Business Administration, M.B.A. (fully employed)

Admission

Admission into the MBA program is competitive and decisions are based on the holistic assessment of each candidate’s academic and personal/professional background. Students must meet the CSU requirements for admission to a master’s degree program. Please consult the Graduate Admissions section in this catalog for complete information. In addition, applicants will be evaluated based on the following:

1. a satisfactory score on the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT). Students should score in the top 50 percent on the verbal, quantitative and analytical writing areas. GRE/GMAT might be waived based on the waiver policy;
2. a minimum TOEFL score of 570 on the paper exam, or 90 on the internet based (iBT) is required¹; and
3. a recommendation from the MBA Admissions Committee based upon a review of the above requirements, the student’s “Statement of Purpose” and prior work experience.

Additional coursework may be required of admitted students who holistically satisfy the criteria but are weak in one of the above areas.

Proficiency Requirements

All newly admitted students must demonstrate proficiency in calculus and statistics, either at the time of admission or within their first year of study. The technical courses listed below, or equivalent coursework, must be completed with a “C” (2.0) or better:

• MATH 135 - Business Calculus (3)

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• ISDS 361A - Business Analytics I (3) or
• ISDS 513 - Statistical Analysis (3)

Study Plan

Students with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration may be able to complete the program with a minimum of 40 units of adviser-approved coursework. However, students with little or no recent coursework in Business Administration may require 43 total units of advisor-approved coursework. A minimum 3.0 GPA (“B”) is required in study plan courses and overall applicable coursework. Any study plan course with a grade lower than “C” (2.0) must be repeated and passed with a “C” (2.0) or better.

Business Core (19-22 units)

The M.B.A. program at CSUF presumes that all students demonstrate proficiency in the topics covered by the following business core, which consist of 19-22 units of coursework. These courses must be at the 500 level. All specific required courses are determined by faculty advisers within the College of Business and Economics, who make decisions about core coursework equivalency. Based on a student’s previous coursework, faculty advisers may waive a maximum of 3 units of required core. If additional required core coursework is found to be equivalent, CBE faculty advisers may approve a substitution of a 500-level course in the same discipline. Consideration for equivalency may only be provided if the proposed equivalent courses are no more than seven years old and the student has achieved a “C” (2.0) or better with an overall GPA of 3.0 (“B”). Each student in the M.B.A. program must complete an adviser-approved study plan. The Business Core courses are:

• ACCT 510 - Financial Accounting (3) * or
• ACCT 511 - Seminar in Managerial Accounting (3) *

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• BUAD 501A - Executive Communication (1)
• ECON 515 - Microeconomic Perspective for Managers (3) * or
• ECON 521 - Macroeconomic Perspective for Managers (3) *

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• FIN 517 - Managerial Finance (3)
• ISDS 514 - Decision Models for Business and Economics (3)
• MGMT 516 - Operations Management (3)
• MGMT 524 - Seminar in Organizational Behavior (3)
• MKTG 519 - Marketing Management (3)

Generalist M.B.A. (18 units)

Select no more than six units from any one discipline. If the cohort takes ECON 515 as part of the Business Core, then ECON 521 can be used as a concentration course. If the cohort takes ECON 521 as part of the Business Core, then ECON 515 can be used as a concentration course.

• ECON 515 - Microeconomic Perspective for Managers (3) or
• ECON 521 - Macroeconomic Perspective for Managers (3) or
• ECON 531 - Seminar in International Economics (3)

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• FIN 533 - Seminar in Financial Administration (3) or
• FIN 560 - Corporate Risk Management and Insurance Seminar (3)

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• ISDS 551 - Info Resources and IT Project Management (3)

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• MGMT 510 - Seminar in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Managerial Ethics (3) or
• MGMT 547 - Managing Multinational Organizations (3) or
• MGMT 582 - Leading Organizational Change (3)

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• MGMT 525 - Seminar in Team Leadership Skills (3) or
• MGMT 555 - Leadership Dynamics (3) or
• MGMT 588 - Leadership, Power and Influence (3)

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• MKTG 596T - Contemporary Topics in Marketing (3)

Total (40-43 units)