IUPUC Programs
Undergraduate Programs
Division of Business
The Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus Undergraduate Program in Business provides opportunities for breadth of education as well as a reasonable amount of specialization. The program subscribes to the principle that a significant portion of a student’s academic program should be in general education subjects, complemented by focused study of the essential areas of business administration. This assures the planning of balanced study programs while enabling a student with an interest in one or more of the professional areas of business to specialize in those fields. Courses and assignments engage students in ethical decision making, diversity, corporate social responsibility, international business, and teamwork. An experiential learning requirement exposes students to real-world business practices.
Bachelor of Science Degree Programs
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a Concentration in Accounting
The accounting curriculum prepares students for careers in corporate accounting, auditing, management consulting, taxation, and accounting for governmental and nonprofit organizations. In addition, it equips the future business executive with tools for intelligent analysis, planning, control, and decision making. Students study the methodology required to create and maintain accurate financial records of business transactions and the economic and managerial perspectives on the relationships between business activity, economic outcomes, and positive and negative evaluations of performance by preparing financial statements and reporting information such as business assets, liabilities, and operating expenses. The accounting curriculum helps students prepare to pass the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam and Certified Management Accountant (CMA) exam, and provides an excellent foundation for students who want to pursue graduate work in business, public administration, or law.
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a Concentration in Finance
As the most common professional background among the CEO’s of the Fortune 500, finance as a body of knowledge allows students and practitioners to understand the value of business activities, and how to decide which activities to pursue. Finance as an academic concentration explains the connections between business activity, societal utility, money, and the capital markets. Every day, business managers, investment managers, bankers, and individual investors around the globe make choices about buying, selling, or holding assets and liabilities, and the field of finance comprises the study of how these resources are best allocated and managed. Knowledge learned in the area of finance allows a business manager to understand how to measure the value of their resources, providing a basis for the manager to invest in business projects, to manage debt, or to reward shareholders with a dividend.
Concepts learned in finance will apply to business management, investment management, and personal financial acumen. Financial analysis and study will involve other areas such as marketing, forecasting, risk assessment, and psychology.
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a Concentration in Health Services Administration
Health service professionals develop policies and programs that protect individuals, families, and communities. Demand for medical and health service managers is expected to grow by 23 percent through 2022. The Health Services Administration curriculum is a great educational option for students who are new to the health care and medical fields, pre‑nursing students seeking an alternative to the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree, and RNs and other health care specialists interested in managerial career paths. Armed with a solid foundation of business management principles as well as specialized knowledge through coursework in Epidemiology, Community Health, Legal Aspects of Health Care Administration, Health Care Reimbursement, Quality Management, and Health Systems Administration, students are prepared for a successful and effective career in health services administration.
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a Concentration in Innovation Management
Effective leadership in an advanced manufacturing setting increasingly emphasizes innovative thinking. The Innovation Management concentration infuses rigorous scientific methodology with design thinking in business, focusing on value creation in organizations where engineered systems are paramount to success. Students in the innovation management concentration take 21 more credits in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) compared with other business concentrations, providing specialized capabilities for solving complex business and operations problems. The curriculum combines business management principles, theories, and applications with advanced knowledge in STEM and design topics. Students explore core business areas and topics required to help businesses reach their strategic goals and effectively manage resources. Potential career opportunities include positions such as supervisor or manager of production, projects, and operations, accountant or auditor (with a dual concentration in accounting), management analyst, or logistician with the potential for advancement to plant manager, controller, or CEO.
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a Concentration in ManagementSociety recognizes the importance of understanding both management itself and the complex nature of the organizations—in business, government, hospitals, and universities—in which managers operate. Management requires skill in coordinating people, processes, systems, and technology to generate desired outcomes for organizations. Effective business managers are proficient in supporting and enabling organizations to meet and exceed strategic priorities, goals, and objectives.
The management curriculum includes study of strategic management, organizational theory, human resource development, leadership, teamwork and diversity, and skills needed to address challenges in the global business environment. Through elective offerings students are able to pursue specialized areas such as project management concepts and theories, domestic and international supply chain management, corporate or international finance, marketing research and more.
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a Concentration in MarketingThe study of marketing concerns all activities related to the marketing and distribution of goods and services from producers to consumers. Areas of study include customer behavior, the development of product offerings to meet consumer needs, pricing policies, institutions and channels of distribution (including retailers and wholesalers), advertising, digital marketing, selling, sales promotion, research, and the management of marketing to provide for profitable and expanding businesses.
The marketing curriculum endeavors to provide the business community with broadly trained professionals who approach problems with a clear understanding both of marketing and of the interrelationships between marketing and other functions of the firm. Students majoring in marketing will be qualified for careers such as advertising, public relations, marketing communications, sales and sales management, marketing research, product management and distribution and retail management.
Minors
Business
A minor in business can be a valuable addition to any major. The study of business helps students succeed in roles as citizens, consumers, and employees. It accentuates and develops skills in decision-making, understanding and improving processes, and interpersonal relations, and broadens perspectives in the workplace. A business minor can be particularly worthwhile for students who may someday hope to run their own business.
