Master of Business Administration (MBA) Overview

Have what it takes to be a leader? Enhance your management and leadership skills by enrolling in South University's online Master of Business Administration (MBA) program. Designed specifically for working professionals who wish to pursue a degree while maintaining a comfortable work-life balance, the online MBA program covers the same business strategies as our on-campus programs while giving you the freedom and flexibility to attend classes any time of the day or night.

This program is ideal for those individuals considering management school who wish to gain an understanding of the best practices for management and decision-making within today's ever-shifting business landscape. You will be taught effective planning, process, and production strategies and have an opportunity to develop the skills needed to work within cross-functional teams. You will also have the opportunity to gain an overall understanding of the legal, economic, ethical, and social dynamics within modern organizations.

Students of the MBA program can choose from eleven specializations:

• Accounting
• Finance
• Healthcare Administration
• Human Resources Management
• International Business
• Management Information Systems
• Marketing
• Hospitality Management  
• Entrepreneurship and Small Business
• Project Management

Graduates will be prepared to pursue managerial and leadership positions in a wide variety of private, public and non-profit organizations.

Employment Opportunities

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), “Employment of human resources managers is expected to grow 13 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations. Employment growth for human resources managers largely depends on the performance and growth of individual companies. As new companies form and organizations expand their operations, they will need more human resources staff to oversee and administer their programs.”

The BLS adds, “Candidates with certification or a master’s degree—particularly those with a concentration in human resources management or an MBA—should have the best job prospects.”

Source: http://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/human-resources-managers.htm#

Academic Requirements

The MBA online program is designed for prospective students who have:

• Completed an undergraduate degree with a GPA of 2.7 or better on a 4.0 scale, OR
• Completed an undergraduate degree with a minimum combined GMAT score within the 50th percentile.

Master of Business Administration (MBA) - 48 Total Hours

Students pursuing the Master of Business Administration are required to take a total of 12 courses as follows:

• 4 foundation courses - 16 Credits
• 3 core courses - 12 Credits
• 4 major courses - 16 Credits
• 1 capstone course - 4 Credits

Foundation Pre-Requisite Courses Required

Students must have successfully completed a Bachelor's degree from an accredited institution.  The following foundation undergraduate courses must have been satisfactorily completed from an accredited institution or be satisfactorily completed (grade of C or better) within the first two quarters after acceptance into the MBA program.  If the courses are taken at South University the undergraduate tuition rates will apply to these courses.

• Accounting: two courses (or completion of MBA5000 at South University)
• Macroeconomics: one course
• Statistics: one course

Foundation Curriculum - 16 Credits
Students are required to take 4 foundation courses as follows:

MBA5001 - Organization Behavior and Communication

This course addresses the issues of motivation, leadership, and communications. Included are negotiation, conflict resolution, and team building.

Prerequisite(s):
Program prerequisite courses

Credits: 4

MBA5004 - Managerial Economics

This course provides an overview of microeconomic concepts and their application to common business problems. Topics include supply and demand analysis, cost analysis, economies of scale, basic market types and their characteristics, pricing, risk analysis, and the government's role in economic affairs.

Prerequisite(s): Program Prerequisites

Credits: 4

MBA5005 - Law and Ethics for Managers

This course provides a framework for managers to understand and assess the fundamental legal and ethical issues confronting managers in the contemporary business environment. Emphasis is placed on legal issues managers might encounter when engaged in various business activities. The course covers legal principles that affect businesses, ranging from employment law issues, contract disputes, regulatory compliance, negligence claims, violations of fiduciary duties, securities fraud, development of cyber law, and more. Course activities integrate a variety of legal topics with management of businesses to demonstrate how the law influences management decisions and business strategies. Students will acquire practical knowledge that empowers them to spot legal issues, develop solutions, handle disputes, minimize risk, and make informed and effective business decisions.

Prerequisite(s): Program Prerequisites

Credits: 4

MBA5008 - Quantitative Analysis and Decision Making

This course presents students with quantitative tools for effective business analysis and decision-making. In addition to a review of basic inferential statistics, the course includes tools such as chi-squared tests, nonparametric statistics, correlation and regression analysis, time-series analysis and forecasting, and decision analysis. 

Prerequisite(s):
Program prerequisite courses

Credits: 4

Core Curriculum - 12 Credits
Students are required to take 3 core courses as follows:

MBA6010 - Managerial Finance

In this course students learn to apply analytical tools to making strategic financial decisions that add value to the shareholder.  Students will learn to use financial statement analysis tools, value long-term securities, relate risk and return, perform financial forecasting, evaluate assets and portfolios, determine the firm’s cost of capital and design an optimal financial structure.

Prerequisite(s):
Program prerequisite courses

Credits: 4

MBA6011 - Strategic Marketing

This course provides a framework for examining key strategic marketing issues faced by modern organizations and helps students to develop an understanding of the marketing environment, customer and their buying behavior, the marketing research process, new product development, marketing channels, and marketing communication and advertising.

Prerequisite(s):
Program prerequisite courses

Credits: 4

MBA6012 - Operations and Supply Chain Management

This course introduces students to the management activities involved in operating organizations within a global supply chain context.  Students will learn how business functions (such as marketing, operations, and finance) interact to support decisions for successful execution of the organization’s strategic plan.

Prerequisite(s):
Program prerequisite courses

Credits: 4

Major Curriculum - 16 Credits
Students are required to take 4 major courses in their chosen area of specialization:

Marketing -

The Marketing area of specialization prepares students for a leadership role in the marketing industry. The foundation provides a firm grounding in economics, decision making, behavioral sciences, and strategic environment.

Students in the Marketing specialization take the following 4 courses:

MBA6201 - Consumer Behavior

This course examines the psychological, social, and managerial interactions that motivate buyers to purchase goods and services.

Prerequisite(s):
Core coursework

Credits: 4

MBA6202 - Market Research

This course deals with the research process, sources and collection of data, and the analysis and presentation of the results

Prerequisite(s):
Core coursework

Credits: 4

MBA6203 - Advertising and Promotion

This course examines the major marketing media alternatives and the means to integrate efforts to develop and maintain profitable customer relationships.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of the MBA Core Courses

Credits: 4

MBA6204 - Global Marketing

This course examines the means by which products are developed to address the needs of differing local markets and determine markets for existing markets. An emphasis is placed on the legal, regulatory, political, and cultural issues that must be considered.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of the MBA Core Courses

Credits: 4

Finance -

The Finance area of specialization prepares students for a leadership role in the financial industry. The foundation provides a firm grounding in economics, decision making, behavioral sciences, and strategic environment.

Students in the Finance specialization take the following 4 courses:

MBA6101 - Global Financial Management

This course introduces the students to the issues facing financial managers of multinational firms. Major topics include an overview of global capital markets, exchange rate determination, foreign exchange risk and hedging, international tax and legal considerations, and cross border valuation.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of the MBA Core Courses

Credits: 4

MBA6102 - Entrepreneurial Finance, Venture Capital, and IPOs

This course focuses on the major issues confronting the financial manager in an emerging/developing firm. The issues include raising capital through private sources to structuring an initial public offering. Topics include valuation, short term capital management, risk management, private equity financing, when and how to go public, and financial strategies for selling/dissolution.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of the MBA Core Courses

Credits: 4

MBA6103 - Financial Instruments and Markets

This course introduces the students to the workings of the major types of securities markets including debt, equity, and derivatives markets. Emphasis is placed on the workings of and risks associated with each.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of the MBA Core Courses

Credits: 4

MBA6105 - Investment and portfolio Management

This course introduces the major issues associated with developing and managing a portfolio of debt, equity, and derivative securities. Topics include portfolio and efficient markets theory, financial markets, and investment and selection management.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of the MBA Core Courses

Credits: 4

Accounting -

The Accounting area of specialization prepares students for a leadership role in the Accounting industry. The foundation provides a firm grounding in economics, decision making, behavioral sciences, and strategic environment. Graduates from this program may be eligible to sit for the CPA examination.

Students in the Accounting specialization take the following 4 courses:

ACC5348 - Advanced Financial Accounting

This course explores Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) associated with a corporation's merger, acquisition, and foreign transactions and operations. Topics may include partnership transactions, International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), and advanced tools and techniques for governmental and not-for-profit entities.

Prerequisite(s): ACC3028 ACC4035
Core coursework

Credits: 4

ACC6315 - Accounting Services Consulting

This course explores the potential consulting models, policies, and procedures associated with other professional accounting services.  Topics may include client marketing, engagement management, consulting categories, scope of services, risk mitigation, and customer service.

Prerequisite(s):
Core coursework

Credits: 4

ACC6330 - Advanced Financial Reporting

This course explores reporting as specified by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) under a variety of business and corporate circumstances.  Topics may include the regulatory environment applicable to corporate entities (which includes reporting requirements under Sarbanes Oxley), accounting restatements, forecasts, and projections.

Prerequisite(s): ACC5348
Core coursework

Credits: 4

ACC6374 - Advanced Taxation

This course explores the U.S. Internal Revenue Code applicable to estates, trusts, gifts, partnerships, and other corporate entities. Topics include advanced tax planning, tax research, and tax implications of management decisions

Prerequisite(s): ACC4020
Core coursework

Credits: 4

Human Resources Management - students in this specialization take the following 4 courses:

MBA6501 - Strategic Human Resources Management

This course explores human resources from a strategic perspective to help an organization achieve its goals. Topics may include investments in human resources, workforce demographic trends, theories of human resource management, workforce training and development, workforce utilization and assessment, and performance management systems.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of the MBA Core Courses

Credits: 4

MBA6503 - Organizational Staffing and Development

This course explores the theory and practices involved in acquiring and developing an organization's workforce. Topics may include HR planning and analysis, execution and evaluation of recruitment methodologies, adult learning theories, development of training content, and execution and evaluation of development activities.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of the MBA Core Courses and MBA6501

Credits: 4

MBA6504 - Organizational Compensation and Benefits

This course explores the theory and practices of compensation and benefits. Topics may include individual and group compensation and benefits, selection and evaluation of compensation and benefit plans, performance and incentive plans, and linkage of compensation to strategic goals.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of the MBA Core Courses and MBA6501

Credits: 4

MBA6505 - Organizational Development And Change Management

This course explores the theoretical grounding and practical approaches necessary to effectively diagnose organizational problems, develop intervention approaches, and implement organizational solutions. Topics include entering and contracting, organizational diagnostic models, organizational surveys, change impediments, managing the change process, organizational, interpersonal, or group interventions, and evaluation approaches.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of the MBA Core Courses (and MBA6501)

Credits: 4

International Business - students in this specialization take the following 4 courses:

MBA6101 - Global Financial Management

This course introduces the students to the issues facing financial managers of multinational firms. Major topics include an overview of global capital markets, exchange rate determination, foreign exchange risk and hedging, international tax and legal considerations, and cross border valuation.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of the MBA Core Courses

Credits: 4

MBA6204 - Global Marketing

This course examines the means by which products are developed to address the needs of differing local markets and determine markets for existing markets. An emphasis is placed on the legal, regulatory, political, and cultural issues that must be considered.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of the MBA Core Courses

Credits: 4

MBA6401 - Global Importing and Exporting

This course explores how an organization conducts its importing and exporting operations to achieve its strategic goals. Topics may include integrating import/export processes into strategic organizational initiatives, management of third-party service providers and intermediaries across divergent industries, national/international/trading block regulations, tariffs and fee systems, trade zones, information flows, and financing arrangements (including letters of credit).

Prerequisite(s): MBA6010 MBA6011 MBA6012

Credits: 4

MBA6405 - Global Human Resources

This course explores how human resources management within a national or international organization is affected by the global business environment. Topics may include recruitment, staffing, training, compensation, supervision, employment law, and performance within an international context.

Prerequisite(s): Core Courses

Credits: 4

Management Information Systems - students in this specialization take the following 4 courses:

IST5010 - Information Technology Infrastructure

Concepts, systems development and effective use of up-to-date tools and application software, focusing on IT infrastructure, systematic approach to management, processes involved in managing IT infrastructures, best practices to IT service support and service delivery, the place of IT infrastructure and IT service in an organization, IT management frameworks, and concepts of the work processes used to manage an IT infrastructure.

Prerequisite(s): None

Credits: 4

IST5020 - Information Systems Fundamentals

This course explores the real-world projects dealing with issues related to development, management, and maintenance of medium-sized and a large-scaled information system (IS) with emphasis on business IS for a distributed environment. The identification of vulnerabilities and risks inherent in the operation of IS are also explored.

Prerequisite(s): None

Credits: 4

IST6000 - Principles of Systems Development

This course summarizes system development and design and software engineering methodologies, with emphasis on structured and object-oriented analysis, design and implementation of information systems, distributed information systems, information systems life cycle models, and platforms with discussions of requirements definition and management, modeling quality assurance and development environments.

Prerequisite(s): IST5010 IST5020

Credits: 4

IST6010 - Project Management

This course discusses the tools and techniques for the successful management of Information Technology (IT) projects. Topics include project selection and approval, planning, estimation techniques, scheduling methods, budgeting, IT project organizations, and project control and assessment. The course describes the need for effective project management in technology projects, with an emphasis on how technology projects are managed from start to finish. Students explore each of the nine domains of project management including project planning, scheduling, risk management, cost management, and effective project control, as well as the associated pre-project and post-project activities that need to be performed for a project.

Prerequisite(s): IST6000

Credits: 4

Hospitality Management - students in this specialization take the following 4 courses:

MBA6120 - Hospitality Finance and Revenue Management

This course provides students with an applied understanding of the fundamental investment and financing decisions within the hospitality industry, including theories and tools related to each of these activities. Special emphasis is placed on the practice and application of revenue management as it relates to the hospitality industry.

Prerequisite(s):
Core coursework

Credits:

MBA6220 - Franchising and Chain Management Within the Hospitality Industry

This course focuses on the study of multiunit and franchise operations within the hospitality and tourism industries. The major focus will be on the understanding of the research concepts, functioning, and critical reviews of the franchising operations. Topics include franchising pros and cons, understanding the franchise package, franchisee-franchisor relationship, trends in franchising, international franchising, franchising contracts, training in franchising, marketing of franchises, and legal aspects of franchising.

Prerequisite(s): Core Courses

Credits: 4

MBA6225 - Consumer Behavior and Marketing within the Hospitality Industry

This course focuses on the purchasing and selection behavior of the hospitality consumer. Special emphasis will be placed on the principles of customer relationship management (CRM) as it relates to strengthening the prepurchase and postpurchase decisions of the consumer as they pertain to the hospitality brand. This course will also concentrate on how to market to current and future consumers utilizing contemporary marketing strategies.

Prerequisite(s):
Core coursework

Credits:

MBA6230 - Hospitality Systems and Policy Formulation

This course focuses on the decision making and policy formulation related to internal and external factors in the hospitality and tourism industries, including the evaluation of strategic competitive methods. Discussions will include an analysis of journal readings, case studies, and established theories within the discipline.

Prerequisite(s): None

Credits:

Entrepreneurship and Small Business - students in this specialization take the following 4 courses:

MBA6102 - Entrepreneurial Finance, Venture Capital, and IPOs

This course focuses on the major issues confronting the financial manager in an emerging/developing firm. The issues include raising capital through private sources to structuring an initial public offering. Topics include valuation, short term capital management, risk management, private equity financing, when and how to go public, and financial strategies for selling/dissolution.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of the MBA Core Courses

Credits: 4

MBA6710 - Entrepreneurial Organizations and Small Businesses

This course focuses on the unique characteristics, needs, and implications of entrepreneurial organizations and small businesses in the United States and global economies. Topics include the life cycle of entrepreneurial organizations and small businesses, entrepreneurial leadership and the role of an entrepreneur, functional and resource needs of these enterprises, and evaluation of recent new ventures.

Prerequisite(s):
Core coursework

Credits: 4

MBA6720 - New Venture Creation

This course focuses on creating and presenting a successful, comprehensive business and implementation plan for a new venture, with a special emphasis on evaluating business opportunities. Topics include developing and writing a coherent and effective business plan, persuasively describing the venture's innovative products and/or services, examining the necessary production or creation process, creating a financing model and budget for the new venture, managing the risks to new venture creation, and establishing a project plan for implementing the new venture.

Prerequisite(s): MBA6710

Credits: 4

MBA6730 - Legal Environment of Entrepreneurship and Small Business

This course focuses on the legal issues commonly faced by entrepreneurial organizations and small businesses and how to reduce the risks created by such issues. Topics include the choice of business forms, employment laws (including confidentiality and restrictive covenants in employment agreements), applicable security laws, legal aspects of financing, letters of intent, and intellectual property laws.

Prerequisite(s): MBA6710

Credits: 4

Project Management

The Master of Business Administration with a specialization in Project Management is designed to prepare students for success in the complex and challenging arena of managing projects across a variety of businesses and industries. The program explores topics such as project scope, schedule, cost, and quality management within an arena of limited resources, global competition, and diverse work environments. Students enrolled in the program examine leadership styles required of project managers in the local organization and in a geographically dispersed team environment.

Students develop policies and organizational governance to successfully implement and direct project management methodologies while reducing organizational risk. Such efforts prepare students to move forward with their careers in the project management discipline and to function successfully at higher levels in the organizational hierarchy.

The courses taken in the Project Management specialization support students as they seek certification as a Project Management Professional (PMP®). The PMP certification is available through the Project Management Institute (PMI) and is acknowledged as a valuable certification in the business and information technology environment. The management knowledge areas commonly covered through such certification include integration, scope, time, cost, quality, human resources, communications, risks, and procurement.

Acceptance into the South University Master of Business Administration program with a specialization in Project Management or its completion does not imply or guarantee that a student will be able to obtain PMP certification. The student should contact the appropriate organization/institution for specific requirements and the application process.

Students in the Project Management specialization take the following 4 courses:

PMC6601 - Foundations of Project Management

This course introduces the student to the challenges associated with projects in the business arena. The course introduces the terms and conceptual framework for Project Management as detailed in the ANSI Standard Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide®). The course focuses on the processes of project integration management including initiating projects, project planning, executing project plans, controlling and monitoring project work, and closing the project. The course reviews the nine knowledge areas in the PMBOK Guide as foundation for subsequent courses in the specialization. Students also analyze how project management relates to other management disciplines such as leadership, ethics, strategic management, operations management, and human resources management. The student is introduced to project management software that will be used throughout the specialization.

Prerequisite(s):
Core coursework

Credits: 4

PMC6605 - Managing Project Scope, Requirements, and Quality

This course focuses on project scope planning, definition, control, and verification in a project requirements and quality context. The emphasis is on developing methods for identifying and prioritizing customer requirements and product specifications, and translating those to define the project scope. The course examines concepts and techniques associated with breaking down project work into component activities to create the work breakdown structure (WBS) for the project. Various types of WBS are examined. The concepts of project scope control and project issues management are explored. Quality philosophy, definitions, and principles are applied to develop a quality model to measure project processes and results. The student will continue to use project management software to translate the WBS into a document that communicates project activities.

Prerequisite(s): PMC6601

Credits: 4

PMC6610 - Project Time and Cost Management

The course concentrates on defining and estimating project activities, sequencing activities, and developing schedules based upon resource availability. The student is exposed to complex network management techniques designed to illustrate and manage the project schedule. Critical Path Method (CPM) techniques for managing the project schedule are emphasized. Project cost models are developed and approaches to activity estimating and budgeting are explored. The course introduces project time and cost control concepts, emphasizing the concepts of Earned Value Management, a critical approach to controlling the project. The course expands on the student’s earlier use of project management software to create cost estimates and manageable schedules.

Prerequisite(s): PMC6601 PMC6605

Credits: 4

PMC6620 - Strategic Management Across Projects

This course emphasizes project and program management techniques in the implementation of organizational strategic initiatives. The strategic level of project management is concerned with managing programs which are portfolios of multiple, interrelated projects. The course focuses on implementation and execution of plans, linking programs and projects to the organization’s strategic goal of sustainable competitive advantage. Managing strategic programs across functions and business units requires the student to analyze and apply coordination strategies to manage expectations for a variety of stakeholders. The student will explore strategic management concepts and evaluate methods to align project and program objectives with business unit and enterprise goals to respond to an environment of changing priorities. This course also covers project risk management to include identifying potential risks, applying both quantitative and qualitative techniques to analyze the risks, planning responses to the risks, and monitoring and controlling the risk plan to assure success. The course examines innovation in business from the project management perspective, evaluating project organizational structure and team composition in moving innovation from concept to implementation. The student will continue to develop project management software skills that relate to managing limited resources in the multi-project environment.

Prerequisite(s): PMC6601

Credits: 4

Capstone Course - 4 Credits

MBA6999 - Strategic Development and Implementation

This course explores the methods of directing a firm, or a significant division thereof in an internationally competitive environment. Students will develop an understanding of the way in which general managers formulate and implement business-level strategy and corporate level strategy in today's market economy. These techniques will incorporate tools and perspectives for international and cooperative strategy. In this course students will also develop skills and perspectives in corporate leadership, corporate parenting, and corporate entrepreneurship.

Prerequisite(s):

Credits: 4

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