Curricula Overview
Curricula in the Freeman College of Management lead to the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) degree, with majors in Accounting & Financial Management (ACFM), Global Management (GLBM), Managing for Sustainability (MSUS), and Markets, Innovation & Design (MIDE). In addition, the College offers a Bachelor of Management for Engineers (BME) degree and elective courses to students across the University to fill a pressing need for well-educated college graduates who understand the basic structures, operating mechanisms, and management principles governing businesses and other organizations. Students not enrolled in one of our degree programs are encouraged to engage with management subjects and may take up to seven courses in the Freeman College of Management.
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA)
Candidates for the BSBA degree must fulfill all University degree requirements including the College Core Curriculum, the BSBA Core, and the major program requirements. All BSBA major programs require the completion of 32 courses. Students must maintain good academic standing as defined for their class.
College Core Curriculum
Consistent with the Freeman College of Management’s commitment to its graduates receiving a strong liberal education, all candidates for the BSBA must fulfill the same general education requirements as graduates of the College of Arts & Sciences. Details of the College Core Curriculum (CCC) can be found here.
The CCC includes a Culminating Experience component. BSBA candidates typically fulfill this requirement by taking one of the following courses at Bucknell:
ACFM 327 Auditing & Assurance
ACFM 363 Topics in Financial Management
ACFM 364 Topics in Financial Markets
ACFM 420 Accounting Seminar
ACFM 476 Student Managed Investment Fund II
GLBM 400 Global Manager Abroad
MGMT 304 The Strategic Organization
MIDE 304 Marketing Management
MSUS 400 Management Consulting
In most cases, candidates will take more than one of these courses to satisfy degree requirements. In addition, all BSBA candidates take courses that address the instruction in writing, speaking, and information literacy goals of the College Core Curriculum.
To satisfy the University writing requirement, a student must successfully complete three writing courses: one course designated W1 (which must be taken during the first year and which must be taken before the W2 courses), and two W2 courses (usually taken after the first year, but, in any case, at least one of which must be taken after the first year.) Lists of W1 and W2 courses are available on the Registrar’s homepage (bucknell.edu/Registrar) under Course Information. Writing courses are designed to enhance the student’s understanding of the writing process and to emphasize that writing is a way of learning as well as a communication skill. They may be taken in any department, program, or College.
BSBA Core Requirements
The BSBA Core requirements comprise those management courses that all candidates for the BSBA degree, regardless of major, must complete. It is designed to cultivate three forms of literacy relevant to managerial thought: foundational, integrative, and managerial. All BSBA graduates must acquire these literacies, as they are the fundamental knowledge and skills necessary for managers, regardless of organization, industry, function, or sector.
All BSBA candidates ordinarily will have completed at least three of the four foundational literacy core courses by the end of the first year. Where this is not possible, students should plan to complete all four foundational literacy and at least two managerial literacy core courses by the end of their sophomore year.
FOUNDATIONAL LITERACY REQUIREMENT
| MGMT 100 | Exploring Management | .5 |
| MGMT 101 | Introduction to Organization and Management | 1 |
| MGMT 102 | Quantitative Reasoning for Managers | 1 |
| ECON 103 | Economic Principles and Problems | 1 |
INTEGRATIVE LITERACY REQUIREMENT
| MGMT 302 | The Stakeholder Organization | 1 |
| MGMT 303 | The Technological Organization | 1 |
| MGMT 304 | The Strategic Organization 1 | 1 |
| 1 | ACFM majors pursuing the CPA/CMA track may choose to take ACFM 420 Accounting Seminar Seminar in Accounting rather than MGMT 304 The Strategic Organization. |
MANAGERIAL LITERACY REQUIREMENT
Unlike foundational and integrative literacy requirements, the managerial literacy requirements vary by major. The list below indicates each major’s required managerial literacy courses.
| MGMT 201 | Marketing | 1 |
| MGMT 202 | Operations | 1 |
| MGMT 203 | Managerial Finance 2 | 1 |
| MGMT 104 | Foundations of Accounting I | 1 |
| 2 | ACFM majors must take ACFM 203 Corporate Finance - in lieu of MGMT 203 Managerial Finance. |
BSBA Majors
In the spring of their sophomore year, all BSBA students will, in consultation with their advisers, select a major from among one of the Freeman College of Management departments. Students must complete the specific major requirements in addition to the BSBA core curriculum requirements to fulfill graduation requirements. Students will receive approval for a change of major within the Freeman College of Management if they can demonstrate the ability to meet the degree requirements of the new major without delaying their graduation date.
Students may not double major in two different departments within the Freeman College of Management. Details on the four areas of study can be found here.
Double Majors and Minors in the College of Arts & Sciences
Occasionally, a BSBA candidate will undertake a double major with a field in the College of Arts & Sciences. Similarly, students may pursue a departmental or interdepartmental minor to achieve more coherence and focus in choosing electives. Double majors and minors are permitted so long as the student meets all obligations of the program selected within the required eight semesters. (Declaration of a second major or minor can be completed through the Office of the Registrar; second majors are subject to University academic policy concerning degrees and majors.)
Internal transfer into the BSBA degree program
Enrollment in the BSBA degree program is limited to students who were admitted directly into the Freeman College of Management at the time of their initial application to Bucknell.
Students in the other Colleges may take up to seven courses for credit in the Freeman College of Management.
Bachelor of Management for Engineers
The five-year program in engineering and management offers students the opportunity to combine the study of engineering in any of the engineering degree programs with a selected sequence of courses in management. Upon successful completion of this program, the joint degree, the Bachelor of Science in engineering degree (within a specific engineering discipline), and the Bachelor of Management for Engineers degree, is awarded. The degree has the same accreditation status as the four-year Bachelor of Science degree in the engineering program selected. See Bachelor of Management for Engineers for specific course requirements.
Enrollment in the Bachelor of Management for Engineers program is limited to first-time, first-year students who are admitted directly into the program at the time of their initial application to Bucknell.
Suggested course sequences for the program and detailed information on the degree requirements are available from the Office of the Dean of Engineering and the Office of the Dean of Management.
Minors in the Freeman College of Management
The Freeman College of Management does not currently offer program specific or departmental minors. It does, however, contribute courses to four University interdepartmental minors: Arts Entrepreneurship, Legal Studies, Public Policy, and Social Justice.