Online Courses
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Program Summary:
- Group I (15 units: MBA 200, 201, 203, 204, 205) – prerequisite courses
- Group II (18 units: MBA 210 – MBA 215 – all are required)
- Group III - General Management Electives (12 units)
- Culminating Experience (6 units) - MBA 279 and either MBA 298 (3 unit project) or MBA 299 (3 unit thesis)
Sample schedule of courses for a full cycle of the program:
- Group I Courses (Taken in a 3-week format before starting Group II courses)
- Group II 1st Semester (18 weeks): MBA 210, 211, 212
- Group II 2nd Semester (18 weeks): MBA 213, 214, 215
- Group III 3rd Semester (18 weeks): MBA 240, 270, 281
- Group III & Culminating Experience 4th Semester (18 weeks): MBA 289T, 279 and either MBA 298 or 299
Group I—Prerequisites (MBA 200, 201, 203, 204 and 205)
Group I courses are prerequisites designed to help students who have not earned their degree from an AACSB-accredited business school in the last seven years. These courses are intended to provide you with the analytical tools you will need for graduate business study. (Click on course for catalog description).
MBA 200. Managerial Economics (3). Prerequisites: finite mathematics, admission to graduate business program or permission of director. Logic and methods of economic analysis for business decisions. Production, cost, supply; buyer behavior, consumer demand, derived demand; forecasting; market structure, pricing, negotiation; government regulation; risk, uncertainty, macroeconomic concepts. Lecture.
MBA 201. Accounting and Information Systems (3). Prerequisites: electronic spreadsheet literacy, and either admission to graduate program in business or permission of director. Concepts and terminology of financial and managerial accounting and information systems. Transaction processing systems and planning and control systems integrated with data capture, data classification, information storage and organization, information access and display/reporting. Lecture.
MBA 203. Methods of Decision Sciences (3). Prerequisites: linear functions, familiarity with PC-based micro computing and spreadsheets, and either admission to the graduate business program or permission of director. Statistical concepts, inferential statistical methods, management science techniques. Descriptive statistics; discrete random variables; expected value decision theory; continuous distributions; sampling distributions; estimation; hypothesis testing; analysis of variance; linear regression and correlation; chi-square tests; time series analysis and forecasting; simulation. Lecture.
MBA 204. Global Environment of Business (3). Prerequisite: admission to the graduate business program or permission of director. Introduction to global business environment. Cultural, economic, political, and legal systems. Advances in global trade, marketing, production, accounting, taxation, financial and payment systems. Impact of technological advances, multinational corporations, and nation-states on the performance and competitiveness of businesses. Lecture and case. Lecture.
MBA 205. Production and Operations Management (3). Prerequisites: MBA 203 or concurrently, admission to the program or permission of director. Production and operations systems; product development; process selection; facility location and design; transportation management; method analysis; job design; work measurement; planning and control; project management; inventory control; just-in-time philosophy; total quality management. Lecture.
Group II—Core (MBA 210-215)
Group II courses develop the key managerial and professional skills expected of an MBA candidate. (Click on course for catalog description). All Group II courses are required.
MBA 210. Leadership and Organizational Behavior (3) (Required). A seminar that examines management functions and behavioral processes as they relate to complex problems in today's dynamic organizations. Special emphasis on leadership, organizational change, and motivational issues. Lectures, discussions, case studies, and experiential exercises.
MBA 211. Management Information Systems (3) (Required). Prerequisites: MBA 200 and 201. Management and technical aspects of computer-based information systems. Emphasis is on issues for non-IS managers in the areas of inter- and intra-organizational systems; system development, acquisition, and implementation; software, hardware, and data resource management and control. (Lectures, discussions, case studies, and experiential exercises.
MBA 212. Financial Management (3) (Required). Prerequisites: MBA 200, 201, and 203. Theories, concepts, and techniques in financial management; financial analysis, planning, forecasting, and working capital; risk and return analysis, valuation models, cost of capital and capital budgeting; capital structure, dividend policy and long-term financing. Special contemporary topics in financial management. Lectures, discussions, case studies, and experiential exercises.
MBA 213. Managerial Accounting (3) (Required). Prerequisites: MBA 200 and 201. In-depth consideration of several topical areas in accounting analysis related to both profit and not-for-profit organizations, with emphasis on currently controversial issues. Analysis includes budgetary planning, cost analysis, internal control and case studies. Lectures, discussions, case studies, and experiential exercises.
MBA 214. Marketing Management (3) (Required). Prerequisites: MBA 200-204; 203 or concurrently. Analysis of the concept of marketing, the marketing strategy development process at strategic business unit level, and segmentation and positioning strategies. The development of product, price, promotion, and distribution strategies. Examination of product, price, promotion, sales, and distribution management topics and issues through case analysis. Lectures, discussions, case studies, and experiential exercises.
MBA 215. Regulatory and Ethical Environment of Business (3) (Requirements). Prerequisites: MBA 210-214 or concurrently. Relationships among personal ethics, corporate social responsibility, and regulatory policy on business decision-making. Evaluation of business decisions, corporate goals, and regulatory statutes and process in terms of their ethical quality and adherence to sound policy. Lectures, discussions, case studies, and experiential exercises.
Group III—Electives (MBA 220-281)
Group III courses allow the student to integrate the knowledge from Groups I and II and specialize in specific subject areas. Students will select three courses based on one of the following options: Agribusiness, Entrepreneurship, Finance, General Management, Human Resource Management, International Business, Finance, Management Information Systems or Marketing. Please review MBA Flow Chart for elective selection.
MBA 240. Managing Human Capital - Applications of
Human Resource Management Theory to Practice (3)
Analysis of theories and application of the major human resource management functions that affect managerial decisions. Particular emphasis on strategy, program evaluation, legal issues, employee and labor relations, and managing human resources in a global environment. Lecture and cases.
MBA 270. Seminar in Business Ventures (3 units)
Overview of the entrepreneurial process beginning with the initial idea through start-up, growth, and harvesting the business. Using the business plan as a primary learning vehicle, students learn to manage all elements of a business in the entrepreneurial context. Course is team-taught.
MBA 279. Seminar in Business Policy and Strategy (3)
Prerequisite: completion of Group II or concurrently. Evolution of strategic management, globalization of strategy, role of multinationals, competitive advantage strategy formulation; implementation; control issues; role of top and middle management; ethics; and culture.
MBA 281. Seminar in International Business (3)
Examination of current topics related to international business. Areas of study may include but are not limited to international marketing, finance, logistics, regulatory environments, trade including import/export concerns, the transition of high growth economies, and relevant political environments. Lecture and cases.
MBA 289T. Seminar in Business Topics
Prerequisite: completion of 9 units of 200-level courses.
Theory and developments in accounting, administration and organization, business education, communication, consumer economics, finance, industrial and regional studies, real estate and urban economics, information systems, decision sciences, resource economics, risk and insurance, or transportation.
Culminating Experience
Students must complete a “culminating experience” for their MBA that can either be a team or individual management project (MBA 298) or a thesis (MBA 299). Students who choose to take the MBA Team Consulting Project or the individual project (MBA 298) must take one additional elective. Students who choose the thesis (MBA 298) must take a course in research methodology (MBA 216 or equivalent).
MBA 298. Management Project (3) Prerequisites: Advanced to Candidacy, and permission of director. See Criteria for Thesis and Project. Examination of the work and problems general managers of business units face as chief strategists and organization builders. Independent analysis of an operating industry, business, or a principals functional area of an organization. Case studies and field research project. Approved for SP grading.
MBA 299. Thesis (3) Prerequisites: Advanced to Candidacy, and permission of director. See Criteria for Thesis and Project. Preparation, completion, and submission of an acceptable thesis for the master's degree. Approved for SP grading.
