March 27, 2018 Academic Program Development 2614 University Hall (MC 10) 601 South Morgan Street Chicago, Illinois 60607-7126 TO: FROM: Ilene Harris, Chair Senate Committee on Educational Policy Dana Wright, Director of Academic Program Development I am submitting for the review and action of the Senate Committee on Educational Policy the attached Proposal to Revise the Bachelor of Business Administration. The proposal was approved by the College of Business Administration s Undergraduate Academic Policy Committee, and by the college faculty on February 2, 2018. ATTACHMENT
Title: Proposal to Revise the Bachelor of Business Degree (BBA) Sponsor: Executive Summary: College of Business Administration To update the BBA degree completion program admission requirements, curriculum, and catalog. Description: The Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) is a degree completion program that covers the final 60 credit hours required to receive the bachelor s degree. Students must have completed at least 60 hours of prerequisite postsecondary coursework with a grade of C or better, and have maintained a cumulative GPA of 2.50/4.00 in all postsecondary work. The 60 hours of prerequisite coursework is comprised of 16 hours of core requirements (English composition I and II, macroeconomics, microeconomics, finite mathematics, calculus, or business calculus); 20 hours of courses that fulfil UIC s six general education categories; and 24 hours of electives. Once enrolled at UIC, students complete a 8-hour business core and 22 hours of business selectives. The college proposes to revise the BBA as follows: The BBA will continue to have 60 hours of prerequisite coursework, but the 4 hours of mathematics will be revised to include linear algebra in addition to finite math, calculus or business calculus. Students will still have to complete six courses that meet the six general education categories, but the college will now accept -5 hour courses for the Analyzing the Natural World category. In addition, the 24 hours of prerequisite electives can now be fulfilled through electives and/or business core courses. Allowing students to transfer in business core courses will give students alternate choices as well as not having to repeat course work previously taken. While business core courses can be used to meet the 60 hours of transferrable prerequisites, BBA students will be reminded that they will continue to have to complete the enrollment residence requirement and the 60-hour requirement (for transfer credit) as stated in the Undergraduate Catalog. Another revision is to the BBA admission requirements. Currently, students must complete at least 60 hours of prerequisite coursework with a grade of C or better. The new admissions requirement will require a grade of C or better in the English, economics and math prerequisites, as well as any business core courses taken prior to enrollment. Students 1
can earn a passing grade (D or better) in electives or general education courses. The BBA Curriculum completed at UIC will be revised as follows. Two new core courses will be added. Students will take either ECON 220: Microeconomics-Theory and Applications ( hours) or BA 0: Analysis of Firms, Markets, and Industries for Business Decision Making ( hours). BA 00: Advanced Managerial Communications ( hours) to the list of required courses. One core course will be removed IDS 71: Business Statistics II. As the number of hours of core course will increase from 8 to 41, the number of hours of selective courses will decrease from 22 to 19. The list of selective courses will be removed from the catalog, but a list will be maintained in the college. This will allow the college to add or remove selective courses as the curriculum expands and contracts more easily, BBA students will select courses to fulfil this requirement in consultation with their advisors 2
Justification: In the previous incarnation of the BBA program, the business core courses could not be transferred in and had to be repeated at UIC. We propose changing this to allow BBA core courses to be transferred into the program. For students who are admitted with any of the business core courses completed, a substitute course will be recommended to ensure that all students meet the 60-hour requirement. This eliminates the need for some students to repeat courses they have taken elsewhere and allows them to take a breadth of business courses that will enhance their knowledge of business in other disciplines or business areas. To be consistent with our campus based programs, we will now accept linear algebra as a math prerequisite as it is a requirement of our Bachelor of Science degree students. For students who transfer from the bachelor of science degree program into the BBA, this is critical. We will now accept -5 credit courses for the Analyzing the Natural World general education requirement. Since this is not a Bachelor of Science degree the required 5-credit hour Analyzing the Natural world is unnecessarily rigorous for a general business degree. ECON 220 course was originally added to the BBA degree mirror the oncampus BS degrees in Business. This course served as a prerequisite for some upper-level business courses that BBA students will not take for their degree programs. While we understand that Economics courses are integral to a Business education, the college is satisfied that that the introductory microeconomics and macroeconomics courses are sufficient. BA 0 was created to give students choice to take a focused study in business analysis versus macroeconomics. In regards to removing IDS 71 from the curriculum, the BBA is not a BS degree and the curriculum does not require "advanced quantitative skills." An additional support for removing IDS 71 is that most of our students have not taken MATH 165: Calculus for Business and are, therefore, ill-prepared for IDS 71 We propose adding BA 00 as a required course since it is currently taught in conjunction with the Capstone course, BA 495. Since BA 495 is required it makes sense that we require BA 00 as well. We also have no substitute courses for BA 00. Catalog Statement Finally, removing the listing of selective courses in the catalog will allow advisors to create course plans in real time based on course offerings. The selective course requirements may change over the course of a student s time in the program. Making this change will also eliminate student confusion. See attached
Minority Impact Statement: The changes to the degree requirements are intended to benefit all students and will not adversely impact minority students. Budgetary and Resource Implications: Library Resource Implications: There are no additional budgetary resources needed. There are no additional resources that are anticipated being drawn from the library as a result of this proposal Space Implications: Since these courses are either online or will use the same resources as our other degree programs, there are no physical space issues or concerns. Unit (e.g. department) CBA Undergraduate Academic Policy Committee Approval Approved approval date: College (educational CBA Faculty: Approved Feb. 2, 2018 policy committee, faculty) approval dates: Contact: Abagail McWilliams abby@uic.edu 12-996-5201 Angela Prazza Winters prazza@uic.edu 12-996-2678 Proposed Effective Date/Term: Fall 2018 Course Descriptions for Newly Required Courses BA 00. Advanced Managerial Communications. hours. Advanced study of business communication, including practice in the writing of case studies and reports. Course Information: Prerequisite(s): BA 200. BA 0. Analysis of Firms, Markets, and Industries for Business Decision Making. hours. Analysis of consumer and resource markets; firm production and costs; industry structure, competition, strategy and government regulation and development of managerial decision making skills. Course Information: Credit is not given for BA 0 if the student has credit in ECON 220. Extensive computer use required. Prerequisite(s): ECON 120. ECON 220. Microeconomics: Theory and Applications. hours. The price system, consumer behavior, market demand, the firm's technology and costs, perfect and imperfect competition, government regulation, general equilibrium and resource allocation, applications. Course Information: Prerequisite(s): ECON 120; and MATH 121. 4
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Catalog Statement Current Admission For BBA application deadlines and complete admissions information, see https://business.uic.edu/undergraduateprograms/online-bachelor-businessadministration. Students should contact the college at (12) 996-2700 or bba@uic.edu to arrange for a review of their transcripts and to determine where they stand with respect to the admission requirements and prerequisites, which are described below. Admission Proposed Admission Requirements The Bachelor of Business Administration degree completion program from the College of Business Administration at the University of Illinois at Chicago covers the final 60 credit hours required to receive the bachelor's degree. Students meet the admission requirements for the BBA degree completion program if they have: Admission Requirements Completed at least 60 hours of prerequisite postsecondary course work with a grade of C or better (see description of prerequisites below) Completed at least 60 hours of prerequisite postsecondary coursework (see description of prerequisites below). A grade of C or better is required in the core requirements (English, mathematics and economics), as well any business core courses taken prior to enrollment. Maintained a cumulative GPA of 2.50/4.00 in all postsecondary course work Students should submit the following to support their request for admission: A completed application Official transcripts from all prior postsecondary institutions attended, including prior attendance at any campus of the University of Illinois Records are considered official if they meet one of the following criteria: Students should submit the following to support their request for admission: The issuing institution sends them electronically to bba@uic.edu. They are certified as true copies by an official of the educational institution, an embassy official, or an appropriate government official.
They have been received in an envelope sealed by the issuing institution or from an authorized email address. International Students The college considers an international student to be any student who does not have American citizenship or permanent residency status. In addition to the materials requested above and TOEFL scores, international applicants must also submit: A list of all subjects/courses studied each year Grades or examination results received, including maximum and minimum grades obtainable Certified/attested English translation of all credentials Degrees, certificates, and diplomas awarded accompanied by leaving results Official syllabus in English describing fully all course work attempted The above items should be mailed to: Office of Undergraduate Admissions, MC 018 University of Illinois at Chicago Suite 1100 Student Services Building 1200 West Harrison Street Chicago, IL 60607-7161 Prerequisites Students must have completed at least 60 hours of postsecondary course work, in the following two categories: Core Requirements English Composition I English Composition II Principles of Macroeconomics Principles of Microeconomics Finite Mathematics, Calculus, or Business Calculus 4 International Students Prerequisites Core Requirements Linear Algebra, Finite Mathematics, Calculus 4 or Business Calculus Total Hours 16
General Education Requirements a Analyzing the Natural World a 5 Exploring World Cultures a General Education Requirements Analyzing the Natural World a -5 Understanding the Creative Arts a Understanding the Individual and Society a Understanding the Past a Understanding U.S. Society a Electives b 24 Total Hours 44 a There are numerous courses that satisfy each of these categories. Students can find a list of these courses and other information about UIC General Education requirements at http://catalog.uic.edu/ucat/degreeprograms/general-education. BBA Core and/or Electives b 24-26 a There are numerous courses can be applied to these categories and satisfy the university requirement of 24 hours of general education course work with at least one course in each of these categories. Students can find a list of these courses and other information about UIC General Education requirements at http://catalog.uic.edu/ucat/degreeprograms/general-education b Other Mathematics, Calculus, Statistics or quantitative analysis courses are highly recommended prerequisites that can be taken in order to satisfy the 24 hours of Electives requirements. However, many courses that satisfy the above general education requirements as well as those required for an associate's degree in business can also satisfy the Electives requirements. Please Note: An earned Associate of Arts or Associate of Science Degree from an Illinois community college fulfills the General Education requirements, per the Illinois Articulation Initiative. Students who have not earned such a degree must complete 60 transferable hours including the Core and General Education requirements above. Students can select from a number of different courses to satisfy the broad General Education categories listed above. Following is a brief description of each category:
Analyzing the Natural World: Courses in this category should introduce students to scientific and mathematical concepts and methods Exploring World Cultures: Courses in this category should address significant aspects of any culture that is not part of the mainstream American culture Understanding the Creative Arts: Courses in this category should focus, in close detail, on a number of significant works in literature, art, or other media Understanding the Individual and Society: Courses in this category should introduce students either to the complexities of the individual or the relationship of the individual to social structures Understanding the Past: Courses in this category should have as their focus significant past events Understanding U.S. Society: Courses in this category should address some significant aspect of U.S. Society as their central focus BBA Curriculum The curriculum of the 60-credit-hour program is listed below. The BBA is a cohort program with a prescribed sequence of courses. Students should work with academic advisors to rearrange the sequence if circumstances do not allow them to participate during a given term or terms. Courses are eight weeks in length with the exception of the BA 00 and the capstone course BA 495, which are16 weeks. BBA Curriculum The curriculum of the 60-credit-hour program is as follows. Core Courses ACTG 210 Introduction to Financial Accounting ACTG 211 Introduction to Managerial Accounting
BA 200 Managerial Communication BA 00: Advanced Managerial Communications BA 495 Business Strategy FIN 00 Introduction to Finance IDS 200 Intro to Management Information Systems 4 IDS 270 Business Statistics I 4 IDS 55 Operations Management IDS 71 Business Statistics II Remove MGMT 40 Introduction to Organizations MGMT 50 Business and Its External Environment MKTG 60 Introduction to Marketing Select one of the following: ECON 220: Microeconomics Theory and Applications BA 0: Analysis of Firms, Markets, and Industries for Business Decision Making Selectives Select 22 hours from the following: 22 Selectives 19 Select 19 hours of selective coursework in consultation with BBA advisors. College maintains list of appropriate courses.
ACTG 55 Business Law I: Commercial Transactions Remove all selective and substitute courses below BA 290 BA 00 ECON 220 ENTR 10 ENTR 444 MGMT 460 MGMT 475 Substitutes Business Ethics Advanced Managerial Communications Microeconomics: Theory and Applications Introduction to Entrepreneurship Entrepreneurial Finance Business, Society, and the Global Economy Leadership Theories and Personal Leadership Skills Development The following courses can be used as substitutes should any of the courses listed above be completed upon admission: IDS 1 MGMT 46 MGMT 466 MGMT 485 Business Analysis Using Spreadsheets Negotiation and Conflict Resolution Managerial Effectiveness Through Diversity Corporate Sustainability
and Responsibility Total Hours 60 Academic Advising Services BBA students will have a designated advisor for their program to ensure academic success. Advising will be delivered in a variety of innovative methods such as Google Hangouts, Skype, and using the existing student advising program. Advisors will work with students to customize their schedule if life events or other circumstances prevent them from following the prescribed order. Business Career Center Services The Business Career Center offers students help with anything from general career advice to exploring specific career paths. Students can schedule a 1:1 meeting with a career advisor by signing up through UIC Careers. Textbooks and Course Packets Textbooks are available through the UIC Bookstore Online or other vendors including ebook options. Textbooks and materials for each term are available in the Student Resource Center several weeks prior to each start. Library Services The University of Illinois at Chicago provides easy access to library resources online, including electronic reserves and materials necessary to complete course-related research. Assistance will be available by email, phone, or the "Ask the Librarian" feature. Online tutorials, guides, and other forms of assistance will help students gain familiarity with the library resources most appropriate for a program.