Pamplin College of Business

www.pamplin.vt.edu/

Robert Sumichrast, Dean
Associate Dean for Administration: Kay P. Hunnings
Associate Dean for Graduate Programs: Stephen Skripak
Associate Dean for Research: Kent Nakamoto
Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs: Candice E. Clemenz
Pamplin Hall

Overview

    Virginia's largest undergraduate business school, Pamplin College of Business is committed to outstanding teaching by full-time faculty who are nationally recognized in theoretical and applied research. The Pamplin College is further committed to being known for its graduate programs throughout the Commonwealth, and to serving business and society through the expertise of its faculty, alumni, and students. Newly retired Dean Richard E. Sorensen has said, "The Pamplin College, as a center for excellence, is an academic generator of high quality applied and theoretical research that translates into teaching superiority and practitioner applications for all its audiences."

    Our emphasis is on: Enhancing the high quality of our undergraduate programs; providing a high quality MBA program at locations throughout the Commonwealth; raising the research and scholarship reputation of the faculty; integrating the computer and technology into the academic curriculum; developing the leadership skills and ethical values of our students; preparing students for global business challenges, including providing opportunities for global experience before graduation; enhancing our commitment to diversity; heightening our level of service to the business community through the research and expertise of faculty, students, and graduates; and enhancing the quality of the Ph.D. program.

    The college regards diversity as a source of strength and pride. Building upon this commitment, the college affirms the following principles:

  • All students, regardless of their background (race, color, gender, sexual orientation, disability, age, veteran status, national origin, religion, or political affiliation), deserve and are promised equal opportunity to an education in the Pamplin College of Business.
  • We support an environment for students, faculty, and staff that is free from hostility and intolerance.
  • We pursue a supportive and diverse community that respects each individual, and allows ideas and opinions to be openly discussed.
  • The Pamplin College is committed to the goal of developing its students, faculty, and staff in a manner that inspires them to successful participation and effective leadership in a pluralistic society, and considers these values essential to that goal.

    • The curriculum includes a broad liberal education foundation of two years, followed by a college core in the fundamentals of business theory and, finally, concentration in the major.

    The college offers majors in:

    • Accounting and Information Systems
    • Business Information Technology
    • Economics
    • Finance
    • Hospitality and Tourism Management
    • Management
    • Marketing

    Academic advising in the college parallels the two layers of the curriculum. Through the sophomore year, all students are advised in Pamplin Undergraduate Programs, 1046 Pamplin Hall. Once students complete 60 credits and declare their majors, students are assigned faculty advisors from their majors.

    Undergraduates are strongly encouraged to participate in the out-of-class activities of the college, particularly the annual career fairs in September and January; the placement seminars; and course registration meetings held each semester; the ethics and leadership seminars; college international programs and study abroad; and the various events of the over 30 different student clubs in the college. These programs provide critical insights into the careers for which students are preparing and valuable opportunities for leadership.

    Undergraduates are required to bring a computer to the university, as well as purchase a university and a Pamplin software bundle. The computer is used extensively in the curriculum. Purchase information and required configuration will be available each spring.

    Administrative and faculty offices for the college are located in Pamplin and Wallace Halls. Our facilities also include study rooms, computer labs, conference rooms, a behavioral laboratory, an atrium filled with furniture conducive to studying and group work, and a student organization office center.

    The college is a member of The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, AACSB International. All programs are accredited by the AACSB. In addition, the ACIS program has an additional accreditation from AACSB: AACSB Accounting Accreditation.

General Requirements for Graduation

    A minimum of 125 semester hours is required for graduation in each curriculum.

    The student must have an overall average GPA of 2.0 ("C") on all work attempted and in the courses in the major.

    To ensure credit, a student desiring to take courses at another institution must secure approval of the associate dean for undergraduate programs of the Pamplin College before registering for the course at the other institution.

    Acceptance of work completed at junior or community colleges is limited to those courses offered at the freshman-sophomore level at Tech. General university limitations on acceptability of transfer credit are shown elsewhere in this catalog.

Program for First Two Years

    All students in business generally take the same required courses for the first two years. A major within the college may be selected during the first two years, but must be selected no later than the end of the semester in which the student attempts 72 semester hours. Because Economics is an unrestricted major within the College of Business, students in ECON who did not enter the university as BUS or ECON, must apply if they wish to change into ACIS, BIT, FIN, HTM, MGT, and MKTG. Students must have a GPA of 2.0 or better in the combined series in accounting and information systems, business information technology, economics, and mathematics with no grade less than C- in the nine designated courses in these departments and  have an overall GPA of 2.0 or better for all course work. Pamplin enforces a strict policy of progress toward degree (Policy 91). The above requirements must be met by 72 credits (90 credits for transfer students)  or the student will be dismissed from the college (not Virginia Tech) and not allowed to enroll in any business major.Some junior level courses may be taken at 45 credits, if the students has taken the required pre-requisite courses.

Requirements for the first two years
Hours
ACIS 1504 Introduction to Business Information Systems
3
 First Year
ENGL 1105-1106 Freshman English or
COMM 1015-1016 Communication Skills
6
 First Year
MATH 1525-1526 Calculus with Matrices
6
 First Year
Scientific Reasoning and Discovery 1
8
 First Year
Social Sciences 2
Must include PSYC 2004 Introductory Psychology or
SOC 1004 Introductory Sociology
9
 First or Second Year
Area 2 - Ideas, Cultural Traditions, and Values 3
6
 First or Second Year
ACIS 2115-2116 Principles of Accounting
6
 Second Year
BIT 2405-2406 Quantitative Methods
6
 Second Year
ECON 2005-2006 Principles of Economics 4
6
 Second Year
COMM 2004: Public Speaking or free elective 5 if COMM1015-1016 are taken in the first year
3
 Second Year
Free Elective and/or Major Requirement 5
6
 Second Year
65

1 Students select any science in Area 4 of the Curriculum for Liberal Education. Only students majoring in Economics are required to take a laboratory. All other students may take the laboratory or two hours of any free elective.
2 For the other social science courses student select from any courses in Economics (beyond Principles), Geography, History (except HIST 1024, 1025, 1026, or 2054), International Studies, Political Science (except PSCI 3015-3016), Psychology, and Sociology; or any course approved for Area 3 of the Curriculum for Liberal Education. Some social science courses, such as GEOG 1014, HIST 1214, IS 2055, PSCI 1024, and SPIA 1004 will also satisfy Area 7.
3 Any six semester hours in Area 2 of the Curriculum for Liberal Education.
4 These two required courses will complete Area 3 of the Curriculum for Liberal Education.
5 Free Electives during the sophomore, junior, and senior year must include at least one hour from the Curriculum for Liberal Education Area 6: Creativity and Aesthetic Experience. The Curriculum for Liberal Education Area 7: Critical Issues in A Global Context, may be used to meet another requirement or taken as a free elective.

College Requirements for Second Two Years

    Regardless of major selected, the following core courses are required of all business students:

BIT 3414: Production and Operations Management (3)
FIN 3055: Legal Environment of Business (3)
FIN 3104: Introduction to Finance (3)
MGT 3304: Management Theory and Leadership Practice (3)
MKTG 3104: Marketing Management (3)
MGT 4394: Business Policy and Strategy (3)

    All of these courses must be completed prior to taking the capstone course, MGT 4394, with the exception of FIN 3055.

    The remaining hours to complete the required 125 credit hours are made up of in-major requirements and free electives.

Applied Business Computing Minor

    The 18-19 credit Applied Business Computing minor is open to students in all majors across the campus. This minor will help students gain better understanding of the web and systems design. It includes courses in Accounting and Information Systems, Business Information Technology, Computer Science, and Engineering. To apply students may obtain an application from the ACIS department. For more information, please contact the ACIS department at 540-231-6591.

Business Minor

    Students with majors outside Pamplin may apply for a minor in business if they have competitive grades in required courses, a minimum 2.0 overall GPA on at least 24 semester hours at Virginia Tech, if they have completed Math 1525-1526 or its equivalent, and if they have at least a C- in any ACIS, BIT, ECON, FIN, MGT, or MKTG, course which they have taken. The minor consists of 27 semester hours of lower division course work which must be successfully completed before taking the 15 semester hours of upper division courses. Applications are available in 1046 Pamplin.

    The lower division requirements are ACIS 1504, Introduction to Business Information Systems; ACIS 2115-16, Principles of Accounting; BIT 2405-06, Quantitative Methods; ECON 2005-2006, Principles of Economics; and MATH 1525-26, Calculus with Matrices, and the upper division courses are: BIT 3414, Production and Operations Management, or BIT 4414, Service Operations Management; FIN 3055, Legal Environment of Business; FIN 3104, Introduction to Finance; MGT 3304, Management Theory and Leadership Practice; and MKTG 3104, Marketing Management. In order to complete the minor in business, students must have a 2.0 GPA in the 15 semester hours of upper division courses.

Center for Leadership Studies and Leadership Minors

    The Center for Leadership Studies coordinates leadership programs across campus including the Corps of Cadets Center for Leader Development, the Department of Management's Business Leadership Center, and other leadership activities organized by the Pamplin College of Business, Student Affairs, and Interdisciplinary Studies. Currently, the college administers two minors: the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets minor in leadership studies and the Department of Management Business Leadership minor.

    For more information on the 18-credit Corps of Cadets minor in leadership, see the material in the ROTC section of the catalog or contact the Center for Leader Development, 540/231-7136.

    The 18-credit Business Leadership minor is open to students in all majors who have at least a 2.50 overall GPA at Virginia Tech. It includes required courses in management theory and leadership practice, ethical leadership and corporate social responsibility, and advanced skills in leadership; elective courses from business, communication, humanities, and sociology; and a required leadership experiential activity. For additional information, contact Ms. Lorraine Borny, Business Leadership Center, 540/231-2604.

Entrepreneurship-New Venture Growth Minor

    The Entrepreneurship-New Venture Growth Minor is intended to focus on the knowledge and skills to create new ventures and lead their early growth. The objective is to provide students with the knowledge and skills needed to convert ideas into business successes, particularly in the context of engineering and science-based technology commercialization.

    The curriculum consists of eighteen (18) credit hours of study, including six (6) hours of business restricted electives, and six (6) hours of restricted electives.

International Business Minor

    Sophomores, juniors, and seniors in the Pamplin College who have at least a 2.0 overall GPA are eligible for the International Business minor of 18 semester hours of course work and an international experience. The required course work includes: a) MGT 3314 International Business; b) three courses from ACIS 5034 Global Issues in Accounting and Information Systems; BIT 4474, Global Operations and Information Technology; HTM 4454 Hospitality Marketing Management; Finance; FIN 4144, International Financial Management; MGT 4314, International Management; and MKTG 4704, International Marketing; and c) six additional semester hours from a list of international courses in five colleges. Additionally, a student must have passed at least four years of a foreign language in high school. If a student does not meet the language requirement, a student may take additional language courses at the college level to satisfy the requirement. The required international experience may be met with study abroad, international internships, co-op assignments at multinational corporations, and living abroad. To facilitate the international experience requirement, Pamplin offers summer study abroad trips which generally involve six semester hours of credit toward the degree and minor, as well as winter-break and semester-long study abroad programs. Applications for this minor are available in 1046 Pamplin Hall.

Multicultural Diversity Management Minor

    The minor in Multicultural Diversity Management helps students to be effective managers in 21st century organizations. The demographics of organizations continue to change at a rapid pace. The paradox of multiculturalism in the workplace is that it presents one of the greatest challenges while also presenting one of the greatest opportunities that organizations face. Students completing this minor will develop awareness, knowledge, and skills related to managing workplace multicultural diversity.

Professional Sales Minor

    Sales positions are critical to all firms and sales positions are expected to increase by as much as 25% over the next several years. This has created strong competition among employers to recruit the very best graduates. The Professional Selling minor is designed to prepare students to excel in this highly lucrative field. The focus of the program is to provide students with critical communication, interpersonal, and presentation skills key to helping organizations build long-term customer relationships. These skills will be valuable not only to those pursuing sales careers but also to anyone aspiring to managerial positions � positions that involve presentation of plans and ideas, negotiations, and persuasion.

Business Diversity Minor

    The 18 credit Business Diversity Minor is open to students in all majors across the campus. This minor will help students understand the organizations in which they will work and the world in which they will live. It includes required courses in Management and additional course choices from Marketing Management, Hospitality & Tourism Management, Finance, and electives from 12 different departments across campus. In order to develop diversity-related awareness, knowledge, and skills, students are required to participate in a diversity-related internship or field study. To apply, students may obtain an application from 1046 Pamplin or on-line at www.diversity.pamplin.vt.edu. For more information, please contact Ms. Lorraine Borny at lcborny@vt.edu or 540-231-6353.

Cooperative Education Programs in Business

    The college participates in the Cooperative Education Program in which qualified students may alternate semesters of study in the major with semesters of professional employment. Additional information pertaining to the program is included in the "Academics" section of this catalog.

Graduate Programs in Business

    Graduate instruction and opportunities for research are offered to students who have bachelor's degrees from accredited colleges. The college offers the Master's of Business Administration programs, and master's and Ph.D. degrees in all departments. All graduate students are required to attain a satisfactory score on the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT).

Preparation for Law

    The four-year course leading to the B.S. degree in any major in the college provides a sound preparation for law school, and pre-law advisors from the Pamplin faculty are provided.

Economics

    Economics is offered as a major through both the Pamplin College of Business and the College of Science. Both an honors degree and a minor in economics are also offered in the College of Science. Students in either college take the same economics courses, but the college core requirements differ.

    For economics faculty and course descriptions, visit Economics in the College of Science.

Undergraduate Course Descriptions (BUS)

1984: SPECIAL STUDY
Variable credit course.

2984: SPECIAL STUDY
Variable credit course.

3974: INDEPENDENT STUDY
Variable credit course.


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