California State University Long Beach’s College of Business desires for every student, faculty, and staff member to “engage, execute, and excel.” They began educating business students in 1949, have been AACSB-accredited since 1972, have around 53,000 alumni, and now have close to 5,000 students studying for their bachelors and masters degrees. The CoB’s mission is to “graduate highly valued, ethical business professionals.” With expert teaching, high-quality curriculum, and excellent programs, they are successful in achieving this goal.
Education
With the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree, undergraduate students can major in Accountancy, Information Systems, Supply Chain Management, Finance, Management, International Business, Human Resource Management, or Marketing. There is also a Bachelors degree in Legal Studies in Business. For graduate students, there is a Masters in Finance, Accountancy, Marketing, Information Systems, or Business Administration.
The MBA can be completed in an accelerated full-time format, in the evenings, or on Saturdays. This caters to traditional and non-traditional students. There is also a unique Master of Business Administration/Master of Fine Arts dual-degree option to best prepare students to lead and run a theater company. The Office of International Education and Global Engagement provides services to incoming international students, domestic students that want to earn credit while traveling the world, and faculty members who wish to connect with teaching abroad opportunities. An exciting part of the accelerated full-time MBA program is the required international trip to places like Bogota, Columbia; Lima, Peru; Santiago, Chile; Madrid, Spain; or Milan, Italy. Many scholarships exist to help business students fund their education, including the College of Business Scholarship, the MBA Scholarship, the National Founder’s Graduate Business Student Scholarship, and the PIHRA Foundation Scholarship.
Student Life
While students are engulfed in coursework, classes, and academic projects, they also need to engage in student organizations and campus events to help round out their overall educational experience. Business student groups include Beta Alpha Psi Accounting Society, Financial Management Association, Associated Business Students Organizations Council, International Business Association, Society for Advancement of Management, Graduate Program Students and Alumni, Black Business Students Association, and Delta Sigma Pi.
Students benefit from the Career Development Center and Graduate Business Career Services. These resources provide career advising, assessment, coaching, interviewing skills development, internship and job searches, help with resumes and cover letters, job fairs, workshops, and career events. Leadership development is vital to any student entering into a business career. The CoB students can grow in their leadership skills through the Lois J. Swanson Leadership Resource Center. The Sunstone Innovation Challenge is a business plan competition with a $15,000 prize which provides an incredible hands-on learning experience.
Online Programs
The CoB has developed a fully online Master of Business Administration degree to provide a flexible and convenient way to earn a higher education. With the MBA, there is a required international trip to explore a different business and local international culture to places like Tallinn, Estonia; Copenhagen, Denmark; Berlin, Germany; and Morocco, Africa.