COLLEGE OF BUSINESS

Robert E. Niebuhr, Dean
Virginia M. Moore, Associate Dean
Gary C. Pickett, Associate Dean

PHILOSOPHY AND OBJECTIVES

The mission of the TTU College of Business is to excel in preparing students for business and business-related careers by blending scholarship and business experience in quality undergraduate programs and a case-oriented MBA program.

The College's highest level of dedication is to its academic program exemplified by its focus on excellence in instruction, which is supported by a commitment to scholarly activity and intellectual contribution by the faculty and interaction with business and industry. We believe that teaching, research, and service are interdependent components of our mission. The following values guide us in striving for excellence in these three areas identified in order of relative emphasis:

Teaching--We encourage our faculty to be sensitive to the educational needs of our students and to strive for excellence in teaching skills and content.

We seek to educate business leaders and potential leaders who are capable of making lasting contributions to business and society and who are also skilled in using an interdisciplinary approach to decision making in an increasingly global and technology-dependent business environment.

Intellectual Contributions--We encourage our faculty to engage primarily in applied research and scholarly activities that provide insights into business practice. We believe such scholarly activity should be a career-long endeavor of faculty engaged in educating current and future business leaders and that such activity enhances the effectiveness of classroom instruction and external interaction.

Service--All members of the business school faculty are encouraged to share their expertise to benefit external constituencies and to offer opportunities for students and faculty to apply their skills and knowledge. We believe these activities and involvement with business and government leaders significantly increase the abilities of faculty to deliver current information in the classroom and that they build important bridges between the academic community and our external constituencies.

We encourage professional and service endeavors that strengthen relationships with the broader academic community--activities within this University, interaction with other universities, and involvement in professional organizations.

The College offers the B.S.B.A. degree that is structured on a firm base of liberal education courses, a core area of business studies, and an area of specialization. We seek to prepare students from culturally diverse backgrounds for careers in business. In the degree, the College seeks to:

1. Develop an analytical approach to sound business decisions.
2. Develop understanding and appreciation of the social, ethical, legal, political, and economic environment of business.
3. Promote appreciation of the civic and social obligations of business managers.
4. Develop understanding and appreciation of business in its international context.
5. Equip students to respond to the demands of business in a changing technological environment.
6. Create a professional attitude and provide the foundation for professional competence in a chosen career specialization.

The business program includes studies in three major categories: general education, the business core, and a major field of specialization. The core courses and the distribution of credit hours for the three categories of studies are listed as follows:

ADMISSION

See Admission for requirements for admission to the University.

CBA RETENTION POLICY

Any student majoring in the College of Business must have a cumulative QPA of at least 2.0 upon reaching junior status (60 hours) to be eligible to enroll in upper-division (3000- and 4000-level) courses.

A student who does not meet these requirements must make a reasonable effort, in consultation with the advisor, to repeat 1000- and 2000-level courses as soon as the courses are next offered to bring the QPA to a 2.0.

Having met these requirements, the student must maintain at least a 2.0 overall average, as well as a cumulative 2.0 in all business courses.

A student who does not maintain these averages for any two consecutive semesters after becoming a junior will be required to repeat upper-division courses to raise the average to the required level.

All repetition of courses shall be in accordance with the university policy governing course repetition as described in this Catalog.

DIVERSITY PROGRAM

The College of Business administers a diversity scholarship endowment designed to encourage individuals of diverse backgrounds to enter the College and pursue careers in business.

REQUIREMENTS FOR DEGREE

Each curriculum in the College of Business Administration leads to the degree of Bachelor of Science in Business. To obtain a degree, the student must complete the curriculum for the major subject chosen and comply with the general requirements of the University. Advisors in the Division of Basic Business serve as academic counselors for the first two years or until Basic Business requirements have been completed. The department chairperson, or a faculty member designated by the chairperson, serves as the student's academic advisor for the junior and senior years.

At least 50 percent of all business credit hours and 50 percent of upper-division hours in the major must be earned at Tennessee Technological University.

PRE-LAW

Dr. Virginia Moore, Advisor

The pre-law student may complete the requirements for a degree in any curriculum of the College of Business with a major in accounting, business management, economics, finance, marketing, or World Cultures and Business (joint degree with the College of Arts and Sciences). A college degree and a satisfactory score on the Law School Admission Test are generally required for admission to an approved law school. The pre-law program in business is designed to supplement departmental counseling and to assist the student in planning a program for a career in law. The pre-law advisor provides the information relevant to professional law programs, admission requirements, and standards.

B.S. in WORLD CULTURES AND BUSINESS

This joint-degree program, shared by the College of Business and the College of Arts and Sciences, is designed to prepare American and international students for the arena of international relations and trade. Track 1, designed for American students, emphasizes competence in basic and international business, a high level of proficiency in foreign languages, and solidly grounded knowledge of foreign cultures and the world business community. Track 2, designed for international students, offers specialized concentrations in American studies and aspects of American and international business cultures. The capstone course for both Tracks 1 and 2 is a domestic or international internship (WCB 4980). Track 1 students may also choose to spend a semester or year studying abroad in order to improve their foreign language proficiency and deepen their knowledge of foreign cultures.

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

The MBA is intended for business and non-business undergraduate majors and experienced managers. For details of the MBA program, see the Bulletin of the Graduate School.

ORGANIZATION

Departments and Undergraduate Curricula

The College of Business includes the following departments, which offer curricula as follows:

Individual curricula
Course descriptions

DIVISION OF BASIC BUSINESS

Julie Galloway, Director/Advisor
Advisors: Sarah Khleif, Katharine Kumar, Rebecca Leimer

All students entering into the College of Business are admitted through the Division of Basic Business. This division ensures that preparation for upper-division business studies is both thorough and properly sequenced. Freshmen who begin their studies at TTU, as well as those who transfer to the College from other majors or from other schools, are included in the division.

While assigned to the division, students complete a curriculum that is standard for all business majors. For beginning students, the Basic Business program requires two years of full-time study. Transfer credits are evaluated and applied as appropriate. As a focus within the division, individualized academic advisement receives special emphasis.

Students satisfactorily completing the Basic Business program may affiliate with an upper-division major. Students must complete at least 60 semester hours, including mathematics, English, science, history, humanities, communications and all required sophomore-level business courses, with at least a 2.0 quality point average (QPA). Students should apply for affiliation with the upper-division major through the Division of Basic Business during the last semester of the sophomore year.

Transfer students remain in the division until they complete the required program. If their evaluated transcripts reveal that they have the necessary credits and QPA, they may affiliate with a major immediately.

Basic Business students must complete the required program of studies before enrolling in upper-division business courses.

DEPARTMENT OF ACCOUNTING

Professor Elmore, Chairperson; Professors Booker, Caldwell, Fesler, Maples, Swanson;
Associate Professors Moore (Associate Dean), Earles, Rand

The objective of the accounting program is to provide the educational foundation for careers in accounting. The program includes both general and special education. Courses in the arts, sciences, and business areas are required. A wide variety of accounting courses provide flexibility for different accounting specialties. The curriculum is designed to help students gain initial employment and successfully advance in such specializations as public accounting, internal auditing, taxation, and business and industrial accounting. The accounting program contains courses to meet all requirements of the state's 150-hour law for CPA candidacy.

DEPARTMENT OF
DECISION SCIENCES AND MANAGEMENT

Professor Pickett, Chairperson and Associate Dean; Chairs of Excellence Guimaraes (J.E. Owen Chair of Excellence in Management Information Systems), Reimann (W. Eugene Mayberry Chair of Excellence in Quality and Technology Management); Professors Bell (President), Carlson, Lerner, Natarajan (W. Eugene Mayberry Professor of Management), Niebuhr (Dean), Wells; Associate Professors Armstrong, Huguenard,  Matson, Miller, Pineda, Timmerman; Assistant Professors Barger, Jones

The department offers the Business Management major with a choice of four options: General Management (BUMA); Human Resource Management (BUHR); Production/Operations Management (BUPR); and Management Information Systems (BUIN).

The General Management option is designed for the student desiring broad managerial expertise and curriculum exposure to a variety of business areas. This program is characterized by an emphasis on advanced organizational management skills.

The Human Resource Management option prepares students for career opportunities in human resource management in both the public and private sector. The curriculum focuses on conflict management and negotiations, leadership and employee development, compensation administration, and employment practices.

The Production/Operations Management option is designed to prepare graduates for careers in effective operations management, with a focus on analytically based decision making and the improvement of quality and productivity. Characteristic of this option is the emphasis on the management of the resources, processes, and technologies used to create goods and services in both manufacturing and non-manufacturing environments.

The Management Information Systems option is designed to prepare students for various careers in the area of business information systems. The curriculum is characterized by an emphasis on analytical methods for business problem solving, information technology applications, and business systems design and implementation.

In addition to offering the four options of study, a primary mission of the department is to provide a significant amount of the core coursework in organizational behavior, analytical methods, management information systems, operations management, and business strategy, to support other undergraduate majors offered in the College of Business, as well as the graduate program in business.

The department houses two distinguished professorships in the state's program of chairs of excellence allowing universities to attract eminent faculty and individuals of national and international prominence as chairholders. In the department is the J.E. Owen Chair of Excellence in Management Information Systems held by Dr. Tor Guimaraes, a scholar of international distinction. In addition, the department has the W. Eugene Mayberry Chair of Excellence in Quality and Technology Management held by Dr. Curt Reimann, senior scientist emeritus of the National Institute of Standards and Technology and retired director of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. This distinguished position is named in honor of Dr. W. Eugene Mayberry, retired chairman of the board of governors of the Mayo Clinic. 

DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS,
FINANCE, AND MARKETING

Professor Stephens, Chairperson; Professors Mann, Martin, Pharr, Pashley, Rappl, Throckmorton, Weinrauch, Wood; Associate Professors Isbell, Jonakin, Wiant; Assistant Professors Anitsal, DiFurio

The program in economics is designed to provide a sound preparation for those who expect to pursue professional careers in economics, as well as other areas in business, and to provide service courses for non-business majors. The major emphasis is in developing an understanding of the economic environment, economic institutions, processes, and problems, as well as the basic economic models at work under a market economy.

The curriculum in finance offers a program that will assure sound preparation for those who expect to pursue professional careers in finance, as well as other business. The program is designed to provide a solid understanding of the financial decision-making process, with special emphasis on computer-assisted decision making. The curriculum is designed to enable the student to successfully gain initial employment in the areas of banking, real estate, insurance, investments, financial planning, and financial management.

The marketing major is created to provide students with a broad understanding of the factors and activities involved in the product management, distribution, promotion, and pricing processes. The major prepares students for careers in product and brand management, sales, advertising, retailing, industrial marketing, marketing research, customer service, and physical distribution. The curriculum is designed to include a comprehensive study of manufacturers, wholesalers, retailers, small businesses, service firms, and non-profit organizations.