Master of Business Administration (MBA)
The Master of Business Administration is designed for graduate students with a baccalaureate degree in any field of study. Whether you graduated with a degree in business, liberal arts or earth sciences, our MBA program can fit your needs. The MBA program offers management education that is designed to provide theoretical, analytical and operational expertise that leaders need to meet the challenges of managing in dynamic, competitive environments.
Bloomsburg's program is fully accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.
All MBA program courses are taught by distinguished faculty from throughout the College of Business, bringing you expertise in accounting, finance, business law, technology systems, management and marketing. Graduate faculty are dedicated teachers with doctoral degrees who have demonstrated subject area expertise by extensive experience and/or scholarship. MBA faculty provide an active learning experience with a variety of teaching methods, such as, case studies, applied research, problem solving, and team projects.
One of the strengths of the MBA program is the high quality of students enrolled. Recent graduates scored an average of 500 on the GMAT. Most bring considerable business experience to the classroom. The 70 active students are typically 31 percent female and 69 percent male, with an average age of 36 about 10 percent of the MBA students are foreign nationals. The program has about 500 alumni pursuing careers around the world.
More than 90% of MBA students are employed three months after graduation
Courses
Courses meet one evening for 15 weeks in spring and fall semesters. Summer semester courses meet two evenings for six weeks. Most students are part time and take one or two courses per semester, while full time students can expect to graduate in one to two years.
Graduate assistantships are offered to full time students (minimum of 9 credits) on a competitive basis and waive approximately 25 percent of the student's fees.
Application Process
There is a rolling admission process, so applications are accepted year round. Students can be admitted to start in the Fall, Spring, or Summer semesters.
The program admits students based on an evaluation of past academic achievement, aptitude for advanced study, professional accomplishments, and motivation to succeed. Complete applications include the following items:
- Official transcripts from an accredited academic institution indicating an earned baccalaureate degree.
- Official transcripts from all institutions where the applicant earned undergraduate or graduate college credit must be provided. Degrees earned from non-United States universities will be judged individually.
- Official Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) scores within the 5 prior years. Information about the GMAT can be found at www.gmat.org.
- Three letters of recommendation.
- A current resume.
- A statement of career goals.
International applicants whose native language is not English must provide official Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) score within the prior year as well as current evidence of financial capability. International applications must be completed at least four months prior to the start of the semester of application. A translation of transcripts is required with international GPA being translated to a 4.0 scale.
Required Courses
The curriculum consists of 36 graduate credit hours delivered in twelve required courses. Students without sufficient preparation also complete prerequisite foundation courses. Required Course list here.
Students with an undergraduate degree in business will likely have taken course covering those areas. Students with non-business undergraduate degrees will usually be lacking a least some of these courses and therefore must take foundation courses to make up for this deficit. Foundation courses are not included in the 36 hours of credit required for the MBA degree.
MBA students must earn a cumulative Q.P.A. of 3.0 to graduate from the MBA program. MBA students may apply no more than one course with a grade of less than B- toward graduation. A grade of C- or lower must be retaken.
The following chart lists foundation courses and their undergraduate equivalents at Bloomsburg University. Students who have earned a C or better in an undergraduate equivalent course are exempt from taking the foundation course.
Foundation courses:
Economic Theory ECONOMIC.121 and ECONOMIC.122
Financial Accounting ACCT.220
College Algebra MATH.109
Statistics ECONOMIC.256
Core Courses:
All students are required to take the following 12 core courses. These courses cover the core of knowledge of a business education in the basic function areas of accounting, finance, management and marketing and the supporting field of technology. Strategic management is the capstone course of a business education program and is the major integrative force in an MBA program. It is here that specific information from the functional areas is put together to address the concerns of the total firm.
ACCT.500 MBA Assessment
ACCT.511 Financial and Managerial Accounting
FINANCE.535 Financial Management
ITM.590 Strategic Information and Technology Management
MGMT.515 Principled Leadership, Ethics, and Professional Development
MGMT.560 Operations and Supply Chain Management
MGMT.567 Managing People in Organizations
MGMT.576 Global Business
MGMT.580 Managerial Decision Making
MGMT.581 Strategic Management
MGMT.582 Human Resources Skills for Managers
MGMT.592 MBA Practicum
MKTG.551 Marketing Management
Leadership on the Edge
Each Fall, students are invited to participate in Leadership on the Edge (LOTE) as part of their MBA experience. LOTE is designed to provide insight and reinforce leadership theories that are taught in the classroom, by asking students to practice those theories in an unfamiliar and unpredictable wilderness environment. Over Labor Day weekend, student teams will climb the Knife Edge Ridge of Mt. Katahdin in Maine. This route provides the opportunity for the team to practice and hone its management, leadership, and coping skills in a challenging environment.