The Marketing concentration at Southern prepares students for entry-level, middle, and senior management positions in marketing, as well as preparation for graduate study. It includes a strong basic understanding of business, concentrated knowledge of marketing theory and its technological applications, and a degree of specialized expertise in one or more specific functional marketing areas. Topics include social media marketing, digital marketing, consumer behavior, marketing research, marketing analytics, product development, advertising, sales, retailing, and global marketing.
Marketing is one of the broadest areas of study in business. It is a dynamic process that touches us throughout our lives. We are all familiar with marketing through our personal experiences and observations as consumers in the world's most advanced consumer-oriented society. Our complex contemporary marketing system of buyers and sellers requires businesses to compete effectively in the marketplace. We market many things beyond goods, including ideas, causes, places, services, performances, groups, and people. Marketing targets our present and potential customers.
Accelerated Pathway Option
In addition to our traditional B.S. in Marketing, we offer an Accelerated BS/MBA, where students can complete both a bachelor’s degree in Marketing and an MBA in five years. This accelerated pathway program provides high-achieving students with the opportunity to complete foundational graduate coursework during their senior year of undergraduate study in order to accelerate graduate degree completion. This competitive program allows admitted students the opportunity to complete their bachelor’s degree and the Master of Business Administration in five years.
Learning Outcomes
The Department of Marketing expects the following competencies to be the learning outcomes for students pursuing a concentration in marketing in the BSBA program. These competencies (learning outcomes) are based upon the Association for the Advancement of Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) Assurance of Learning Outcomes (AOL).
- Problem-Solving Skills Competency: Students will demonstrate competence in approaching a variety of marketing problems from a structured, disciplined approach, using both quantitative and qualitative methods and while deploying business productivity software, such as SPSS and the Microsoft Office Suite.
- Communication Competency: Students will demonstrate communication competence through their ability to create professional-quality business documents and presentations.
- Reflective Thinking Competency: Students will demonstrate reflective thinking competency by applying the theoretical foundations of the marketing discipline to marketing problems commonly encountered in marketing practice. Students will utilized their critical-thinking skills to evaluate marketing issues assess business intelligence in order to develop solutions to marketing management problems. Sound inductive and deductive reasoning will be required.
- Ethical Practice Competency: Students will demonstrate ethical practice competency by addressing appropriately ethical concerns in their class projects (group and individual) and through their knowledge of ethics, as gained through class readings and discussions.
Careers
Today when we speak of marketing, we include the activities of for-profit businesses, government, not-for-profit organizations, institutions, and individuals. Almost a third of all Americans are employed in marketing-related positions. Thus, the number of possible marketing careers is enormous. Because of the knowledge of products and consumers gained in these jobs, marketing provides excellent training for the highest levels in the organization.
Typical Job Titles
- Marketing Manager
- Brand Manager
- Advertising Manager
- Public Relations Manager
- Market Research Analyst
- Social Media Manager
- E-commerce Manager
- Sales Manager
- Digital Marketing Manager
- Product Manager
- Media Planner
- Communications Manager
- Account Manager
- Event Planner
AACSB-Accredited School of Business
The School of Business is accredited by AACSB International (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business), a distinction earned by fewer than 6% of business schools worldwide. AACSB accreditation recognizes excellence in teaching, curriculum, faculty expertise, and student outcomes. For students, this means earning a degree from a globally recognized business school that is committed to rigorous academic standards, continuous improvement, and career-focused education. For employers and graduate programs, AACSB accreditation signals a high-quality business education.
