Listed below are the courses that are integral to the Business Leadership major. It consists of three subcomponents: social management skills, analytical management skills, and multicultural and domestic understanding. The three components help make up a well-rounded major.
Social Management Skills
In this part of the major, I will refine my social skills. I hope to learn how lead a team, market products to clients/ consumers, and communicate in a clear and effective way.
Management- MGMT 250
This course taught me generally how to plan, organize, and lead a business/ team. I learned how to work on a team and also inspire workers. I learned analytical skills needed for managing a group. I learned about the structure of businesses and how they interact. I also learned about business in a global context and how to best lead within those environments. I gained an understanding for how to problem solve and deal with employee conflicts which are likely to arise when managing a business. I think this course is integral to the Business Leadership major because it combines both the practices of business management and leadership which is necessary for this major.
Journalistic Writing- ENGL 289
In this course I have strengthened my writing skills. Being a clear and concise communicator is an essential trait for leading a business. In business writing one must be able to make their point in a direct method. Journalistic Writing has taught me how to communicate hard facts in an objective manner. It has taught me how to share news and also look at news in a critical manner. This course is relevant to Business Leadership because I will become a better communicator and learn how to convey messages articulately.
Industrial and Organizational Psychology- PSYCH 250
This course has taught me a broad understanding of business, especially in regards to the psychology of an employee workforce. Learning about the psychology of employees will allow me to be an effective leader in the future. I have learned how to motivate, train, organize, select and analyze employees. I expect that this course will also help me to learn about the culture of an organization. All of these aspects of business will play an important role in being a business leader in the future, therefore making it an integral part of this major.
Marketing- MGMT 251
Marketing is a major facet of business and ultimately plays a major role in the sales of any product. I learned how to identify demographics to reach when selling a product and learned how to best reach them. I gained an understanding of how to evaluate a market and develop an effective marketing strategy. The course relied heavily on teamwork and working with external companies. Learning how to work on a team and deal with external vendors will be crucial when leading a business. This course taught me how to also think critically about media and the messages a company sends in advertising and branding.
Analytical Management Skills
In this part of my major, I hope to learn how to be a strategic leader. A significant amount of this subsection is learning about money, how to analyze the health of a company and then make decisions based off the findings.
Statistics for Economics- ECON 263
In this course, I learned how to analyze data. I learned R which will allow me to interpret data in the future. Having strong analytical skills and the ability to interpret data is necessary for being a leader in business. One must not have only have people skills, but they must also have analytical skills to make effective decisions. This course taught me to read, interpret, and compile data.
Managerial Accounting- MGMT 237
This course will teach me how to budget and consider financial issues as a member of a management team. I will learn how to evaluate performance and make decisions based off of financial information. I will also gain an understanding of Excel which is a necessary skill in business for analyzing data. In business leadership, being able to make decisions based off of financial information is crucial. This course will also help me to refine my analytical skills in regards to business.
Management Policy and Strategy- MGMT 383
In this course, I will learn how to plan and make decisions. I will also learn how to analyze and solve problems. Problems will always arise in a business setting so knowing how to best handle struggles in a strategic and effective way will be critical in the future. This course will allow me to better refine my business strategy skills and learn how to handle problems.
Multicultural and Domestic Understanding
In this part of my major, I hope to further understand the cultural aspects of leading. I hope to gain a knowledge of different cultural groups and how they impact one another. I also want to learn how to learn about ethnic and cultural groups that are not the same as my own. By learning these skills I hope to be able to apply them in a future leadership setting.
Theology of Religions and Interreligious Dialogues- REL 245
In this course, I will examine world religions and how they interrelate. Religion can be one of the key influences in an individual’s life. Many decisions and practices can be related to an individual’s religious beliefs. By having an understanding of the world religions and how they interconnect, I will be better equipped to lead future employees and interpret their beliefs.
Global Interdependence- SOAN 262
In this course I learned about how countries impact one another. I learned about the relationship between the “developed” and “developing” world. I now understand how the actions of one country can impact the status of many other countries. I also learned about culture on a global scale (e.g. feelings towards women, climate change, international business, exploitation of developing countries). This course is relevant to my major because there is a strong likelihood that I will work for an international company so understanding how countries interact is important.
Innovation and Entrepreneurship in New Zealand- MGMT 260
In this course, I got to learn about the creation of a business from ideation to execution. I learned about business in an international context. I had the opportunity to see directly how culture impacts business because New Zealand is one of the most entrepreneurial countries in the world. I learned how to seek out entrepreneurial resources from the government, other businesses (e.g. coworking spaces), investors, and individuals. This course is relevant to the major because it is important for me to understand how small business operate. It is also important for me to think creatively and be able to execute the creation of a new product or service. I learned how to make decisions quickly and stand by a decision, which is a necessary task for management. I also worked with many different teams during this course.
Great Again? American Fictions- AMST 301
This course has taught me how to look at American culture in a critical way. I have analyzed the history of America and how America’s leaders have impacted the culture and made it “great”. I have learned about America’s “greatness” socially, politically, and economically and how these factors have played into the past and present. I have also learned about perspectives of America from non-citizens. This course is relevant because I have learned how America operates from a cultural perspective. I will always be an American citizen so I must know how the culture I carry with me may impact relationships with those from outside of the US.
Intro to Family Studies- FAMST 232
In this course I learned about the American family. Family plays a major role in work-life balance and can play a role in effectiveness in a job. I learned about stressors within families and how the family operates. I learned about how the family impacts both personal and professional life. This course will help me in leading future employees and understanding how their personal life may impact their productivity in a professional context. It will also help me better understand how my personal life may impact my professional life.
Applied Learning:
Academic Internship- Media 294
In this course I got to apply my marketing and international business skills. I developed and executed a marketing plan for an international non-profit, Africa Jam, based out of Cape Town, South Africa. I learned how to work on an international team with a demographic that was completely unlike my own. I taught and led others on how to practice best marketing practices. This academic internship allowed me to apply my learnings from both a business and global culture perspective.
Academic Internship- MGMT 394
In this course I would like to perform an internship in which I get to lead others. I would like to coordinate and manage a team. This will allow me to apply my learnings and then reflect upon my learnings and become a stronger leader as a result.
Prerequisites and Other Supporting Courses:
Below are courses that have supported the other classes in my major.
Principles of Accounting- MGMT 225
In this course, I learned how to analyze the finances of a company. I learned how to interpret and create the four basic financial statements. I learned how to make judgements about a company based off of their financial records. This course will help me think about business strategy and compile data for external investors. It is is crucial for any member of management to understand how their company is performing financially, making this class extremely relevant to leading a business.
Perspectives on American Culture- AMST 100
This course taught me about the contemporary culture of America. It provided a foundation for learning how to analyze any culture and how to critically observe modern American. I looked at the role of race, gender, work, and class in modern America. This class is relevant to my major because ultimately America will play into whatever business I enter, whether domestically or internationally. Learning about the attitudes towards major cultural aspects within America will allow me to better understand future employees, consumers, and partners.
Principles of Economics- ECON 121
This course served as a prerequisite for management studies courses. I learned basic concepts of micro and macroeconomics. This course provided a foundation for my understanding of our economy and how taxes, exchange rates, growth, inflation, and employment can result in changes in the economy. This course fits into my major because it provided a base for my understanding of the economy and business.
Comparative Politics- PSCI 112
This course taught me the different types of political systems. It allowed me to understand political regimes in Western and non-Western cultures. This course is relevant because if I go into global business, I must understand the types of political systems that I am to operate within. Understanding how other countries lead provides insights on how to lead a business as well. I have been able to understand what political systems have been effective versus which ones have been ineffective. I will be able to apply these principles to my style of leadership in the future at a company.
Principles of Psychology- PSYCH 125
This course taught me the foundation of how the brain operates and how we, as humans, think. I learned about identity, behavior, and cultural influences and their impacts on the mind. This course has allowed me to understand how people think and therefore how they may react to certain situations. Understanding the mind has allowed me to think critically about my own thought process and the thought processes of others. I will be able to apply this to certain situations in the future: I will be able to use the content learned to motivate others, understand decisions, and analyze behavior. I will also be able to better understand the thought processes and decision making of consumers.