Coker                                                        12
Columbia                                          3          12
C Southern                3                                  12
Francis Marion                    3       9                   6
Furman                                                        9
Lander                                    3       1           3
Limestone                 3                                  15
NGU                       3       3               1
Presbyterian                                                 12
SC State                          3               2           9
SWU                               3       1       4
USC                                       6                   9
USC-A                                     6       3           6
USC-B                                     3       6
USC-U                                     3                   6
Winthrop                                  3       3          18
Average                 0.5     0.5     3.0     1.2         7.4

"% Requiring            17%     17%     54%     42%         71%
# of Schools              4       4      13      10          17
Typical Requirement       0       0       0       0          12
% Typical               83%     83%     46%     58%         25%
# of Schools             20      20      11      14           6

REFERENCES

AACSB (2011). Eligibility Procedures and Accreditation Standards for Business Accreditation. Tampa, FL; Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business International.

Altman, W. (2009). What's wrong with management education? Engineering & Technology (17509637), 4(6), 76-79.

Anderson University, (2009). Retrieved June 14, 2009, from http://www.anderson.edu/academics/

Benedict College, (2009). Retrieved June 14, 2009, from http://www.benedict.edu/academics.html

Bob Jones University, (2009). Retrieved June 14, 2009, from http://www.bju.edu/academics/

Charleston Southern University, (2009). Retrieved June 15, 2009, from http://www.csuniv.edu/academics/index.asp

Citadel, (2009). Retrieved June 21, 2009, from http://www.citadel.edu/r3/academics/majors/index.shtml

Claflin University, (2009). Retrieved June 14, 2009, from http://www.claflin.edu/Academics.html

Clemson University, (2009). Retrieved June 21, 2009, from http://www.clemson.edu/academics/

Coastal Carolina University, (2009). Retrieved June 21, 2009, from http://www.coastal.edu/academics/

College of Charleston, (2009). Retrieved June 21, 2009, from http://www.cofc.edu/academics/index.html

Coker College, (2009). Retrieved June 14, 2009, from http://www.coker.edu/academics/index.html

Columbia College, (2009). Retrieved June 14, 2009, from http://www.columbiasc.edu/academics/

Etheridge, H., Hsu, K., & Wilson Jr., T. (2001). E-Business Education at AACSB-Affiliated Business Schools: A Survey of Programs and Curricula. Journal of Education for Business, 76(6), 328-331.

Francis Marion University, (2009). Retrieved June 21, 2009, from http://www.fmarion.edu/academics

Furman University, (2009). Retrieved June 14, 2009, from http://www.furman.edu/depts/bac/

Goetz, B. E. (1960). Reorientation of Management Education. Journal of the Academy of Management, 3(3), 183.

Lander University, (2009). Retrieved June 14, 2009, from http://www.lander.edu/academics/colleges/

Limestone College, (2009). Retrieved June 15, 2009, from http://www.limestone.edu/businessadmin.htm

Luck, T. J., Davis, R. C., Derby, E. M., Hong, E. N., & Chapman, J. C. (1961). Report on

Management Education--Curriculum Committee. Academy of Management Proceedings (00650668), 70.

Miles, M. P., Hazeldine, M. F., & Munilla, L. S. (2004). The 2003 AACSB Accreditation Standards and Implications for Business Faculty: A Short Note. Journal of Education for Business, 80(1), 29-34.

North Greenville University, (2009). Retrieved June 14, 2009, from http://www.ngu.edu/s/858/internal.aspx?sid=858&gid=1&pgid=374

Wylie, I., & Piercy, N. (2010). Mba & Business Education Guide Spring 2010. Management Today, 61-65.

Plutsky, S., & Wilson, B. (2000). Study to Validate Prerequisites in Business Communication for Student Success. Journal of Education for Business, 76(1), 15. Retrieved from Business Source Premier database.

Presbyterian College, (2009). Retrieved June 14, 2009, from http://www.presby.edu/acad/index.html

SC Higher Education Statistical Abstract 2009, SC Commission on Higher Education, Columbia, SC, July 2009.

Schoemaker, P. (2008). The Future Challenges of Business: Rethinking Management Education. California Management Review, 50 (3), 119-139.

Thacker, R. (2000). Shifting the human resource management curriculum from the traditional to the strategic: description of a process for curriculum revision. International Journal of Leadership in Education, 3(4), 399-409.

South Carolina State University, (2009). Retrieved June 21, 2009, from http://www.scsu.edu/academics.aspx

Southern Wesleyan University, (2009). Retrieved June 14, 2009, from http://www.swu.edu/academics/index.htm

University of South Carolina, (2009). Retrieved June 16, 2009, from http://mooreschool.sc.edu/moore/undergraduate

University of South Carolina-Aiken, (2009). Retrieved June 16, 2009, from http://www.usca.edu/soba/management.html

University of South Carolina--Beaufort, (2009). Retrieved June 15, 2009, from http://www.uscb.edu/a/Academics/?page_id=5

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About the Authors:

Sam Tolbert is Associate Professor of Health Care Management and Director of Business Internships at Lander University (Greenwood, SC) where teaches health care management and general business courses. Prior to joining Lander in 2000, Mr. Tolbert had a 25 year career as a health care executive and is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. He has published ten refereed articles.

Steve Harvey was Associate Professor of Business Administration at Upper Iowa University (Fayette, IA) at the time this manuscript was written. The research was conducted when he was Assistant Professor of Accounting at Lander University in Greenwood, SC. Prior to joining Lander in 2007, he had a 25 year career with a major pharmaceutical corporation. He has earned a Doctor of Science in Information and Communication, is a Certified Information System Auditor, and a member of the American Accounting Association.

Samuel H. Tolbert

Lander University

Stephan E. Harvey

Upper Iowa University

Table 1

List of School and Enrollment

                                              Total School
                                              Enrollment
School                                        Fall 2008 *

Anderson University                              2,064
Benedict College                                 2,883
Bob Jones University                             4,141
Claflin College                                  1,773
The Citadel                                      3,328
Clemson University                              18,317
Coastal Carolina University                      8,154
College of Charleston (C of C)                  11,367
Coker College                                    1,099
Columbia College                                 1,445
Charleston Southern University (C Southern)      3,200
Francis Marion University                        4,020
Furman University                                2,977
Lander University                                2,614
Limestone College                                3,255
North Greenville University (NGU)                2,160
Presbyterian College                             1,177
SC State University                              4,888
Southern Wesleyan University (SWU)               2,391
USC-Columbia (USC-C)                            27,488
USC-Aiken (USC-A)                                3,232
USC-Beaufort (USC-B)                             2,502
USC-Upstate (USC-U)                              5,063
Winthrop University                              6,249

* Headcount from SC Higher Education Statistical Abstract 2009,
page 19-20; Abbreviations used in the appendices are shown in
parentheses.

Table 2

Curricula with 75%+ Agreement in Course Categories

                       % Requiring 1 or more courses

Course Category        % Requiring   # Schools

Accounting                100%          24
Finance                   100%          24
Economics                 100%          24
Marketing                 100%          24
Computer                   96%          23
Strategy                   96%          23
Quantitative Methods       92%          22
Legal                      92%          22
Communications             88%          21

                          Typical Requirement

Course Category        Hours   % Typical   # Schools

Accounting               6        88%          21
Finance                  3        83%          20
Economics                6        79%          19
Marketing                3        92%          22
Computer                 6        54%          13
Strategy                 3        96%          23
Quantitative Methods     3        58%          14
Legal                    3        79%          19
Communications           6        54%          13

Table 3

Curricula with 50-79% Agreement in Course Categories

                             % Requiring 1 or more courses

Course Category              % Requiring   # Schools

Operations                       78%          19
Management Principles            75%          18
Organizational Behavior/OD       58%          14
Human Resource Management        54%          13
International Business           54%          13

                                 Typical Requirement

Course Category              Hours   % Typical   # Schools

Operations                     3         75%         18
Management Principles          3         75%         18
Organizational Behavior/OD     3         58%         14
Human Resource Management      3         54%         13
International Business         3         50%         12

Table 4

Curricula with less than 50% Agreement in Course Categories

                           % Requiring 1 or more courses

Course Category            % Requiring   # Schools

Internship                 33%           8
Entrepreneurship           17%           4
Ethics                     17%           4
Introduction to Business   17%           4
Other Management Courses   54%           13
Other Business Courses     33%           8
Business Electives         71%           17

                               Typical Requirement

Course Category            Hours         % Typical    # Schools

Internship                 0             67%          16
Entrepreneurship           0             83%          20
Ethics                     0             83%          20
Introduction to Business   0             83%          20
Other Management Courses   3             25%           6
Other Business Courses     0             67%          16
Business Electives         6-9           29%           7

Table 5

Other Business Course Requirements

Course Category            % Requiring 1 or more courses

                           % Requiring   # Schools

Other Management Courses   54%           13
Other Business Courses     33%           8
Business Electives         71%           17

                           Typical Requirement

                           Hours   % Typical    # Schools

Other Management Courses   3           25%          6
Other Business Courses     0           67%         16
Business Electives         6-9         29%          7

Table 6

Typical Curriculum based on Profile

Course Category          Credit Hours

Accounting                      6
Finance                         3
Economics                       6
Marketing                       3
Computer Applications         3-6
Strategy                        3
Quantitative Methods          3-6
Legal Studies                   3
Communications                3-6
Operations Management           3
Management Principles           3
OB/OD and/or HR               3-6
International Business          3
Total                       45-54