Business Administration

The Master of Business Administration, featuring courses in Applied Integrated Management, provides students with the integrated perspective required to solve today’s complex business problems.

The MBA may be completed in 36-48 credit hours.

The program offers expert faculty, expansive opportunities for networking, and the flexibility of evening and on-line courses, all from a highly-ranked program.

The degree is open to students of all undergraduate majors and all levels of work experience.

You may complete the program on campus, on-line, or any combination of the two. (Concentrations are optional, and most require a campus presence.) You may enroll on a full- or part-time basis, but course availability is greatest during the fall and winter semesters. The program can usually be completed within two to two-and-a-half years of part-time study, depending on core course waivers earned.

Admission is rolling, and you may begin the program in September or January. May admission is also usually possible for part-time students.

University of Michigan-Dearborn students who have been admitted to the MBA may take up to 6 graduate credits during the final semester of their undergraduate program.

MBA Goals and Objectives

Goal 1: Students will have an understanding of the core business disciplines and be able to apply this knowledge to global business situations.

Objectives: MBA students will:

  • Demonstrate knowledge of disciplinary concepts, terminology, models, and perspectives.
  • Identify business problems and apply appropriate solutions (problem-finding/problem-solving).
  • Integrate knowledge across disciplinary areas (integrative thinking).
  • Apply knowledge in a global environment.
     

Goal 2: Students will be effective communicators.

Objectives: MBA students will:

  • Demonstrate an ability to effectively communicate in a manner that is typically required of a business professional.
     

Goal 3: Students will appreciate the importance of ethical/corporate social responsibility principles.

Objectives: MBA students will:

  • Identify and explain alternative approaches to ethical/corporate social responsibility issues.

MBA Admission Prerequisites

  • Mathematics admission prerequisite

MBA Curriculum

Core Courses27
Devel & Interp Financial Info
Econ Analysis: Firm & Consumer
Corporate Social Responsibility
Applied Statistical Modeling
Fin Fundament & Value Creation
Computer and Info Systems
Marketing Management
Organization Behavior
Operations Management
Applied Integrated Management (AIM)
International AIM Course:
Select one course from:3
Global Econ: Crisis & Growth
International Financial Mgt
Global Marketing
Intrnatl Dimensions of Managmt
AIM Capstone:
BPS 535Strategic Planning and Decision Making3
General AIM Courses:
Select two courses from:6
Managerial Decision Making
Business Disruption in the Digital Age: Machine Learning, Platforms, and the Crowd
Organizational Dysfunction and Wealth Effects
Firm Value and Market Reactions
Managing Strat Innov & Change
MBA Electives or Optional Concentration
Complete at least one of the available concentrations (see below) or choose at least three elective courses 19
Total Credit Hours48
1

Up to three graduate credits may be elected from units other than the College of Business. Elective courses must be approved by the Graduate Program Advisor in advance of course election.

Students may waive any or all of the core courses if they have equivalent courses in an AACSB business program completed within the previous 10 years and have earned at least a 3.2 post-60 GPA (that is, your GPA in courses taken after your first 60 undergraduate credit hours). 

Students who do not meet these criteria may request to have their courses evaluated for waiver credit at the time of admission. Students must have earned a B or better in equivalent courses as a part of a degree program completed within the previous 10 years.

Regardless of waiver credit granted, students must earn at least 36 credits in the MBA program.

In addition, up to 6 transfer credits for previous equivalent graduate coursework can be applied to the degree if those credits have not been counted toward a degree.

Waivers and transfer credit are granted at the discretion of the program faculty.

MBA Breadth Requirements (3, 4, 5 Rule)

  • Complete AIM courses in at least 3 different disciplines
  • Complete more than 4 AIM, Concentration, and Elective courses (12 credits) in any one discipline
  • Complete graduate business courses in at least 5 different disciplines.
  • No single course may be counted toward more than one MBA requirement or concentration.

MBA Concentrations

Concentrations are optional, and students may earn more than one. Some concentrations are available online; others require campus enrollment.  Concentrations are awarded at the time of graduation.

Accounting

Available on campus

Choose any three graduate ACC courses beyond ACC 505.

Business Analytics   

Available only on campus

DS 570Management Science3
Choose two from the following:6
Applied Forecasting
Decision Analysis
System Simulation
Data Mining for Business Appl
Total Credit Hours9

Finance

Available online and on campus

Select one course from:3
Topics in Corporate Finance
Invstmnt Proc, Analysis & Mgmt
Select two courses from:6
Global Econ: Crisis & Growth
Topics in Corporate Finance
Corporate Valuation & Strategy
Invstmnt Proc, Analysis & Mgmt
Derivatives & Risk Management
Topics/Investments & Cap Mkts
Banking, Insurance, and Fintech
International Financial Mgt
Fixed Income Securities
Investment Fund Management
Total Credit Hours9

Healthcare Management

Available on campus (some courses offered as hybrid)

Select three courses from the following:9
Medical Information Systems
Financing Health & Medical Sys
Healthcare Administration
Health Care and the Law
Healthcare Leadership
Economics of Healthcare
Total Credit Hours9

Human Resource Management

Available only on campus

Required:3
Human Resource Management
Choose two of the following:6
Compensation and HR Analytics
Legal Issues in Managing People
Intrnatl Dimensions of Managmt
Total Credit Hours9

Information Systems Management

Available only on campus

Choose any three graduate ISM courses beyond ISM 525.

International Business

Available online and on campus

Select three courses from:9
Global Econ: Crisis & Growth
International Financial Mgt
Global Marketing
Intrnatl Dimensions of Managmt
Supply Chain Management
Total Credit Hours9

Marketing

Available on campus

Required:
Advanced Marketing Management
Select two courses from:6
Sales Management and Personal Selling
Graduate Marketing Research
Understanding Customers
Advertising and Promotion
Global Marketing
Graduate Seminar (In order for BA 691 to be an option, it must be a marketing topic. )
Total Credit Hours6

Supply Chain Management

Available on campus

Required:
Supply Chain Management
Select two courses from:6
Supply Chain Analytics
Supply Chain Logis Mgmt
Product Dvlpmnt & Tech Mgmnt
Lean & Six Sigma
Strategic Sourcing
ERP in SCM
Total Credit Hours6

Learning Goals

Goal 1: Students will have an understanding of the core business disciplines and be able to apply this knowledge to global business situations.

  • Objective 1.1: Students will demonstrate knowledge of disciplinary concepts, terminology, models, and perspectives.
  • Objective 1.2: Students will identify business problems and apply appropriate solutions (problem-finding/problem-solving).
  • Objective 1.3: Students will integrate knowledge across disciplinary areas (integrative thinking).
  • Objective 1.4: Students will apply knowledge in a global environment.

Goal 2: Students will be effective communicators.

  • Objective 2.1: Students will demonstrate an ability to effectively communicate in a manner that is typically required of a business professional.

Goal 3: Students will appreciate the importance of ethical/corporate social responsibility principles.

  • Objective 3.1: Students will identify and explain alternative approaches to ethical/corporate social responsibility issues.

BA 605     Managerial Decision Making     3 Credit Hours

This course covers the findings of research on behavioral decision making as they apply to managerial decision making. You will learn how the human mind works, what it is particularly good at and not so good at, and what the implications of this are for managerial decision making. The course will help you make better decisions and understand the potential shortcomings of the decisions made by your colleagues, competitors, collaborators, and customers. Topics include human cognition, overconfidence, heuristics and biases in decision making, bounded awareness, framing, preference reversal, motivational and emotional influences on decision making, escalation of commitment, expertise in decision making, and fairness and ethics in decision making. We will apply the research on behavioral decision making to a wide variety of problems in various domains of business, study how applications of information systems can mitigate limitations of the human mind, and apply our knowledge of the way the human mind works to develop an understanding of ways to improve managerial decision making. Students interested in careers in a wide variety of business professions will find the knowledge and skills gained in this course to be useful in their professional endeavors.

Prerequisite(s): BE 530 and (MIS 525 or ISM 525) and OB 510 and (DS 520 or IMSE 510 or IMSE 514)

BA 607     Business Disruption in the Digital Age: Machine Learning, Platforms, and the Crowd     3 Credit Hours

This course integrates research from the fields of economics, mathematics and statistics, information systems, and organizational behavior as they inform our understanding of the three interrelated phenomena of machine learning, the platform, and the crowd that are disrupting and transforming businesses organizations, industries, and the economy. Our study of machine learning will contrast human decision making (and it limitations and biases) with machine learning and examine the organizational and economic effects of robotics, digitization, and other technological innovations. Our study of platforms will focus on network effects, technical architecture, and strategies related to the monetization and openness of platforms. Our study of the crowd will focus on crowd-based expertise, prediction markets, economic impacts of the sharing economy, blockchain, regulatory issues in the sharing economy, and issues of the nature of work and labor in the sharing economy. We will apply and integrate research in these areas to the development of insights into business problems with an emphasis on shifts in traditional business organizations and emerging types of organizations that use technological innovations in ways that have the potential for disrupting and transforming industries. Students interested in careers in a wide variety of business professions will find the knowledge and skills gained through this course to be useful in their professional endeavors. (YR).

Prerequisite(s): BE 530 and ISM 525 and OB 510 and (DS 520 or IMSE 510 or IMSE 514)

BA 611     Organizational Dysfunction and Wealth Effects     3 Credit Hours

Dysfunction abounds in organizations and can have profound impacts on individuals, organizations, and society. In this course you will learn to identify organizational dysfunction and examine how organizational dysfunction spills over to influence various types of wealth (e.g., financial, social, well-being, time) within social systems. Then, you will learn a framework and tools you can use to (1) make sense of your work experiences and navigate organizations, (2) diagnose and address a wide range of organizational problems, and (3) minimize dysfunction in groups and projects you lead. Students interested in a wide variety of professions will find the expertise gained to be useful for structuring complex projects and company-wide initiatives, allocating scarce resources, and fostering organizational change. (YR).

Prerequisite(s): ACC 505 and BE 530 and OB 510

Restriction(s):
Can enroll if Degree is Master of Business Admin
Can enroll if College is Business
Can enroll if Major is Business Admin/Finance, Business Admin/Ind & Syst Engr, Business Admin/Information Sys, Business Admin/Supply Chain, Business Administration, Bus Admin/Health Services Adm

BA 616     Firm Value and Market Reactions     3 Credit Hours

This course will analyze various decisions made by the firm relating to its operations and external events which impact the operations of the firm. In either case, the effects of events both on the financial statements of the firm and on the financial markets’ evaluation of the firms’ prospects will be examined. This examination will include an exploration of how quickly, or slowly, firm decisions and external events are impounded into these estimates of firm value. After developing the relevant skills in accounting, finance, and statistical analysis, students will conduct a project of their own exploring empirically and critically the effects of an event on the performance (and perceived performance) of firms Open only to MBA and dual MBA students.

Prerequisite(s): ACC 505 and FIN 531 and (DS 520 or IMSE 514)

Restriction(s):
Can enroll if Major is Business Admin/Finance, Business Admin/Ind & Syst Engr, Business Admin/Information Sys, Business Admin/Supply Chain, Business Administration, Bus Admin/Health Services Adm

BA 690     Graduate Research     1 to 3 Credit Hours

To provide masters candidates with the opportunity to undertake a research project under the supervision of a faculty member. The research topic is chosen by the student, in consultation with a faculty member in the appropriate discipline. Written approval must be obtained at least two weeks prior to registration on a form available in the Graduate Office. The request must include a comprehensive description of the proposed research project, as well as a time line for the project's completion.

Restriction(s):
Can enroll if Class is Graduate
Can enroll if College is Business

BA 691     Graduate Seminar     1 to 3 Credit Hours

Topics Course. To provide masters candidates with an opportunity for study of selected advanced topics in particular fields. Topics vary. See Schedule of Classes for current offerings. May be elected more than once if topics differ.

Prerequisite(s): (MIS 525 or MIS 502) and (MKT 515 or MKT 610)

Restriction(s):
Can enroll if Class is Graduate

BA 691A     Graduate Seminar     3 Credit Hours

Topic: The Internal Revenue Service. This course introduces the student to the structure, organization, practices and procedures of the Internal Revenue Service. The course is intended to give students an understanding of the organizational makeup of the Internal Revenue Service and the authority of its various employees. The different approaches to resolving tax controversies will be explored through the study of assigned readings and in-depth class discussions. The course will be conducted in a seminar-like fashion with each student expected to make significant contributions to class discussions. Attentiveness to news items affecting the area of federal tax procedures is expected, as well as conveyance to class of these newsworthy developments. This course is appropriate for MSA? Tax Concentration students.

*An asterisk denotes that a course may be taken concurrently.

Frequency of Offering

The following abbreviations are used to denote the frequency of offering: (F) fall term; (W) winter term; (S) summer term; (F, W) fall and winter terms; (YR) once a year; (AY) alternating years; (OC) offered occasionally