When students enroll in the undergraduate business program at the Oklahoma State University Spears School of Business, the school activates its mission to empower them to make a difference in the world. This undertaking is sought after via a business education that teaches interpersonal skills and is backed by research and outreach.
REVAMPED AND STREAMLINED: THE INTRODUCTION OF A NEW CORE CURRICULUM
To further help fulfill the mission, the school recently completed a two-year review to revamp its core curriculum. A remodeled set of courses was unveiled this past June. By focusing less on lectures and memorization, more on engaged learning opportunities for students (plus asking employers what they really want from OSU graduates), the curriculum is one that Dean Ken Eastman expects will give students a competitive edge in their careers and in life.
Another key attribute of the core curriculum makeover was to transform it from a set of intro courses for the school’s respective majors to a much more integrated group of classes and skills development that all students will need for a thriving career. In a video produced by the school, Dean Eastman says, “The courses are streamlined and focus on the essential business skills that all majors need. Our goal is to produce the best possible business people regardless of what their major is.”
IT’S RAINING SCHOLARSHIPS
The Spears School offers nine different majors for students to choose from Accounting, Economics and Legal Studies, Entrepreneurship, Finance, General Business, International Business, Management, Management Science and Information Systems, and Marketing. A unique selling point Spears has if you’re looking for one: both the BS in Business Administration degrees in General Business and in Management are available for students to complete online — an atypical feature at the undergraduate level in business schools.
While each major has its own set of requirements, students generally need to satisfy approximately 120 credit hours worth of coursework made up of general education requirements, core business courses, and courses within their chosen major.
Another characteristic that undergraduate students should be aware of is that the school loves to hand out scholarships. There are close to 100 different scholarship opportunities for students within the Spears School undergraduate program and more found at the university level.
‘ONE OF THE BEST EXPERIENCES I HAD WHILE AT OSU’
When attending the undergraduate business program at OSU, the experiences that seem to resonate with students most are the ones they gain while studying abroad. In our survey of graduates of the program, alumni consistently recall traveling overseas as a signature part of their undergraduate business studies.
“I studied abroad in Barcelona with Dr. Basu and learned more about international business and culture in a week than I could have imagined,” said graduate Katie VanFossen. “It was one of the best experiences I had while at OSU.”
“I was able to travel to Germany with a group of students to learn more about global business,” mentioned another graduate. “Through the business school, specifically the Scholar Leaders Program, I was given a scholarship for this opportunity and we planned the entire trip as a group. Wonderful experience.”
In 2014, the Spears School of Business celebrated its 100th anniversary and broke ground on a new state-of-the-art business building to house the school, faculty, staff, and students. The building will include 13 state-of-the-art classrooms, a 150-seat lecture hall, nine student team rooms, eight faculty-student breakout rooms along with other amenities intended to facilitate stronger programs, more effective recruitment of students and faculty, and increased recognition for the school. The expected completion of the new building is 2018.
What Alumni Say:
“Real life hands-on learning, as well as learning different cultures.” – Recent Alumni
“Portfolio management w/ Mr. Nejadmalayeri (the whole class) was a “signature experience” that I consider a key part of my business learning.” – Recent Alumni
“My marketing capstone class was amazing. Don Mitchell had us actually right a full marketing plan and do all the steps and presentations about it and expected high-quality work. It was probably the best learning class I had at OSU.” – Recent Alumni
“As a scholar leader, I was able to travel abroad for 10 days to Germany, Austria, and the Czech Republic. It was an amazing cultural learning experience as well as an opportunity to learn more about international industries such as companies like BMW.” – Recent Alumni
