Jackson State University sits in Jackson, Mississippi and is a historically black university. The College of Business is AACSB accredited, the highest accreditation a business school can receive. Additionally, the school is accredited by the Network of International Business Schools. The COB is comprised of four departments; Accounting; Economics, Finance, and General Business; Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management; and Management and Marketing. COB is also home to the Small Business Development Center, Center for Academic and Professional Success, and a state-of-the-art trading room.
Education
Undergraduate students can launch their business career by earning a Bachelor of Business Administration. Business Administration students can choose a major in Accounting, Economics, Entrepreneurship, Finance, Management, or Marketing. Non-business majors can earn a minor in Business Administration, Finance, or Marketing. Visiting instructors bring their experiences into the classroom and give students a chance to learn first-hand about a variety of business career paths.
Graduate students can advance their careers by earning a Master of Business Administration, Master of Professional Accountancy, or Doctorate of Philosophy in Business Administration. The curriculum for the 30-credit hour MBA program consists of 24 hours of core business courses, such as accounting, economics, finance, management, marketing, and statistics, and the additional six hours are business electives. The MPA program is also 30-credit hours and fulfills the requirement to sit for the CPA exam. Students in the Ph.D. program in Business expand upon their theoretical knowledge and research applications in one of the following concentrations: Accounting, Economics, or Management. Graduates of the doctoral program will be prepared for careers in university teaching or research.
Student Life
The College of Business serves just over 800 students per semester. Students can improve their business school experience by participating in one of 10 organizations offered. These organizations include the Accounting Society, American Marketing Association, Economics Development Society, Financial Management Association, Investment Club, Society for the Advancement of Management, and the Student Advisory Council for the College of Business. It is a prestigious honor for students to be inducted into the Alpha Mu Alpha National Honor Society in Marketing or Beta Gamma Sigma Honor Society. Budding entrepreneurs will enjoy competing in the Business Plan Competition hosted by the Society for Entrepreneurs. Recently, a COB student earned 2nd place in the National HBCU Stock Market Challenge sponsored by the National HBCU Business Deans Roundtable and Harris Stowe State University. For this competition, students complete 20 lessons covering financial literacy topics, such as banking, budgeting, managing debt, savings, investing, insurance, taxes, retirement, and building credit, as well as create and manage a $100,000 virtual stock portfolio.
Online Programs
Graduate students are able to pursue an online Master of Business Administration degree at their own pace, and scheduled around other work and life commitments. The 30-credit hour curriculum is the same as the on-ground degree. Classes are taught in accelerated eight-week sessions. Students who enroll in two courses per session can graduate with their MBA after five sessions, which is exactly one year from their start date.