Choosing a Major in Management, Marketing, International Business or Business Administration
Congratulations! You’ve decided to embark on the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) degree which provides you with a solid foundation to be a Manager in any type of organization. Southeast is one of only a few business schools in the world that are both AACSB-accredited and NIBS-accredited (Network of International Business Schools). Now you need to decide on a major. Keep in mind that you can change majors and options in the major at a later date if you’d like. You won’t lose progress toward completing the major if you make the change before you take required courses in the major.
Faculty in the Management and Marketing Department want to provide our majors with a unique competitive advantage and make you more marketable upon graduation. We are now including a “Real World Experience” for all majors in Management, Marketing and International Business as part of the curriculum. This value-added dimension provides you with unique experiences considered of high importance by prospective employers. (See our advising sheets or your advisor for more information.)
International Business Major
You will be prepared for employment with companies participating in global commerce—from locally owned entrepreneurial enterprises to multinational corporations. Trends in employment favor those who have developed competencies in intercultural communication and international business strategies. International study opportunities include over 20 overseas locations while paying the standard tuition and fees at Southeast. The program is interdisciplinary and integrative in nature. Just a few career opportunities: International Product Manager, Plant Manager in foreign country, Foreign Exchange Trader, International Buyer, Investment Analyst, International Sales Analyst, etc. International managers are often pegged for top executive positions in multinational corporations.
Management Major
Management involves coordinating the resources of an organization in a systematic way to achieve common goals. You will be well prepared for a wide range of careers in business, education, government and not-for-profit organizations. You can seek management positions in banks, hotels, hospitals or service organizations or you can become an entrepreneur and start your own business. Choose among three options:
- Entrepreneurship: Have a great business idea that you’d like to develop from start to finish or do you want to be a significant innovative force within an organization? If so, then you may want to select the Entrepreneurship Option. In the new global economy where growth and competitive advantage increasingly come from innovation, it has become recognized that entrepreneurship has become more central to the success of regional economies. A variety of experiential learning opportunities will immerse you in the vision, research and planning aspects of an entrepreneurial organization.
- Human Resource Management: If you see yourself involved in acquiring, maintaining and developing a firm’s human resources, then this option is for you. Positions would include Human Resource Manager, Benefits Manager, Labor Relations Manager, Personnel Manager, Training and Development Manager. According to the Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook, employment of HR managers is projected to grow much faster than average at 22 percent between 2008 and 2018. Median annual wages of HR managers were $96,130 in May 2008.
- Management: This is a general management option and is the best choice if you want broad coverage of management topics in your background. Managers are expected to be analytical, detail-oriented, flexible, decisive, and have strong leadership and communication skills and your management curriculum helps develop these skills. Opportunities vary greatly by the employer, the specialty and geographic area. Graduates with this option would be suited for operations management positions, often overlapping with CEO duties. Interested in health care? Employment of health care services managers is projected to grow faster than the average. Median annual wages of a medical and health services manager in May 2008 were $80,240 (Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010).
Marketing Major
Marketing consists of “processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large” (American Marketing Association, 2007). The marketing major encompasses many high-paying and challenging managerial positions, often with high visibility, thus providing prime candidates for advancement to the highest ranks (U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010). Choose among three options:
- Integrated Marketing Communications: Provides background in the communication side of marketing such as advertising, public relations, internet marketing, sales promotion, direct marketing, event marketing, professional selling, fund raising, etc. The focus is on developing the ability to create a unique message and integrate it across a diverse set of media options. According to the Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook (2010), “a sharp increase in the amount of advertising in digital media, such as the Internet and wireless devices will generate a need for advertising managers to oversee new and innovative advertising programs. Public relations managers are expected to see an increase in employment of 13 percent between 2008 and 2018, which is about as fast as average for all occupations...especially among the growing number of nonprofit organizations, such as education services, business and professional associations, and hospitals.” Median annual wages in 2008 for advertising and promotions managers were $80,220 and for public relations managers, $89,430.
- Marketing Management: This emphasizes the breadth and diversity of marketing management strategies. This option prepares students for careers as a brand manager, marketing consultant, distribution manager, product analyst, marketing research analyst, retail manager, purchasing manager, etc. According to the Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook, employment of marketing managers will grow about as fast as average at 12 percent between 2008 and 2018. Median annual wages are ranked in the highest quartile for marketing managers at $108,580.
- Sales Management: Sales managers and their departments constitute some of the most important personnel in an organization and are less subject to downsizing or outsourcing. Employment of sales managers will grow faster than average at 15 percent between 2008 and 2018. Median annual wages are ranked in the highest quartile for sales managers at $97,260. The employment outlook for sales representatives is also very healthy (Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010).
Business Administration Major
The major in Business Administration (formerly called Organizational Administration) prepares students for a variety of professional opportunities in management and administration. This major is designed with part-time students in mind since it provides a flexible delivery method (online courses) for students unable to attend courses on campus. The coursework covers multiple business disciplines. Opportunities vary greatly by the employer, the specialty and geographic area. One career track would be an administrative services manager. According to the Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook (2010), employment of administrative services managers will grow about as fast as average at 12 percent between 2008 and 2018. These managers are primarily in the education services industry, the healthcare industry, state and local government, and finance and insurance sectors. Median annual wages of salaried administrative services managers in May 2008 were $73,520.
For updated information and more detail on specific occupations, go to http://www.bls.gov/oco/. Please keep in mind starting salaries differ by industry and region and are not the same as “median annual wages” reported by the Department of Labor.