2004 - 2005 International Business, Bachelor of Arts (BUINT)

Program Goals | Program Requirements | Bachelor of Arts Option | Plan of Study

Program Director: Vicki Whiting
Faculty: Haiwei Chen, Kimberly Dodson, Roger Ignatius, Aric Krause, Michael Mamo, Nancy Panos Schmitt, James Seidelman, Vicki Whiting

Program Goals

The major in International Business leading to a Bachelor of Arts degree emphasizes specialized skills and knowledge necessary for success in the global environment. This program prepares students for the complex requirements of international business: technical and functional competence, foreign languages, cultural awareness and sensitivity, familiarity with international institutions, and the conduct of global business. A major strength of the International Business program is the combination of general and international business course work with intensive language and cultural studies. The program is also designed for students who wish to follow a planned progression into the Westminster MBA Program. Students completing the bachelor degree in international business should:

• Understand the context, nature, role, and significance of management activities as undertaken by managers in a range of organizations in multinational contexts.
• Demonstrate the ability to use financial techniques to lessen financial risk in international business operations.
• Demonstrate an understanding of how social, technological, economic, and political paradigms impact the strategic and ethical options open to organizations involved in the process of formulating international business strategies.
• Recognize the various types of business liabilities, their interrelationships, and substantive legal rules in relation to business in international operations.
• Demonstrate an ability to apply business-specific tools of research, analysis, decision-making and evaluation to a wide range of scenarios, cases, and problems in international contexts.

Program Requirements

To fulfill the requirements for the Bachelor of Arts in International Business, students must complete the courses outlined below. Students must maintain a minimum 2.3 GPA in business program course work to be eligible for a Bachelor of Arts in International Business.

For course prerequisites, please refer to the course description.

Note: All students must complete 124 hours of coursework to graduate, 40 hours of which must be upper division (300 level or above). Students may need to take other courses to complete the college hours requirement.

Bachelor of Arts Options

Students completing a Bachelor of Arts in International Business must complete either twelve credit hours of a single foreign language or eight credit hours of a single foreign language and either: four credit hours of a Westminster May/summer international study tour or four credits of an international study tour transferred from an accredited college or university. Students are strongly encouraged to complete a minor in a foreign language by completing additional course work beyond the program requirements. Students who complete a Bachelor of Arts in International Business may have the option, based on MBA admission, of completing an accelerated Master of Business Administration degree. A minimum of 36 graduate credit hours are required to complete the program and earn the Master of Business Administration degree in conjunction with the requirements of the B.A. in International Business program.

Note: Students who wish to participate in the MBA program should plan to take the GMAT and apply for admission to the MBA program during their senior year. Students are encouraged to meet with their program advisor for specific requirements. Information on the MBA program admission requirements is found in the MBA section of this catalog.

Please refer to the Undergraduate Degree Requirements section of this catalog for information about restrictions when completing a major and a minor or two majors.

Recommended Plan of Study for International Business

In order to complete all major requirements, International Business majors should plan to take business courses in the following stages, subject to scheduling and availability constraints, in conjunction with other required courses and electives.