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Business Administration

Business Administration Major

The Business Administration major is designed to provide students with a broad background in all of the aspects of business. Business Administration might be an appropriate major for students who will work in smaller organizations or own their businesses which will require a broader understanding of business. Also, some organizations may seek generalists rather than specialists because they may be more adaptable in rapidly changing business environments. This major might also be appropriate for students intending to go on to graduate studies that would benefit from a broad understanding of business, e.g., law school.

Business Administration Minor

Majors outside the College of Business often select a minor in Business Administration. A minor in Business Administration requires a minimum of 24 credits. At least 12 credits in 300-400 level BUSN, FIN, MGMT, and MRKT courses must be completed at NDSU in the College of Business. Prior departmental approval is required for any 300-400 level course not completed at NDSU but used to satisfy the minor requirements.

Students must earn a 2.50 grade point average that is based on the courses used for the Business Administration minor. A minor approval form is required and can be found at www.ndsu.edu/business. This minor is not available to students with majors in the College of Business.

Major Requirements

Major: Business Administration

Degree Type: B.S.
Minimum Credits Required for Degree: 126

General Education Requirements for Baccalaureate Degree

  • A dynamic list of approved general education courses offered by term is available on the NDSU General Education Requirements website.
  • General education courses may be used to satisfy requirements for both general education and the major, minor, and program emphases, where applicable. Students should carefully review the major, minor, and program emphases requirements for minimum grade restrictions, if applicable.
First Year Experience (F)1
Skills For Academic Success (Also offered with the following prefixes: ABEN, AGRI, BUSN, HD&E, ME, NURS, PHRM)
Communication (C)12
College Composition I
College Composition II
Fundamentals of Public Speaking
Upper Division Writing
Quantitative Reasoning (R) 3
Science and Technology (S) 10
Humanities and Fine Arts (A) 6
Social and Behavioral Sciences (B) 6
Wellness (W) 2
Cultural Diversity (D) *†
Global Perspectives (G) *†
Total Credits40

Major Requirements

Pre-College of Business Requirements
ACCT 200Elements of Accounting I *3
ACCT 201Elements of Accounting II *3
COMM 110Fundamentals of Public Speaking (May satisfy general education category C) *3
CSCI 116Business Use of Computers (May satisfy general education category S) *4
ECON 201Principles of Microeconomics (May satisfy general education category B and G) *3
ECON 202Principles of Macroeconomics (May satisfy general education category B and G) *3
ENGL 110College Composition I (May satisfy general education category C) *3
ENGL 120College Composition II (May satisfy general education category C) *3
PHIL 216Business Ethics (May satisfy general education category A) *3
STAT 330Introductory Statistics (May satisfy general education category R) *3
STAT 331Regression Analysis *2
MATH 144Mathematics for Business *4
Pre-Business Administration Requirements
PSYC 111Introduction to Psychology *3
SOC 110Introduction to Sociology *3
Business Administration Major Requirements **
BUSN 301Organizational Citizen0
ENGL 320Business and Professional Writing (May satisfy general education category C)3
FIN 320Principles of Finance 13
MGMT 320Foundations of Management 13
MGMT 330Foundations of Organizational Behavior3
MGMT 360Operations Management3
MRKT 320Foundations of Marketing 13
BUSN 430Legal and Social Environment of Business 13
BUSN 487Managerial Economics4
BUSN 489Strategic Management 14
MIS 320Management Information Systems 13
ECON 324Money and Banking3
300-400 Level Courses **18
Of the 18 credits, at least one 300-400 level course must be completed in each of the following 4 areas (includes courses cross-listed with CoB courses):
1) FIN
2) MGMT
3) MRKT
4) Environment of Business: Select at least one from the following:
Taxation in Management Decisions
International Business
Global Business Environment
Principles of Real Estate
Organizational Communication I
Business Law I-Contracts, Property and Torts
Business Law II-Business Organization and Commercial Transactions
International Business Law
Cooperatives
300-400 College of Business Electives **6
Any courses from the College of Business with the prefixes of ACCT, BUSN, FIN, LEAD, MGMT, MIS, or MRKT; includes courses cross-listed with CoB courses; excludes ATHL credits
*

Pre-college and pre-business administration major courses. A grade of 'C' or better for pre-college and pre-business administration major courses is required for admission into the Business Administration major. 

**

Students must earn a 'C' or better and have a minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA in ALL courses included in the professional program (i.e., all required courses, elective requirements, and additional 300-400 level CoB electives or breadth electives). The only exception is BUSN 301, which is a P/F course. 

1

Denotes Common Body of Knowledge (CBK) course. 

Degree Requirements and Notes

  • Students must include one of the following international courses in their plan of study:
BUSN 340International Business3
BUSN 341Global Business Environment3
FIN 440International Finance3
MGMT 440International Management3
MRKT 440International Marketing3
  • Students follow the published curricula for the business administration program of study from the semester/year of entrance in the College of Business to graduation, provided enrollment at NDSU has not been discontinued for more than one year. Students who change their major are subject to meeting the curricular requirements in effect at the time the new major is declared. 
  • Business courses from programs that do not hold AACSB International accreditation cannot be used for major or minor requirements in the College of Business (CoB); such courses may be eligible for use as free electives.
  • The CoB accepts a maximum of nine credits of non-NDSU 300-400 level business courses from AACSB programs with approval of the department.
  • Admission into the Business Administration Major: Students must earn a 'C' or better in the pre-college and pre-business administration major courses that are indicated with an asterisk (*), achieve junior standing (60 credits), and earn a 2.50 institutional cumulative grade point average.  Students must submit an online application to the CoB.
  • Admission to the business administration major is required to enroll in advanced 300 or 400 level CoB courses.
  • A grade of 'C' or better is required in transfer courses accepted for ACCT 200 Elements of Accounting I and ACCT 201 Elements of Accounting II and all 300-400 level accounting, business administration, finance, management, management information systems, and marketing courses.
  • A letter grade must be earned in any course that fulfills a major requirement. The only exception is BUSN 301, which is a P/F course. 
  • A 2.50 cumulative grade point average is required to enroll in 300-400 level CoB courses.
  • Students must earn a 2.50 institutional GPA to graduate.
  • Of the credits completed in residence at least 30 credits must be in 300-400 level CoB courses.
  • Students must be accepted to the Business Administration major prior to the completion of the last 30 credits in 300 and 400 level CoB courses.
  • For multiple majors within CoB, at least 15 unique credits of 300-400 level CoB courses must exist between the majors.
  • Internship and cooperative education credits may be applied toward the total credits required for graduation as non-major electives.
  • Students should refer to www.ndsu.edu/business for current and complete listing of the major requirements.

Minor Requirements

Business Administration Minor

Minor Requirements

Required Credits: 24

Students should refer to College of Business for information on declaring this minor.

Requirements
Select one of the following:3-6
Fundamentals of Accounting
Elements of Accounting I
and Elements of Accounting II
Select one of the following:3-6
Elements of Economics
Principles of Microeconomics
and Principles of Macroeconomics
Select two of the following:6
Principles of Finance
Foundations of Management
Foundations of Marketing
Elective Courses12
An additional 12 credits of 300-400 level business administration (BUSN), Finance (FIN), Management (MGMT), or Marketing (MRKT) courses; may include MIS 320, ENTR 366, ENTR 385, LEAD 305, LEAD 325, but excludes BUSN 413 and BUSN 415; may also include courses cross-listed with CoB courses
Total Credits24

Minor Requirements and Notes

  • To be accepted into the minor program, students must have a 2.50 institutional cumulative GPA and at least junior standing (60 credits).  This minor is not available to students with majors in the College of Business.
  • Departmental approval is required for any course (including Tri-College) NOT completed at NDSU and used to satisfy the minor requirements (6 credits maximum).
  • Students must earn a 2.50 minimum GPA, which is based upon the courses used to satisfy the minor requirements. Minors must satisfy all course prerequisites.
  • Students should refer to www.ndsu.edu/business for information on declaring the minor with the College of Business.

Plan of Study 

Freshman
FallCreditsSpringCredits
BUSN 189*1COMM 1103
SOC 1103ENGL 1203
CSCI 1164MATH 103 or 1073-4
ENGL 1103PSYC 1113
Humanities/Fine Arts Elective3Wellness Elective2
Non-major Elective3Science & Technology Elective2
 17 16-17
Sophomore
FallCreditsSpringCredits
ACCT 2003ACCT 2013
ECON 2013ECON 2023
MATH 1444STAT 3312
PHIL 2163Cultural Diversity or Non-Major Elective3
STAT 3303Science & Technology Elective (w/lab)4
 16 15
Junior
FallCreditsSpringCredits
ENGL 3203BUSN 4303
FIN 3203MGMT 3303
MGMT 3203MIS 3203
MRKT 3203300-400 Level Business Electives (2)6
Non-major Elective3-4 
 15-16 15
Senior
FallCreditsSpringCredits
BUSN 4874BUSN 4894
ECON 3243300-400 Level Business Electives (4)12
MGMT 3603 
300-400 Level Business Electives 6 
 16 16
Total Credits: 126-128

NOTE: This is only a sample curriculum; actual schedules will depend on course availability and individual choices. Students are encouraged to meet with their academic adviser on a regular basis to review their plan of study.