Michael J. Coles College of Business

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The Michael J. Coles College of Business offers programs that respond to the needs of our rapidly changing environment. Coles contributes to the economic development of metropolitan Atlanta and the region and is known as the most relevant business school in the South for its community and corporate outreach. The unique, innovative spirit of the Coles College of Business arises from an emphasis on building partnerships with the corporate world, other academic institutions, the community, government and nonprofit enterprises. Students benefit from these alliances, which enable the College to achieve its goals of continuous improvement and targeted program development.

The Coles College of Business enjoys national recognition in a number of areas. The Cox Family Business Center was cited by Family Business Review as “the nation’s premier model of college-based educational programs for family businesses.” Nation’s Business listed the center as one of the top college-based, family-business programs in the nation. The Coles College Doctorate of Business Administration is one of the few such doctoral programs of its kind in the world.

The College’s Entrepreneurship Program was recognized by Businessweek and Success as one of the outstanding entrepreneurship programs in the nation. The Coles MBA was ranked by Businessweek as #4 in the South and #29 in the nation, and the Executive MBA was recognized as a Top 25 Tier One program in North America by CEO Magazine. In addition, the Coles College has been highlighted in many publications as one that moves quickly and aggressively to meet the needs of its customers—students, the business world and the community.

The Econometric Center is the business and economic research arm of the Coles College. Its monthly Business Conditions Survey parallels the National Association of Purchasing Managers Survey and aggregates data from purchasing professionals in metropolitan Atlanta and northwest Georgia. The Econometric Center also conducts a quarterly Consumer Confidence Index for metropolitan Atlanta in conjunction with the Greater Atlanta Home Builders Association.

Coles Accounting graduates have competitive CPA pass rates. The School of Accountancy is the first Georgia educational institution to achieve Partner Level status in the Institute of Internal Auditors’ Internal Auditing Education Partnership. The B.B.A. in Professional Sales has garnered national attention, as it is one of only a few such programs in the United States. Coles College hosts the National Collegiate Sales Competition, which pits hundreds of the nation’s top sales students in a test of live role-play, one-on-one sales call challenges in front of Fortune 500 recruiters. Another unique program offered by Coles is the B.B.A. in Information Security and Assurance.

Students are attracted to the Coles College of Business for its innovative programs, career services, and co-ops and internships, as well as the faculty’s commitment to preparing students for professional success. Embracing evolving topics like the globalization of business, the management of technology, productivity, quality and information systems, the Coles College is committed to developing programs relevant to the ever-changing needs of society.

Vision Statement - Michael J. Coles College of Business

The Coles College of Business aspires to be the preferred provider of flexible business education and relevant research and practice valued by the marketplace.

Mission Statement - Michael J. Coles College of Business

The Coles College of Business provides high quality, applied business education and supports knowledge creation in a collegial, learning-centered environment. We strive to develop our students into highly effective and ethical business leaders who can make a difference in a competitive world.

Accreditations

In addition to KSU’s accreditation by SACS, all degree programs in the Coles College of Business are accredited by AACSB International—The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. Coles is also among a select few schools to earn a dual AACSB accreditation in both business and accounting. In addition, the B.B.A. in Information Systems holds ABET accreditation. ABET, a non-profit, non-governmental organization, uses a rigorous peer-review evaluation process to assess technology-related programs based on quality standards of the profession.

Academic Departments

The Coles College of Business houses five academic units:

• The School of Accountancy
• The Department of Economics, Finance & Quantitative Analysis
• The Department of Information Systems
• The Department of Management & Entrepreneurship
• The Department of Marketing & Professional Sales

Programs of Study

The Coles College of Business offers the following undergraduate degrees:

• Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting
• Bachelor of Business Administration in Economics
• Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance
• Bachelor of Business Administration in Information Systems
• Bachelor of Business Administration in Information Security and Assurance
• Bachelor of Business Administration in International Business
• Bachelor of Business Administration in Management
• Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing
• Bachelor of Business Administration in Professional Sales

These programs include foundation courses in the humanities, natural and behavioral sciences, and mathematics as well as advanced courses in business and the specific major field. In addition to the courses in the business major fields listed above, the Coles College offers specialized courses in the areas of business law, entrepreneurship and family business, , operations management, quality, real estate, and strategy.

 Minors

• Accounting
• Business Law
• Economics
• Finance
• Information Systems
• Information Security and Assurance
• Management
• Marketing
• Operations and Purchasing
• Professional Sales

Certificates

• Information Security
• Information Technology

Academic Policies

A summary of some of the most significant academic policies for business majors is provided below. For additional information, visit the Business Undergraduate Advising Center on the fourth floor of the Burruss Building.

Requirements for B.B.A. Degree

All business majors should take the following courses as part of their KSU General Education requirements:

All business majors must take a calculus course, which is part of the Coles College Sophomore GPA Requirement and also a prerequisite to several business courses. Most students will take the MATH 1111 and MATH 1106 sequence. Students with stronger math aptitudes or backgrounds, or students considering graduate school, should take MATH 1113 and MATH 1190. Students who can start with Calculus should meet with a Coles Staff Advisor to discuss which MATH courses to take. All students must take ECON 2300 (Business Statistics) and not MATH 1107.

International Business majors should take Geography and the foreign language 1002 course in Chinese, French, German, Italian, or Spanish as part of their General Education requirements.

Sophomore GPA Requirement

Before a business major can be admitted to the Coles College Undergraduate Professional Program and enroll in any upper-division business courses (3000-4000 level), she or he must meet the Coles Sophomore GPA Requirement. This involves earning an Adjusted GPA of 3.00 or greater for the following eight courses:

• Regardless of whether the courses are taken at Kennesaw State University or at another acceptable accredited institution, the grades earned will be used to check this GPA requirement. If any of these courses are transferred in and are not awarded three credit hours by KSU, that difference in hours will affect the GPA calculation. A course may be repeated if necessary. However, KSU has limits on the number of course withdrawals a student may have and on the number of times a student may repeat the same course.

Admission to the Coles College Undergraduate Professional Program

Admission to the Coles College Undergraduate Professional Program is separate from admission to Kennesaw State University. The Sophomore GPA Requirement must be met prior to application for admission. Application forms and details about other admission requirements may be obtained from the Business Undergraduate Advising Center. Business majors must apply for and be accepted for admission into the Coles Undergraduate Professional Program in order to take upper-division business courses and to graduate with a B.B.A. degree. A non-refundable application fee is required.

The B.B.A. degree will not be awarded to anyone who has not met the Sophomore GPA Requirement and been admitted to the Coles Undergraduate Professional Program.

Other KSU Requirements

In order to receive a degree from Kennesaw State University, a student must meet KSU’s residency, grade, and graduation requirements. Some of those requirements are summarized here for convenience. Students should check other sections of this KSU Undergraduate Catalog for a complete listing of KSU requirements.

Business majors must earn a minimum of 45 hours of credit in upper-division business courses. Business majors must complete at least 33 hours of business courses in residence at KSU. All business majors must complete at least 12 hours of their Major Field Requirements and Major Field Electives at KSU. All students must complete at least 20 of the last 30 semester hours immediately preceding graduation at KSU.

Certain B.B.A. courses must be taken at Coles, and there are restrictions on the business courses that may be taken via education abroad options. Students should check with a Coles College academic advisor about these restrictions prior to signing up for a study abroad course or semester abroad. Credit for courses taken at other colleges and universities (whether in the U.S. or abroad) will not be given if:

1. the institution does not have acceptable accreditation,
2. the courses were not taken at the same or higher level than comparable courses offered at Kennesaw State University, or
3. the courses are too old.

Business majors must earn a grade of “C” or better in all business courses counted toward their degree. In addition, International Business Majors must earn a grade of “C” or better in all courses used to satisfy their Foreign Language Requirement and their International Study Experience Requirement.

Students must always meet current course prerequisites, regardless of when they first started at KSU. Always check the most recent KSU Undergraduate Catalog for current course prerequisites. Students will also be expected to meet the current admission requirements for the Coles Undergraduate Professional Program at the time of admission, regardless of when they first started at KSU.

Timeliness of Degree Completion

KSU requires all graduating students to meet the program requirements in a Catalog that is not more than ten years old at the time of graduation. Students who do not complete their degree within ten years of starting at KSU must move up to a more recent Catalog. If a student does not attend continuously and is required by KSU to apply for readmission in order to return, the student will have to move up to the Catalog in effect for the readmission term. In addition, Coles requires business majors to successfully complete the B.B.A. degree requirements and graduate within no more than six (6) calendar years after first being admitted to the Coles Undergraduate Professional Program. If a student does not complete the degree within six calendar years, courses may have to be repeated and new B.B.A. program requirements may have to be met prior to graduation.

Coles Student Services

Undergraduate Advising Center

Advising for all business majors is coordinated by the Office for Undergraduate Business Programs through the Business Undergraduate Advising Center. The Center is located on the fourth floor of the Burruss Building. The mission of the Undergraduate Advising Center is to help students understand what is required to earn a B.B.A. (Bachelor of Business Administration degree) at Kennesaw State University. The Advising Center uses an Advising Team rather than assigning individual advisors. The Team approach provides better information in a more efficient manner. The Advising Team is made up of both Staff Advisors and Faculty Advisors who are committed to helping students succeed. Students can expect the Advising Team to provide information on the following topics:

• The Coles College Sophomore GPA Requirement 
• Requirements for admission to the Coles College Undergraduate Professional Program.
• Required Business Core courses for all business majors.
• Required and Elective courses within your Major.
• Options for your Business Electives, including co-ops, internships, and minors.
• Options for your Non-business Electives.
• How to sequence the courses in the B.B.A. program.
• General KSU policies, such as the number of course withdrawals allowed, residency requirements, and graduation requirements.
• Where to go for KSU procedures, such as petitioning to graduate.

Students are responsible for reading the KSU Undergraduate Catalog descriptions of the B.B.A. degree requirements and KSU policies, reading emails sent to their KSU email account, checking course prerequisites in the Catalog, and completing all requirements for their degree. Students should draft a plan for completing their degree and meet with a Coles academic advisor to review that plan early in their coursework so problems can be minimized. Although the specific course schedule may not be known for future terms, the advisors have some general information that can help students make their plans.

Coles College Career Services Lab

The Coles College Career Services Lab is located in the heart of the Coles College of Business, on the first floor of the Burruss Building. It provides hands-on career management tools and resources. Coles career services are provided to you as part of our commitment to helping you achieve your personal and professional goals.

Tutoring Services

The Coles College provides free one-on-one and group tutoring services for many of the required Business Core courses, including Accounting, Economics, Statistics, and Finance.

Student Clubs and Organizations

For further enhancement of student life on campus, a variety of clubs and organizations are available. Students can enrich their college experience by seeking clubs or organizations based on community service, academic achievement, fraternity, sorority, sports, politics, religion, etc. Examples of business student organizations are:

• AITP - Association of Information Technology Professionals
• Beta Alpha Psi
• Beta Gamma Sigma
• Delta Sigma Pi
• International Business Student Association
• Kennesaw Marketing Association
• National Association of Black Accountants
• Omicron Delta Epsilon
• Pi Sigma Epsilon
• SHRM - Society for Human Resources Management
• SIFE - Students in Free Enterprise
• SMIF - Student Managed Investment Fund

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