Curriculum Requirements
Students must complete a minimum of 36 credit hours above the MBA 500 level to receive an MBA degree. Five required, "core" courses (referred to as Phase II below) comprise fifteen of these credit hours. A three credit hour capstone course (Phase IV) is also required. During Phase III, students choose among elective courses and independent research projects to meet the remaining 18 credit hour requirement. Phase III elective courses may be taken concurrently with the required, Phase II courses. Students can graduate with one or more specializations by choosing specific sets of elective courses. Please submit the following form to apply for your specialization: Request for Specialization.pdf.
Phase I: Foundation Courses (0-21 hours)
These courses are designed to provide necessary foundational knowledge for applicants holding non-business baccalaureate degrees. Students with a business baccalaureate degree typically do not need to take these courses. These courses do not count toward the 36 credit hours needed for the MBA degree.
Phase II: MBA Core Courses (15 hours)
These five required courses deliver the core knowledge that all our MBA students acquire prior to graduation. Areas covered include operations, financial management, marketing, managerial accounting and organizational design, development & change management.
Phase III: Electives with Optional Specializations (18 hours)
Phase III includes business electives and the opportunity to specialize in areas such as project management, entrepreneurship, human resource management, finance, global management, supply chain management, accounting or a customized specialty program.
Phase IV: Capstone (3 hours) MBA 517 Strategic Planning and Policy Analysis)
The capstone course must be taken by all students, and may be taken at any time upon completion of 24 hours of Phase II and Phase III course work. The capstone course provides a semester-long integrated experience requiring the student to synthesize knowledge and skills acquired earlier in the MBA program.
Phase I: Foundation Courses (0-21 hours)
MBA 500A BUSINESS ORGANIZATION 3 credit hours. As an introduction to contemporary fundamentals of management from a problem-solving perspective, this course reviews the range of theories from classical to the current and scientific management, human relations, quantitative and behavioral theories. It also studies the application of basic management functions.
MBA 500B ACCOUNTING 3 credit hours. This course introduces the accounting framework of business and how it relates to service, merchandising and manufacturing enterprises. Particular emphasis is placed on how financial statements can be utilized by different users.
MBA 500C ECONOMICS 3 credit hours. Reviewing basic supply and demand equations, this course views the economy from the micro- and macroeconomics standpoints. Several topics include basic market structures, income distribution, business cycles, fiscal policies and international trade.
MBA 500E MARKETING 3 credit hours. This course is the integration of product, distribution, communication and price policies into a comprehensive marketing plan. An emphasis will be on strategic planning and tactual execution of key marketing mix variables as they relate to establishing and maintaining a differential advantage in era of global competition and a fragmenting marketplace.
MBA 500F FINANCE Prerequisite: MBA 500B
3 credit hours. This course introduces the student to finance terminology, types of financial instruments and the role of financial planning in the corporate setting.
MBA 500G INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 3 credit hours. This course is designed to develop the student's basic skills in the use of information technology, including spreadsheets, presentation graphics and the internet.
MBA 500H QUANTITATIVE AND STATISTICAL METHODS 3 credit hours. This course is designed to develop the student's quantitative and statistical knowledge to a level required to perform the mathematical and statistical operations contained in MBA 503 Operations Management and MBA 504 Business Statistics.
MBA 500I REQUIRED WORK EXPERIENCE FOR INTERNATIONAL MBA STUDENTS 0 credit hours. Master of Business Administration students on an F or J visa will be required to obtain work experience in the United States, and begin this process during their first semester work for a minimum of 250 hours (maximum 20 hours per week during the first semester) and complete the Required Work Experience Evaluation.
Phase II: MBA Required Core Courses (15 hours)
MBA 501 ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN, DEVELOPMENT & CHANGE MANAGEMENT The course focuses on large-scale OD interventions as well as strategies and tactics managers can employ to plan, enact and monitor change within their spheres of influence. Topics covered in this course include: understanding the fundamentals of organizational design; systems thinking and its impact on the change process; defining OD and the dynamics of change in relationship to organizational culture; exploring core OD values in the context of globalization; various OD interventions used at the individual, group and organizational levels; and key issues managers should weigh to initiate and successfully manage change processes within their organizations.
MBA 503 OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT Prerequisites: MBA 500H Quantitative and Statistical Methods or equivalent The study of concepts relating to the operations function in both manufacturing and service organizations which is responsible for planning, organizing and controlling resources in order to efficiently and effectively produce goods and provide services and meet the goals of the organization. Quantitative tools of analysis used to support decision making in the various operations management activities will be surveyed, and case analysis will be employed to relate theory to practice.
MBA 505 FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT Prerequisites: MBA 500B Accounting and MBA 500F Finance or equivalents Financial planning and control for the financial and the nonfinancial executive, including decisions of investment, growth and expansion strategies, dividend policy and capital structure. Analysis of principles leading to decisions in management of current assets, fixed assets, debt, equity and capital. Emphasis is on decision making based on quantitative analysis.
MBA 507 MARKETING MANAGEMENT Prerequisite: MBA 500E Marketing or equivalent This course deals with proactive marketing topics, strategic market planning, interactive marketing, innovation and creativity, customer satisfaction and research, as well as the more traditional "4Ps" of marketing: product, place, price and promotion. Attention is given to the development of conceptual and analytical thinking, oral and written communications, and interpersonal and team management skills.
MBA 511 MANAGERIAL ACCOUNTING Prerequisite: MBA 500B Accounting or equivalent The study and evaluation of accounting information relevant to internal management decisions. Topics include cost behavior concepts, product costing, cost-volume-profit analysis, budgeting, variance analysis and performance measurement
PHASE III: ELECTIVES WITH OPTIONAL SPECIALIZATIONS (18 HOURS) Courses are grouped together by specialization; however, courses listed as part of the specializations can be taken independently. Additional elective courses are described following the specialization clusters.
ELECTIVE COURSES
MBA 502 MANAGERIAL ECONOMICS
Managerial economics instructs managers on the economic approach to management. This course stresses three areas of management decision making: allocative, controlling behavior, and profit analysis. Central to any organization's functioning is the allocation of resources to competing ends for the purpose of accomplishing a final goal. Managerial economics teaches the logic of this process using the classical optimization vocabulary of resource, constraint, competing ends, accounting prices, economic prices, final goal, and choice. Humans, being a highly social species with a high-level consciousness, want to describe, explain, control, and predict behavior. Any human organization, if it is to be successful, requires behavioral technologies to deal with its own members and outsiders. Managerial economics teaches the rational actor's approach to describing, explaining, controlling, and predicting behavior. Finally, the sine qua non of a capitalistic business is profit. Yet few managers appreciate the constellation of variables that determine it. Managerial economics employs a profit model that allows managers to see the connections between demand, resource prices, technology, quantities of fixed input, a product's price, a firm's capacity utilization rate, and profit. Emphasized throughout this course are reasoning and problem solving skills as opposed to memorization.
MBA 504 BUSINESS STATISTICS
Prerequisite: MBA 500H Quantitative and Statistical Methods or undergraduate statistics course
Included in this course are the topics of descriptive statistics, sampling procedures, hypotheses testing, statistical quality control charting, confidence limits, analysis of variance, chi-square tests and simple and multiple regression. These concepts are related to business decisions and form the basis for data analysis and model building encountered in other MBA courses.
MBA 506 BUSINESS AND SOCIETY
A study of the ethical, moral and legal responsibilities of the manager in the business world. Ethical theory as applied to situations will be presented for discussion. General government regulation, whether federal, state or local laws will be stressed as they relate to the business enterprise. The relationship of the manager and the rights of various stakeholders are identified, with legal theory serving as the basis of such study. As a Phase II required course, the student should enroll in this course early on in their MBA career.
MBA 509 INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
This course deals with international/global business as an element of operational, functional, and environmental variables and patterns of behavior of the corporation. Intra-corporate research and analysis dealing within the corporation to determine the ability to successfully compete in a foreign market will also be examined. The firm's competitive advantages, anatomy, goals and objectives, internal resources, priorities, and a general framework will be studied. This segment will also examine the techniques of the industry and competitive analysis. Additionally, the course will deal with inter-corporate research and analysis of those variables and conditions outside the control of the firm.
MBA 510 ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR
Prerequisite: MBA 500A Business Organization or equivalent.
A conceptual understanding of the complexities of human behavior is essential for the success of any manager. This course seeks to enhance student knowledge concerning the behavior of individuals and groups in an organizational setting through the use of research perspective, and to guide the application of conceptual organizational behavior knowledge to managerial problems. The topics covered in the course include learning, perception, job attitudes, work motivation, leadership, decision making and various group dynamics and processes.
MBA 513 MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS
A Management Information System (MIS) is a set of systems and activities used to provide managers with information needed to support planning and decision making. Effective and efficient use of a firm's information resources are facilitated by computer-based storage, manipulation, retrieval, analysis, and presentation of relevant information in a timely fashion. This course provides a basic perspective on the design, development, implementation, utilization, and administration of computer-based information systems. Topics covered include systems analysis and design; decision support systems; artificial intelligence including expert systems, fuzzy logic and neural networks; end-user computing; telecommunications including the internet; and the application of information systems to a firm's competitive strategy.
MBA 514 BUSINESS SUCCESS THROUGH INTERNATIONAL TRADE
This course focuses on achieving sustainability through international trade. The main objective of the course is the development of an international market penetration plan to establish a link between a company based in the US and a country of the student's expertise.
MBA 514 CONFLICT RESOLUTION - MORE THAN MEDIATION
Through a series of interactive experiences, students will learn to distinguish between mediation (usually immediate, transitory, and everyone loses something) and conflict resolution (long-term, permanent, and everyone gains). Students will engage in activities to develop skills of effective communication, extensive idea generation, and expanded perspectives, all essential elements in conflict resolution. The course reading will immerse students in the theory, approaches, and practices of job-embedded conflict resolution. Multiple activities in simulation for contract negotiation, creative problem-solving, and critical thinking will be employed. Students will develop a repertoire of strategies and skills applicable through their work, their learning and their living.
MBA 514 GLOBAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP
This course focuses on management tasks of entrepreneurial firms operating in different country contexts and with varying business models. It addresses the importance of the global character of entrepreneurial firms supported by the availability of risk capital and other resources in many countries. The forces that have made globalization a recent significant development such as technology, deregulation, and liberalization are responsible for increased efforts by entrepreneurs.
MBA 514 SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND BUSINESS ETHICS
A critical examination of two question: 1. What is ethics? 2. How is the study of ethics relevant to business? Through the process of looking at the question of ethics and its relationship to business, it is hoped the student will become sensitive to the numerous ethical dilemmas facing business leaders today and in the future. The student is exposed to a panoply of systems (utilitarianism, virtue ethics, communitarianism etc.) that have historically attempted to address the ethical problems that challenge business leaders. Students are expected to consider the ethical/political tensions between a "free market" and the idea of "social responsibility." Inseparable from any discussion about business and ethics is the further question about the relationship between ethics and leadership.
MBA 514 PERSONAL ASSET MANAGEMANT
Personal Asset Management is designed to motivate and educate students in the basics of personal financial investing. It takes a broad based view of the personal investment problem, as well as, dealing with the practical issues of developing a financial plan.
MBA 514 SIX SIGMA: A PROCESS FOR IMPROVEMENT
This course will present a 36-hour curriculum designed to attain the Six Sigma Green Belt certification. It will develop the strategic role of Six Sigma within an organization, the cultural shifts that are required, the phases of a Six Sigma project, procedures for developing a Six Sigma project plan, project success factors, and the completion of a Six Sigma project.
MBA 514 WEB PUBLISHING
An introduction to the World Wide Web and the creation of Web sites using XHTML.
We will begin the course with an overview of computers in Web publishing context. We will cover computer science, networking, and application aspects of Web publishing. Next, you will learn the fundamentals of setup, design, and maintenance including Web site layout, Web page layout, technical consideration, audience considerations, and the importance of the content of Web pages.
CURRENT MBA SPECIALIZATIONS
1. SPECIALIZATION IN PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Project Management (PM) is a temporary group activity and a "process" of managing resources, the application of specialized knowledge and the use of techniques and methodologies to meet today's changing business needs and objectives. PM is a strategic competency skill that enables companies to "tie" project results to business goals.
Successful PM work results in the creation of something unique, whether it is a product, service or result. PM skills are strategically and vitally important in meeting company goals, whether in: Technology, Health Care, Manufacturing, Business etc. that includes profit or non-profit entities. The Project Management profession is experiencing a growing worldwide need for professionally skilled and academically qualified personnel. Project Managers who know how to manage any or all aspects of a project (responding to a natural disaster, developing a new e-commerce application, improving mobile applications or expansion of a new geographic market etc.) from project inception/idea to closure will find this career path most challenging. The growing demand for Project Management skills is reflected in a recent posting in Hiring Demand Indicators .
ALL THREE COURSES ARE REQUIRED:
MBA 530 FOUNDATIONS OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT 3 hours
This course provides an overview of the methods and processes of modern project management. Topics covered include project scope, time, cost, risk, communications, quality, human resource, integration, and procurement management. It will also cover common project management tools like precedence diagramming, developing a work breakdown structure, risk analysis, and earned value analysis.
MBA 531 INCREASING ORGANIZATION CAPACITY IN PROJECT MANAGEMENT 3 hours
This course provides an overview of the strategies and tools necessary for the development of effective, long-lasting organizational capacity in project management. Topics covered include project management skill development, related skills, and organizational arrangements for effective project management, organizational learning, project management communities of practice, effective processes and tools for project management, and building the business case for project management initiatives.
MBA 533 ADVANCED TOPICS IN COMM UNICATIONS FOR PROJECT MANAGERS 3hours
This course introduces students to advanced communications methods and techniques of use to project managers. It explores the challenges of communications, including requirements definition and conflict management, in the project context and allows students to develop skills that they can use as they manage their projects. Topics covered include communications models, conflict models, positional versus interest-based conflict management methods, and the application of conflict management tools and techniques.
2. SPECIALIZATION IN ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Our Entrepreneurship specialization provides students with the fundamental skills needed to start, fund, and run your own business. Students learn the techniques used by successful entrepreneurs for idea creation, feasibility analysis, business planning, and funding options. AU's Entrepreneurship Specialization provides a solid foundation for anyone wishing to own their own business and places particular emphasis on the requirements for successful business start-ups within the State of Ohio. Ashland University is a chartered member of the nation Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization and a corporate partner with the National Association of Women Business Owners.
REQUIRED COURSE:
MBA 540 ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND INTRAPRENEURSHIP 3 hours
A study in creating and/or expanding your own business as an entrepreneur. To succeed as an entrepreneur, the student will investigate the basic elements of entrepreneurship including: the foundations of entrepreneurship, sources for funding the business, acquisition practices in purchasing an existing business and understanding the essential components of a business plan. Intrapreneurship foundations will examine how corporate managers may capture the initiative in trying new ideas and developing internal markets for their business organization.
CHOOSE 2 OF THE FOLLOWING:
MBA 541 BUSINESS INFORMATION SYSTEMS FOR THE SMALL BUSINESS 3 hours
This course will examine business information systems as they relate to small businesses. It will examine the various cycles of a small business-revenue cycle, purchase cycle, human resources, financial statement preparation and the information which needs to be obtained to accurately report on these cycles.
This course will identify the core concepts of small business information systems and the information requirements which should be included in those systems.
MBA 542 BUSINESS TAX PLANNING 3 hours
A study of federal income tax law applied to various business entities, including sole proprietorships, C corporations,
S corporations and partnerships, as well as income tax law to individual business owners.
MBA 544 SMALL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT 3 hours
Management theory generally considers the application of organizational strategies and tactics from a macro point of view. Complications arise in applying many theories to the small venture, where capital, labor, marketing, and many other traits of a smaller business present different perspectives. With limited resources, the small business manager/owner must be able to sustain performance, grow and broaden its mix of goods and services and develop management and leadership styles commensurate with the pace of the opportunity.
3. SPECIALIZATION IN HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Our Human Resources Specialization provides students with the skills, competencies, and expertise to be business partners, leaders and critical thinkers that understand business needs. MBA students specializing in HR can create strategic human resource plans, initiatives and activities to meet organizational needs and significantly impact the success of an organization. Key topic areas include creating and implementing strategic human resources initiatives; evaluating the effectiveness and financial impact of human resource activities; talent recruitment, training, development, management, reward and retention strategies; effective labor relations practices; and creating healthy, safe, and complaint work environments.
RECOMMENDED PREREQUISITE: MBA 510 ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR
REQUIRED COURSE:
MBA 550 FUNDAMENTALS OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 3 hours
This course is designed to provide an in-depth examination of the issues facing the manager and his or her employees. Through text readings, case studies, experiential exercises, internet activities and research, MBA students will learn to integrate theory and application in managing Human Resources effectively in their organization.
CHOOSE 2 OF THE FOLLOWING:
MBA 551 LABOR RELATIONS AND COLLECTIVE BARGAINING 3 hours
This course surveys the current field of employee-employer relations, with particular attention to union-management relations. It provides a historical perspective of the social, economic and legal factors influencing the development of unions and union-management relationships. The primary focus is the current legal framework and organizational collective bargaining in the United States. The bargaining process and negotiations are explored in the private and the public sector. The course examines many aspects of unions and the process of certifying and decertifying unions.
MBA 552 TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT 3 hours
This course is designed to familiarize you with the roles and practices of training and development in organizations. The overarching objective is to enable each student to learn how to assess, develop, execute and evaluate a training program. To reach this objective, we will review academic and practitioner oriented research in the field of training and development. This would include some basic concepts of training such as motivation and learning theory, needs assessment and evaluation of training programs. Different types of training programs will be examined including orientation, skills training, team building, management development, organizational development, multicultural and diversity training.
MBA 553 COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS 3 hours
This course surveys both the theories behind employee reward, including basic compensation and the basis therefore as well as additional employee benefits provided by the company. Developing an effective and efficient system of compensation for labor and benefits created should be a principal goal of the cost-conscious organization. Consideration is made for discriminatory pay practices which may significantly play into the manager's response to wage concerns. The course examines both processes of employee performance appraisal and administration of benefits.
4. SPECIALIZATION IN FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
Our specialization in Financial Management provides a global perspective to financial markets, risk and return. Students experience real world capital budgeting exercises, valuation of domestic and foreign securities, corporate financial management, foreign currency valuation, and currency risk hedging. Special emphasis is placed on corporate financial management, emerging financial markets and global financial management. Students learn how transition economies join the wave of globalization through liberalization of financial markets, deregulation of industries, and relaxation of policies governing foreign direct investment.
RECOMMENDED PREREQUISITE: MBA 505 FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
REQUIRED COURSE: MBA 560 INVESTMENTS 3 hours
This course is designed to improve students' understanding of the fundamentals of money and capital markets and how it relates to personal investing. During this course we will discuss stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. Students will gain a better understanding of equity and income security pricing models. Construction of an investment portfolio will also be developed. This course will require students to develop their own investment strategies through the management of a group of investments.
CHOOSE 2 OF THE FOLLOWING:
MBA 561 EMERGING FINANCIAL MARKETS 3 hours
This course focuses on the characteristics of financial markets, instruments, and practices in transition economies where economic liberalization and financial deregulation have recently been implemented as a strategic response to globalization.
MBA 562 GLOBAL FINANCE 3 hours
This course focuses on the risks involved in financial operations in a global setting and identifies the techniques required in measuring and minimizing those risks. Topics in multinational finance, foreign exchange, risk management and financing the foreign operations are emphasized.
MBA 564 FINANCIAL MARKETS TOUR (CHICAGO OR NEW YORK CITY) 3 hours
This course is to help the MBA student understand the different vehicles and instruments available for the investor and how they are traded, purchased and sold, in the market place. It is designed to emphasize the institutions that create markets for investment purposes. This course will culminate in a tour to Chicago/New York to visit the financial districts.
5. SPECIALIZATION IN GLOBAL MANAGEMENT
The Global Management specialization offers a thorough understanding of globalization of firms, industries and markets. Core principles of international business and international finance are applied through practical analyses of major industries. Suitable strategies are developed for building a portfolio of competitive advantages and ensuring future success.
RECOMMENDED PREREQUISITE: MBA 509 INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
REQUIRED COURSE: MBA 567 MULTINATIONAL MANAGEMENT 3 hours
This course focuses on management tasks confronting managers operating in a transnational environment presented from an operational perspective, alternatives for overall corporate policy and development of a global strategy.
CHOOSE 2 OF THE FOLLOWING:
MBA 561 EMERGING FINANCIAL MARKETS 3 hours
This course focuses on the characteristics of financial markets, instruments, and practices in transition economies where economic liberalization and financial deregulation have recently been implemented as a strategic response to globalization.
MBA 562 GLOBAL FINANCE 3 hours
This course focuses on the risks involved in financial operations in a global setting and identifies the techniques required in measuring and minimizing those risks. Topics in multinational finance, foreign exchange, risk management and financing the foreign operations are emphasized.
MBA 568 INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS STUDY TOUR 3 hours
This course integrates class theory with practical observation of the global market activity today's manager may experience. Each year students will have an opportunity to visit and interact with foreign business managers, financial markets, government representatives and other cultural events which will provide the student with a better understanding of the intricacies when working in an international setting.
6. SPECIALIZATION IN SUPPLY CHAIN
Supply chain management (SCM) is the oversight of materials, information, and finances as they move from supplier to manufacturer to wholesaler to retailer to consumer known as "the chain." Supply chain management involves coordinating and integrating these flows both within and among companies. The ultimate goal of any effective supply chain management system is to satisfy the internal or external customer. Therefore, supply chain management is getting the right product, to the right customer, in the right quantity, in the right condition, at the right place, at the right time and at the right cost. The demand for supply chain management skills is rapidly increasing as global manufacturers work to balance the cost efficiencies of extensive production and distribution networks against the risks of unexpected disruptions to the entire chain and the environmental cost of transportation.
All three courses are required:
MBA 570 - Supply Chain Management (3 hours)
This course will introduce the student to the fundamentals of Supply Chain Management systems. The student will demonstrate knowledge in topics, such as, purchasing, logistics, operations and system development.
MBA 571 - Logistics and Procurement (3 hours)
This course will introduce the student to the basic principles of Logistics and Procurement. The course will focus on purchasing, information, warehousing, and transportation mode requirements necessary for the development of a comprehensive Supply Chain Management system.
MBA 572 - Supply Chain Strategy (3 hours)
This course will introduce the student to the basic principles of Supply Chain Strategy. The course will focus on the integration of the warehousing, inventory, and transportation requirements to from an operational Supply chain Strategy.
7. SPECIALIZATION IN ACCOUNTING
ACCT 535 FUND AND NON-PROFIT ACCOUNTING
An introduction to the fundamental knowledge for understanding the operation of governmental and non-profit entities, their accounting and financial reporting practices, and the standards which shape their accounting and financial reporting systems.
ACCT 538 ADVANCED COST MANAGEMENT
An in-depth study of selected cost and management accounting topics. The purpose of the course is to provide future managers with the cost accounting tools to develop, implement, and evaluate strategy and to provide thorough coverage of the cost accounting methods used to determine product costs for internal management and external financial reporting.
ACCT 540 ADVANCED ACCOUNTING
A study of topical advanced accounting issues such as business combinations and consolidation accounting, accounting for international (i.e., foreign currency) transactions and translations, interim and segment reporting, and partnership accounting.
8. CUSTOMIZED SPECIALIZATION
Because today's corporate setting is dynamic, a student may also propose a customized specialization consisting of nine hours of related elective course work, including special topics courses. Students proposing a customized specialization must obtain approval from a faculty mentor and the chair of the MBA program.
MBA 601/602 Independent Research Project
MBA students have the option of completing an Independent Research Project as part of their Phase III elective course work. Students choosing this option will take MBA 601 or MBA 601 and MBA 602, for up to six semester hours.
ELIGIBILITY
The Independent Research Project (IRP) is chosen by the candidate and approved by the IRP project review committee with the consent of the primary and secondary faculty advisors who will direct the candidate's research project. To enroll in MBA 601/602, students must have a 3.50 grade point average when the project application is submitted for approval to the MBA executive director (forms available from the MBA office). Before beginning work on the project, students must have completed 15 semester hours of core subjects, including MBA 501, MBA 503, MBA 505, MBA 507, and MBA 511.
PROPOSAL APPROVAL
A committee of three MBA professors, comprising the Independent Research Project committee, will review the project proposal and approve or disapprove it based on relevance to the learning experience of the student. In most cases, the MBA executive director will assign two faculty members as primary and secondary advisers to work with the student throughout completion of the project.
STYLE AND TYPING OF PROJECT REPORT
Guidelines given in the standard style manuals [by Turabian or by the American Psychological Association (APA)] should be followed. Students are also responsible for the typing and copying of the research project.
ORAL DEFENSE
The project process will culminate with the oral examination of the candidate by a faculty committee. This group consists of the student's research advisers, the MBA executive director, two readers, and others invited to the oral review.
MBA 601/602 REGISTRATION AND COMPLETION
The student should register for MBA 601 in the semester during which he or she expects to begin the project. Failure to complete the assignment for MBA 601 during that term will result in an "IP" (In Progress) grade for the course. This grade will not adversely affect the grade point average of the student for that particular term. However, the required work must be completed within one year of the posting of the IP grade. Completion of the work will result in a change to the earned grade. Failure to complete the work within one year will result in an "F".
Students are reminded that the MBA project, as part of the MBA Curriculum, must be completed within the five-year time limit. Also, completion of the project will rarely take less than a year.
Once the final thesis is completed and changes or corrections made, the MBA program office submits the text for binding. A student should submit at least three copies to be bound for himself or herself, the MBA program office, and the Ashland University Library. The student pays only for his or her personal copies; however, the student's first bound book is available at no charge, and additional student copies are available at $11.00 each.
Phase IV: Capstone (3 hours)MBA 517 Strategic Planning and Policy Analysis
Prerequisite: Twenty-four (24) semester hours of course work
The capstone course stresses how to implement contemporary tools and techniques successfully in developing strategic initiatives for an organization. The student will learn the importance of the strategic management process and its value in creating competitive advantage. The course will demonstrate how high-performing enterprises often initiate and lead trailblazing strategies in their industry. Also the capstone course employs the functional areas students learned from previous courses in the MBA program. There is a strong emphasis on utilizing business cases that will help the student to develop strategic offensive and defensive initiatives during their case presentation.
