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Online Business Degree Bachelor's in Business Administration

Learn to Succeed in Business

• $330/credit (120 total credits)
• Transfer up to 90 credits
• Accessible online 24/7 with no set class times
• 14 unique concentrations
• Receive credit for prior learning
• No application fee or SAT/ACT scores

Online Business Degree Overview

To build a successful career in business, you need to start with a solid foundation. As one of Southern New Hampshire University's most popular programs, the online Bachelor of Science (BS) in Business Administration program focuses on developing these fundamental skills to help students become successful entrepreneurial thinkers and decision-makers. From interpersonal skills to strategic problem solving and operational principles, this program gives students the tools they'll need to succeed in a wide variety of fast paced business environments.

Earning your bachelor's in business administration can also open a variety of doors in your career. With 14 unique concentrations, you can tailor your degree to the industry you plan on entering upon graduating. Each concentration provides the unique skills, principles and career-focused expertise that a given industry looks for in its potential employees.

You can choose the bachelor's degree in business administration alone or elect one of over a dozen concentrations.

What You'll Learn

• Management strategies
• Team collaboration
• Ethical business practices
• Global business contexts
• Data-driven strategies
• Audience communication tactics

How You'll Learn

At SNHU, you'll get support from day 1 to graduation and beyond. And with no set class times, 24/7 access to the online classroom, and helpful learning resources along the way, you'll have everything you need to reach your goals.

Online Business Degree Concentrations

Accounting learn how to solve business challenges by helping organizations manage their finances with an online bachelor of science (bs) in business administration with a concentration in accounting . businesses recognize employees who have sound financial, accounting and management knowledge as well as language and computer skills. professionals with adequate accounting knowledge work with middle and upper management and in public accounting, where complex financial transactions are analyzed and reported. the accounting concentration is ideal for students who wish to supplement their business administration major with specialized accounting skills. the business and accounting degree curriculum provides both an accounting and general business course of study. with the accounting concentration, you'll develop knowledge and skills in financial accounting practices, complete the accounting cycle, prepare complex financial statements, identify and correct financial reporting issues, create budgets and conduct ratio analyses to assess financial information. accelerated bs-to-ms course option in this concentration, students have the option to take a graduate level course (acc550 - cost accounting) during their undergraduate degree program. this allows students who may be interested in pursing their ms accounting  at snhu to get a jump-start. credit for this course can be directly applied to a students' graduate program, and this course is also offered at the undergraduate tuition rate. students are encouraged to work with their advisor to explore graduate degree opportunities career outlook: with your specialized business administration degree from snhu, you’ll be in a great position to begin a career in public accounting and private industry. according to the u.s. bureau of labor statistics, employment in accounting and auditing is expected to grow 4% through 2032. 1 the bls also projects business and financial occupations to grow faster than average through 2032. 1 courses may include: cost accounting intermediate accounting financial statement analysis/business valuation if you're interested in this subject, you may also be interested in a full  online accounting degree . request info apply now entrepreneurship gain the skills you need to start and manage your own business with an online bachelor of science (bs) in business administration with a concentration in entrepreneurship . this concentration is perfect for natural leaders looking for the foundation they need to bring their startup ideas to life. learn more about earning your business administration degree in entrepreneurship online. courses may include: small business management entrepreneurship business plan preparation request info apply now finance invest in your future with an online bachelor of science (bs) in business administration with a concentration in finance . corporations in every industry seek employees who understand the complexity of economic activity and the demands facing all firms to take a bottom-line perspective. with a business finance degree from snhu, you'll be prepared to fill these roles. this program is ideal for students who wish to transfer credits, switch to finance from another field or supplement an existing degree with a bachelor's in business. you'll learn how to apply theory to the real world of international and domestic finance. you'll also develop the analytical and quantitative skills needed for corporate and individual financial management industries. career outlook: snhu's online business finance degree will prepare you to pursue a wide variety of business- and finance-related careers such as: accountant budget analyst financial advisor loan officer cost estimator according to the u.s. bureau of labor statistics, jobs for financial analysts are projected to grow 8% through 2032. 1 courses may include: personal financial planning fundamentals of investment multinational corporate finance if you're interested in this concentration, you may also be interested in a full online finance degree . request info apply now healthcare administration take the first step toward a rewarding career in one of the fastest-growing industries with an online bachelor of science (bs) in business administration with a concentration in healthcare administration . healthcare is a booming industry. according to the bls, employment of healthcare occupations is projected to grow much faster than the average for all occupations through 2032. 1 as the aging population continues to grow, so does the need for educated healthcare leaders who can help plan, direct and coordinate health services and improve patient care. this program helps students build a foundation in business with an added focus in healthcare. coursework covers topics such as healthcare delivery systems, reimbursement, ethics, quality management, and research and evaluation methods. career outlook: according to the u.s. bureau of labor statistics, employment of medical and health services managers is projected to grow 28% through 2032 – much faster than the national average for all occupations. 1 snhu's healthcare business administration program prepares you for a variety of roles, such as community health manager, health policy analyst, health promotion specialist, health services manager and medical services administrator. positions exist in various settings, including: behavioral health organizations consulting firms governmental healthcare agencies health insurance companies hospitals long-term care facilities national health associations pharmaceutical companies physician offices courses may include: healthcare economics healthcare strategic management & policy organizational behavior if you're interested in this concentration, you may also be interested in a full  healthcare administration degree online . request info apply now human resources management learn how to effectively support any organization's team with an online bachelor of science (bs) in business administration with a concentration in human resources management . you'll gain the specialized skills you need to succeed in any industry – whether it's the private, nonprofit or government sector. the hr concentration is also aligned to the society for human resource management's body of applied skills & knowledge™ (shrm bask™) competencies, which incorporate global hr viewpoints to establish critical competencies and content areas. included within the coursework are 3 certifications from content partner, the human resource certification institute ® (hrci ® ): hr ethics series: common ethical challenges hr ethics series: issues in the workplace negotiations: resolving disputes if you're interested in hr, you may also be interested in a full online human resources degree . career outlook: in human resources, it's all about one thing: people. that's because you'll work with employees all across your organization. to succeed in the profession, you'll want to learn compliance and labor law, employee benefits programs, and talent acquisition and offboarding – among other skills. roles you may be qualified for include: hr managers: in this role, you'd be responsible for administrative functions, acquiring new talent, consulting on strategic planning, and serving as point of contact between management and employees. in 2022, they earned a median of $130,000 a year, while employment is expected to increase 5% through 2032. 1 hr specialists: you'll recruit, screen and interview job applicants, place newly hired workers in jobs, and handle compensation and benefits, training and employee relations. in 2022, the median annual salary was $64,240, and employment could see a 6% increase through 2032. 1 training and development specialists: plan and administer the programs that train employees and improve their skills and knowledge. in 2022, they earned a $63,080 median salary, and jobs could increase 6% through 2032 – faster than the average for all positions. 1 courses may include: human resource functions creating the employee experience employee and labor relations request info apply now industrial organizational psychology help improve productivity in your business with an online bachelor of science (bs) in business administration with a concentration in industrial organizational psychology .  this specialized concentration is perfect for students looking for a degree that blends their love of business with psychology. learn more about earning your industrial organizational psychology business degree . courses may include: introduction to psychology human resource functions leadership and motivation in the workplace because of the subject overlap, this concentration is available to students in both the online business administration degree program and the online psychology degree  program. this grants you the choice to determine which core degree program suits you best while maintaining the opportunity to specialize in industrial organizational psychology. this approach allows for a tailored educational experience, aligning with your specific interests and career goals. request info apply now international business drive business beyond borders with an online bachelor of science (bs) in business administration with a concentration in international business . in an increasingly globalized society, this specialized degree can give you the foundation you need to understand and appeal to multinational markets. learn more about earning your business administration degree in international business online . courses may include: global financial systems multinational marketing international strategic management request info apply now management information systems bridge the gap between the technical and business aspects of management information systems (mis) with an online bachelor of science (bs) in business administration with a concentration in management information systems . this concentration explores client systems, programming, data and business intelligence tools that can help you drive business decisions. learn more about earning your business administration degree in management information systems  online. courses may include: applied data structure and database business systems applications business intelligence applications request info apply now marketing capture the hearts and minds of consumers with an online bachelor of science (bs) in business administration with a concentration in marketing . this specialized marketing concentration will introduce you to areas such as market research, social media marketing and communication and consumer behavior, so you can be prepared for a variety of careers in the fast-paced and ever-evolving field of marketing. with a marketing-focused business degree under your belt, you'll have the skills required for a variety of entry- and mid-level marketing roles in advertising, customer relations, market research, product/brand management, product distribution, purchasing, retail management and sales. the curriculum for this marketing concentration focuses on developing effective leadership tools for survival, growth, increased productivity and conflict management in today's increasingly complex business environment. by combining broad-based business courses with marketing courses, you'll learn how to apply theory to real-world situations. career outlook: the u.s. bureau of labor statistics reports employment for advertising, promotions and marketing managers is expected to increase by 6% through 2032. 1 with new opportunities opening up in the field of digital media marketing, the potential for marketing professionals to reach even wider audiences continues to rise. courses may include: social media and marketing communications marketing research consumer behavior if you're interested in this concentration, you may also be interested in a full  online marketing degree . request info apply now nonprofit management make it your mission to empower nonprofit organizations with an online bachelor of science (bs) in business administration with a concentration in nonprofit management . with a concentration in nonprofit management, you'll benefit from a curriculum focused on the skills you need to achieve organizational goals within the nonprofit world. nonprofit management courses can help you master grant writing, government and nonprofit accounting, nonprofit management and entrepreneurship. developed in cooperation with business professionals, these courses are designed to provide real-world expertise taught by instructors with credentials and experience in the field. career outlook: according to the u.s. bureau of labor statistics, job prospects for social and community service managers are projected to grow 9% through 2032 – much faster than the national average for all occupations. 1 the nonprofit field is as versatile as it is rewarding. you’ll find valuable roles in human resources, public relations, accounting, grant writing and more within a variety of organizations, including hospitals, universities and social organizations. courses may include: human resource management social environment of business organizational behavior request info apply now organizational leadership manage organizational growth with an online bachelor of science (bs) in business administration with a concentration in organizational leadership . this specialized program can give you the foundation you need to effectively lead employers through times of change and help inform strategic decisions.  learn more about earning your business administration degree in organizational leadership  online. courses may include: principles of management business plan preparation leadership and organizational behavior request info apply now project management take charge and motivate productivity in the ever-evolving business world with an online bachelor of science (bs) in business administration with a concentration in project management . you'll learn how to keep the ball rolling in every aspect of the project life cycle – from ideation and implementation to assessing outcomes. as part of this project management concentration, you'll have the option to take the qso-345: project management for capm ® certification course, which will help prepare you to take the pmi® certified associate in project management ® exam. learn more about earning your business administration degree in project management online . courses may include: project management project contracting and procurement adaptive project management request info apply now public administration make public service your bottom line with an online bachelor of science (bs) in business administration with a concentration in public administration . this specialized concentration is perfect for civic-minded students who want to use business as a vehicle for social change. learn more about earning your business administration degree in public administration online. courses may include: policy analysis and the role of the public american politics public fiscal management request info apply now sport management reach your career goals with an online bachelor of science (bs) in business administration with a concentration in sport management . with a degree focused on sports management, you'll be prepared to handle a number of areas of the business that come your way, like media, merchandising, hospitality and event management. adding a sport management concentration to your business degree can give you the opportunity to develop the skills you'll need to succeed in this fast-paced profession. our program combines our long-standing, comprehensive business education with the sport management principles that allow you to ethically address business needs in sport organizations. career outlook: the sports industry is a growing one. sports and entertainment occupations are projected to grow faster than the average for all occupations through 2023. 1 the increasing popularity of sports is driving the need for qualified professionals with a specialized skill set. completion of your online sports business degree can open many career opportunities in the field, including marketing, sales, operations and finance management for professional sports organizations, sporting goods manufacturers, intercollegiate athletics, parks and recreation departments, and fitness facility management. a well-rounded business degree with a focus on sports management skills is essential in this rapidly growing field. courses may include: introduction to sport management sport marketing sport, society and ethics if you're interested in this subject, you may also be interested in a full online  sports management degree . request info apply now if (typeof accordiongroup === "undefined") { window.accordiongroup = new accordion(); } accordiongroup.init(document.getelementbyid('0cca478a67eb4d92a1c0f63cf283ef90')); "my degree changed everything for me.".

See how Matt Seawright's concentration in organizational leadership helped him develop his management skills, and stand out to his employer. With his degree in hand, he went from managing 4 people to 50 people.

How to Take an Online Class at SNHU

Southern New Hampshire University understands that everyone learns differently. That’s why our online degree programs are designed to provide a more flexible learning experience that fits your schedule and meets your needs. In this video, you’ll gain a better understanding of how the SNHU online class format works for the modern learner.

The Flexibility of an Online Degree

Between a full-time job and raising her family, going to school online was Kristin Galvin’s only option. As she earned her BS in Business Administration with a concentration in Human Resource Management, she found the program and its faculty to be flexible and accommodating.

Career Outlook

The online BS in Business Administration is designed to meet the needs of today’s workforce. With a solid foundation in the principles of information technology, analytical skills, legal and ethical issues, behavioral dynamics and quantitative analysis, you'll be prepared for a number of roles including:

• Financial Analyst
• Market Research Analyst
• Sales Manager
• Operations Manager
• Human Resource Specialist

The bachelor's in business administration program prepares you for a wide range of career options - making it one of our most popular programs. There's a tremendous need in the marketplace for professionals who know how to manage the resources of an organization or business in an effective manner.

Job Growth and Salary

Prospects for business and financial operations occupations appear promising in the coming years with about 911,400 job openings projected each year on average from growth and replacement needs. 1

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of business and financial operations occupations is projected to grow faster than the average for all occupations through 2032 , adding over 911,400 new jobs annually. 1

In 2022, the median annual wage for business and financial occupations was $76,850 . 1

Understanding the Numbers When reviewing job growth and salary information, it’s important to remember that actual numbers can vary due to many different factors — like years of experience in the role, industry of employment, geographic location, worker skill and economic conditions. Cited projections do not guarantee actual salary or job growth.

Upon completing this bachelor's degree, you'll have earned vital competencies that can be applied to your personal and professional life, including communications and critical thinking skills as well as economics, finance and organizational leadership.

"When you're a top performer in an online program, hiring managers take notice, because those same attributes will make you a valuable employee," he said. "It's about balancing a schedule, setting priorities, working in ambiguity, and finding both the resources and paths to success. It's the exact same skill set of a top-performing employee."

Start Your Journey Toward an Online Business Degree

Why snhu for your online business degree flexible with no set class meeting times, you can learn on your schedule and access online course materials 24/7. affordable as part of our mission to make higher education more accessible, we’re committed to keeping our tuition rates low. in fact, we offer some of the lowest online tuition rates in the nation. prior coursework could also help you save time and money. snhu’s transfer policy  allows you to transfer up to 90 credits toward your bachelor's degree and 45 credits for an associate degree from your previous institutions—that means you could save up to 75% off the cost of tuition. you could also save time and money by getting college credit for previous work experience , or by taking advantage of military discounts and employer tuition assistance if available to you. respected founded in 1932 , southern new hampshire university is a private, nonprofit institution with over 160,000 graduates across the country. snhu is accredited by the new england commission of higher education (neche), a regional accreditor, which advocates for institutional improvement and public assurance of quality.  recently, snhu has been nationally recognized for leading the way toward more innovative, affordable and achievable education: u.s. news & world report named snhu the 2021 most innovative university in the north and one of the nation's "best regional universities" awarded the 21st century distance learning award for excellence in online technology by the united states distance learning association (usdla) a $1 million grant from google.org to explore soft skills assessments for high-need youth network at southern new hampshire university, you'll have access to a powerful network of more than 300,000 students, alumni and staff that can help support you long after graduation. our instructors offer relevant, real-world expertise to help you understand and navigate the field. plus, with our growing, nationwide alumni network, you'll have the potential to tap into a number of internship and career opportunities. 93.6% of online students would recommend snhu (according to a 2022 survey with 17,000+ respondents). discover why snhu may be right for you . admission requirements expanding access to quality higher education means removing the barriers that may stand between you and your degree. that’s why you can apply at any time and get a decision within days of submitting all required materials: completed free undergraduate application prior transcripts, which we can retrieve at no cost to you test scores are not required as part of your application acceptance decisions are made on a rolling basis throughout the year for our 6 (8-week) undergraduate terms . how to apply if you’re ready to apply, follow these simple steps to get the process going: complete a free undergraduate application submit any additional documents required work with an admission counselor  to explore financial options  and walk through the application process if you have questions or need help filling out your application, call 1.888.387.0861 or email [email protected] . if (typeof accordiongroup === "undefined") { window.accordiongroup = new accordion(); } accordiongroup.init(document.getelementbyid('a606b5bfc5b047d1af9dc1a634114177')); your future awaits.

Luis Polanco '23

“Everything has changed. I feel like SNHU has given me a brighter outlook on what I should be doing with life.”

Online Business Degree Courses & Curriculum

SNHU's business administration program is designed to help you gain the skills you need to succeed in the modern workforce — with a career-focused curriculum, affordable tuition and the flexibility you need to fit your degree into your busy life.

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120 Credits

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8-Week Terms

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100% Online

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No Set Class Times

The curriculum for our online business degrees prepares SNHU graduates for the workforce – as do our career services, learning resources and support services. SNHU's programs offer a variety of courses that provide you with a well-rounded foundation, in some cases featuring experiential learning opportunities like simulations and internships.

Leveraging experience in operations, management, sales and marketing, Rogers also serves as an editorial board member of The Journal of Education for Business. But even with her accomplished career, few moments hold a candle to seeing her students succeed.

"SNHU instructors really love our disciplines and want to share our passions with students," said Rogers, who's affectionately known by learners as Dr. J. "Inspiring. Mentoring. Cheerleading. I love all that, and want students to take that grit and evolve.”

Choose Your Pathway

You can tailor your program to work for you, too. Choose the general BS in Business Administration to gain a broad understanding of business and management principles, or opt for a concentration to specialize your skill set.

"I took a hard look at my 5-, 10- and 15-year plan to figure out where I wanted to be in my career, then discussed with my academic advisor which program or concentration would best align with my career goals," she said. "I’ve been working in healthcare my entire adult life, it was an easy choice."

By tailoring a degree to fit her passion, Dixon developed knowledge and skills she could apply to any number of jobs.

"The [online BS in Business Administration program] was challenging and taught me a plethora of knowledge that can be applied in many business settings," Dixon said. "The courses that focused on my concentration were easily relatable because they were directly correlated to my chosen career field."

Curriculum Requirements & Resources

Business core.

Business programs require learners to complete the business core, which includes a variety of business-specific courses. These courses focus on 10 core competencies to prepare you for success wherever you go.

General Education

All undergraduate students are required to take general education courses , which are part of SNHU's newly redesigned program, The Commons. The goal of The Commons' curriculum is to empower you with some of the most in-demand skills, so you can succeed not only in your academic career, but in your personal and professional life too.

Technology Resources

We provide cloud-based virtual environments in some courses to give you access to the technology you need for your degree – and your career. Learn more about our virtual environments .

Earn Math Credits

Save time and tuition with our Pathways to Math Success assessments. Depending on your scores, you could earn up to 12 math credits – the equivalent of 4 courses – toward your degree for less than $50 per assessment. For additional information, or to register for a Pathways to Math Success assessment, contact your admission counselor or academic advisor today.

Minimum Hardware Requirements Component Type   PC (Windows OS)   Apple (Mac OS)   Operating System  Currently supported operating system from Microsoft.   Currently supported operating system from Apple.  Memory (RAM)  8GB or higher  8GB or higher  Hard Drive  100GB or higher  100GB or higher  Antivirus Software  Required for campus students. Strongly recommended for online students.  Required for campus students. Strongly recommended for online students.  SNHU Purchase Programs  Visit Dell   Visit Apple   Internet/ Bandwidth  5 Mbps Download, 1 Mbps Upload and less than 100 ms Latency  5 Mbps Download, 1 Mbps Upload and less than 100 ms Latency  Notes:   Laptop or desktop?   Whichever you choose depends on your personal preference and work style, though laptops tend to offer more flexibility.  Note:   Chromebooks (Chrome OS) and iPads (iOS) do not meet the minimum requirements for coursework at SNHU. These offer limited functionality and do not work with some course technologies. They are not acceptable as the only device you use for coursework. While these devices are convenient and may be used for some course functions, they cannot be your primary device. SNHU does, however, have an affordable laptop option that it recommends: Dell Latitude 3301 with Windows 10.  Office 365 Pro Plus  is available free of charge to all SNHU students and faculty. The Office suite will remain free while you are a student at SNHU. Upon graduation you may convert to a paid subscription if you wish. Terms subject to change at Microsoft's discretion. Review system requirements for  Microsoft 365 plans  for business, education and government.  Antivirus software:  Check with your ISP as they may offer antivirus software free of charge to subscribers.  if (typeof accordionGroup === "undefined") { window.accordionGroup = new accordion(); } accordionGroup.init(document.getElementById('f756dce5bd874c61855f6f6e92d88470')); What to Expect as an Online Student No set class times: Asynchronous classes let you do your coursework when and where you want Pick your pace: Choose between full time (2 courses) or part time (1 course) each term Student support: 24/7 access to online student services like the library, tech and academic support if (typeof carouselContainer === "undefined") { window.carouselContainer = new carousel(); } let vc_0a2c09e41977426b8f3008e18ed9a68a = document.getElementById('carousel-0a2c09e41977426b8f3008e18ed9a68a') if (vc_0a2c09e41977426b8f3008e18ed9a68a !== null) { carouselContainer.init(vc_0a2c09e41977426b8f3008e18ed9a68a); } University Accreditation

Southern New Hampshire University is a private, nonprofit institution accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE)  as well as several other accrediting bodies.

This program and its concentrations are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP). Student achievement data can be found on College Navigator.

Tuition & Fees

As a private, nonprofit university, we’re committed to making college more accessible by making it more affordable. That’s why we offer some of the lowest online tuition rates in the nation.

We also offer financial aid packages to those who qualify, plus a 30% tuition discount for U.S. service members, both full and part time, and the spouses of those on active duty.

Tuition Rates are subject to change and are reviewed annually. *Note: students receiving this rate are not eligible for additional discounts.

Additional Costs No Application Fee, Course Materials ($ varies by course)

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Public Administration?

SNHU Spotlight: Jeffrey Harris, MBA Grad

SNHU Spotlight: Luis Polanco, BS in Business Administration Grad

Online Business Management Bachelor's Degree

Online Business Management Degree: An Overview

Top online schools for business, list of online schools offering business degree by state, how to choose the best online business degree program, how much does an online business degree cost, online coursework, specialties for an online business management degree, prerequisites for an online business management degree, example concentrations.

• Entrepreneurship
• Health care management
• Human resources management

Job Outlook and Salaries for Graduates

Pay for business management jobs, where can you work as a business management major, how to pay for an online business degree, how long does an online business management degree take to complete, can you work and earn a business degree.

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Online Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration

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Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration Overview

The U.S. expects to add 715,100 new business jobs from 2021 to 2031. Come back stronger, ready to meet the demand with a degree that employers will respect.

• Develop the communication, technical, management, and critical-thinking skills to become an effective business leader.
• Aviation management
• Business development
• Construction management
• Digital and social media management
• Financial analysis
• Global marketing management
• Hospitality sustainability
• Human resources
• Information systems management
• Procurement
• Project management
• Real estate
• Sport entertainment management
• Supply chain management and logistics
• Wealth management and financial planning

See Notes and Conditions below for important information.

Purdue Global’s business programs are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP) .

The human resources concentration aligns with the Society for Human Resource Management's HR Curriculum Guidebook and Templates .

Purdue Global Is Accredited by the Higher Learning Commission

The HLC ( HLCommission.org ) is an institutional accreditation agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Military Transfer Credit

Servicemembers and veterans, get the recognition you deserve and earn your degree faster. With our PME2Degree ® program, you can turn your military and occupational training into college credit. How many credits have you earned?

• Estimate Your Military Credit

Admissions Requirements

You must be a high school graduate or possess a General Education Development (GED) certificate or other equivalency diploma and pass a criminal background check. You are also required to complete orientation before you start classes. Additional requirements apply. Refer to the program-specific policy page in the University Catalog or speak to an Advisor to learn more.

What Courses Will I Take?

Coursework helps you develop communication and critical-thinking skills as well as technical competencies to become an effective business leader.

The curriculum is reviewed and revised continually by our dedicated curriculum department and advisory board to ensure it reflects the most recent developments in the field of business.

Sample Courses

• Business Law
• Organizational Behavior
• Operations Management

Program Requirements

Upcoming start dates.

We offer multiple start dates to give you flexibility in your education, life, and work schedules.

Bachelor's in Business Administration Concentrations

Concentrations allow you to personalize your education by focusing your elective choices on an area of study that best fits your desired career path. Choose from 17 business concentration areas :

Prepare for leadership roles in the airspace management system while learning how to construct flight schedules, understand laws and federal regulations, and more.

Master B2B and B2C selling concepts, customer analysis and relationships, and leadership strategies for salesforce management.

Concentration Outcomes:

• Develop a global marketing strategy for a product.
• Design a mass advertising campaign strategy.
• Evaluate the key differences between international and domestic sales.
• Evaluate cross-cultural consumer analysis.

Gain foundational knowledge of construction methods with skills in plan reading, project management, delivery methods, methods and materials, cost estimating, and more.

• Evaluate various stages of and key requirements for successfully managed construction projects.
• Gain knowledge, skills, and insights required for the successful management of construction projects including in the areas of construction delivery methods, contract types, and construction project management.
• Apply management and leadership theories to construction projects.
• Analyze risks of construction projects.
• Assess the key construction materials and methods used in the construction projects.
• Develop construction project schedules and prepare accurate cost estimates.

Study successful online marketing and advertising management while gaining skills in social media, market analysis, and more.

• Recommend a business solution based upon data analysis an interpretation.
• Develop a Digital Marketing strategy for a global environment.
• Apply the concepts of Social Network Marketing in the development of B2B (Business to Business) and B2C. (Business to Consumer) in a Social Network marketing strategy in a global environment.

Learn how to apply financial concepts to a variety of corporate functions with skills in financial-statement analysis, cash-flow analysis, and more.

• Examine the financial performance of a company using its financial statements.

Concentrate your degree in a fast-growing field. Develop innovations used to enhance and automate the delivery of financial services.

• Develop and apply fintech as part of a business's strategic plan.
• Examine the impact laws and regulations have on the fintech industry.
• Explore the benefits of the Blockchain from a macro perspective.

Gain a thorough understanding of advertising, promotion, PR, consumer behavior, international marketing, marketing research, and more.

• Discuss the significance of supply chain management in a global organization.
• Evaluate a firm's marketing opportunities.
• Create a comprehensive sales plan.

Take on advanced roles in the hospitality industry while focusing on sustainability, with insights into climate change, social responsibility, customer service excellence, ecological matters and more.

Prepare for leadership roles in human resource management while learning employment practices, personnel administration, employee training, benefits, and more.

• Examine the factors that influence employee recruitment and retention.
• Identify considerations to be used in designing effective training programs.
• Evaluate employment-related laws organizations must comply with when hiring.

Gain foundational skills in project management, IT consulting, and management of information systems and technological innovation.

• Illustrate how businesses use information systems and information technology (IS/IT) within organizations for operations, to solve problems, and to gain a competitive advantage.

Study the fundamentals of effective teamwork, improve your communication skills, and evaluate information management, planning, and control in business environments.

• Apply conflict management, negotiation, and leadership principles to issues of professional practice.
• Recommend a business solution based upon data analysis and interpretation.
• Assess the role of a business process within the strategic structure of an organization.

Gain practical skills in negotiating and monitoring agreements and contracts, working remotely, analyzing proposals and financial reports, and evaluating suppliers of goods and services.

• Examine supply chain management and global supply chain concepts supportive of operations management efforts.

Prepare for leadership roles in project management with skills in strategic project selection and initiation, planning, project execution, monitoring and control, and more.

• Analyze the Project Management Framework to identify relationships between process groups and knowledge management areas.

Study real estate transactions while building foundational knowledge in negotiation, loan and financing options, and real estate laws that impact the public.

• Prepare a competitive market analysis for a real estate client.
• Analyze the legal and ethical considerations in a real estate transaction.
• Synthesize the real estate sales process and compliance issues.

Develop skills in sports analytics, learn how to manage sports programs, discover sports sponsorships and sales, and more.

• Describe the significant impact that the sport and recreation industry has on our society and culture.
• Formulate plans for the management of sport and recreation programs.
• Determine financial sustainability of sport and recreation programs via application of economic and budgeting techniques.

Learn the logistics behind supply chain management while gaining skills in procurement, maintenance, transportation of materials, and more.

• Evaluate methods to measure and manage logistics performance.

Explore the concepts of a healthy financial portfolio while developing skills in communication and sales that prepare you to plan and manage investments.

• Explain the key concepts of personal financial statements and the impact of tax implications.
• Formulate an insurance coverage strategy.
• Evaluate investment options such as mutual funds, stocks and bonds.

Reach Your Career Goals Sooner

Accelerated mba option.

Interested in continuing on to pursue a graduate degree? Earning a minimum course grade in select bachelor's degree courses can gain you entry into a shortened version of Purdue Global's MBA .

Complete both your bachelor's degree and master's degree in less time and at a lower cost than completing both programs separately. For details and eligibility requirements, speak to an Advisor.

Accelerate Your Career with ExcelTrack®

Forget what you know about earning a degree. ExcelTrack® is personalized learning that gives you more control over your education, getting you to the same degree faster and for less money.

Earn Credit for Prior Coursework and Experience

The average bachelor's degree student pays $15k and takes 2.3 years to complete their degree.

Ways to Save on Time and Tuition

Purdue Global works with students to find ways to reduce costs and make education more accessible. Contact us to learn about opportunities to save on your educational costs.

Earn credit for prior coursework completed at eligible institutions, including community colleges.

You could earn undergraduate credit for your life and professional career experiences.

Learn about federal financial aid programs available for many of our degree programs.

Learn about federal and state grants and loan programs that may be available.

Employees of Purdue Global partner organizations may be eligible for special tuition reductions .

Undergraduate tuition savings for military include a 55% reduction per credit for current servicemembers and 38% per credit for veterans.

Earn credit for your military training . The average Purdue Global military student is awarded 54% of the credits needed for an associate's and 45% of the credits needed for a bachelor's.

International students living outside of the United States are eligible for a 25% international student tuition reduction .

View the total cost of attendance for your program.

Calculate Your Time and Cost

Estimate how much your prior learning credits can reduce your tuition and time to graduation.

Case Study: Ivy Tech Community College Grad

An Ivy Tech associate’s degree can take you further than you think . See how one student got on the fastest path to a bachelor’s degree that employers respect.

An Ivy Tech graduate was looking for an affordable way to earn their bachelor’s degree, and found that transferring to Purdue Global with their associate’s degree would save them significant time and money. After contacting a Purdue Global Advisor, they learned they could transfer 94 of the required 180 credits while receiving the Indiana resident tuition rate, saving them more than $26,000.

Estimated Remaining Classes: 16

Estimated Remaining Terms to Graduation: 8

*Based on IN resident tuition rate of $280 per quarter credit hour. See Notes and Conditions below for important information.

Free Credit Evaluation

To learn how close you may be to a degree by applying transfer, work, and experiential credit, contact a Purdue Global Admissions Advisor for a free evaluation.

• Request Evaluation

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of business and financial occupations in the U.S. is projected to grow 7% between 2021 and 2031, and a bachelor’s degree is considered required entry-level education for most of these occupations.

Whether you are preparing for entry-level management positions or want to advance in your current career, a bachelor's degree in business administration may help you qualify for opportunities in a variety of fields including marketing, finance, human resources, and accounting.

Average Salary

In Your State

General labor market and salary data are provided by Lightcast and may not represent the outcomes experienced by Purdue Global graduates in these programs. Purdue Global graduates in these programs may earn salaries substantially different or less than the amounts listed above. Salary and employment outcomes vary by geographic area, previous work experience, education, and opportunities for employment that are outside of Purdue Global's control.

Purdue Global does not guarantee employment placement, salary level, or career advancement.

Take 3 Weeks to Get to Know Us

Not sure if Purdue Global is right for you? Experience a Purdue Global undergraduate program for an introductory 3-week period.

There’s no financial obligation and no cost to apply.

That’s the Purdue Global Commitment.

Download the Program Brochure

Download our brochure to learn more about the Online Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and the benefits of earning your degree at Purdue Global.

Prepare yourself for success in today's competitive business environment.

Why Choose a Bachelor's in Business Administration

Consider these additional resources on the value of an undergraduate degree in business, and some potential career pathways with a BSBA.

A degree in business administration can set you up for professional growth in a wide range of career paths.

Read up on career options with a BS in Business Administration, including required skills and typical responsibilities.

If your goal is to work in marketing, an undergraduate degree in business can provide an excellent foundation.

Get to Know Our Faculty

Purdue Global faculty members are real-world practitioners who bring knowledge gained through the powerful combination of higher learning and industry experience.

Faculty members who have advanced degrees

Faculty members who hold a doctorate

Faculty publications in 2022–2023

Professional development hours logged by faculty in 2022–2023

Statistics include all Purdue Global faculty members and are not school- or program-specific calculations. Source: Purdue Global Office of Reporting and Analysis, July 2023. 2022–2023 academic year.

Your Path to Success Begins Here

Connect with an Advisor to explore program requirements, curriculum, credit for prior learning process, and financial aid options.

* Estimated Graduation Date and Average Completion: Estimated graduation date is based on the assumption that you will enroll in time to begin classes on the next upcoming start date, will remain enrolled for each consecutive term, and will maintain satisfactory academic standing in each term to progress toward completion of your program. Completion time is based on a full-time schedule. Programs will take longer for part-time students to complete.

Degree Completion Time and Average Net Price: Cost and completion times for individual programs may vary. Average institutional completion time for Purdue Global degree students who graduated in the 2022–2023 academic year. Average net price reflects all institutional-level charges for all graduates, including those who transferred to Purdue Global, after application of scholarships, tuition reductions, grants (including federal Pell grants for undergraduate students), employer tuition assistance, and/or military tuition assistance. Source: Purdue Global Office of Reporting and Analysis, July 2023.

Employment and Career Advancement: Purdue Global does not guarantee employment placement or career advancement. Actual outcomes vary by geographic area, previous work experience, and opportunities for employment. Certain accounting and finance positions may require further certification and/or licensing by individual states. This program was not designed to meet any specific state’s requirements for licensure or certification. Refer to the State Licensure and Certifications page for state-specific licensure information.

Job Growth: Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook , Business and Financial Occupations, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/home.htm . National long-term projections may not reflect local and/or short-term economic or job conditions, and do not guarantee actual job growth. Certain accounting positions may require further certification and/or licensing by individual states.

Tuition Case Study: Source: Purdue Global Office of the Registrar, September 2023. Totals paid to Purdue Global for the degree do not include amounts paid to other institutions. Individual experiences and savings will vary. Purdue Global does not guarantee transferability of credit. See the University Catalog for the Prior Learning policy.

25 Best Online Business Degree Programs [2024 Guide]

Explore online business degree programs. Compare schools and see what you could be doing after graduation.

You can give your career a strong start by earning an online business degree. Through online studies, you can learn the skills and information that you’ll need for succeeding in offices and other business settings.

Editorial Listing ShortCode:

With a degree in hand, you’ll be a good candidate for many business positions.

Universities Offering Online Business Degree Programs

Methodology: The following school list is in alphabetical order. To be included, a college or university must be regionally accredited and offer degree programs online or in a hybrid format.

1. Arizona State University

Arizona State University has been ranked first for innovation by U.S. News and World Report for five years in a row. ASU is considered a public “metropolitan” research university consisting of five campuses spread across Phoenix. The school was founded in 1885. ASU’s more than 50,000 enrolled students can study in bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs.

• BA in Business – Business Administration

Arizona State University is accredited by the Higher Learning Committee.

2. Ball State University

Founded in 1918, Ball State University is a public research university located in Muncie, Indiana. It is classified as one of the R2 Doctoral Universities for high research activity. Ball State boasts a total enrollment of 22,513. In addition to nearly 190 undergraduate majors, Ball State students can choose from more than 140 masters and doctoral programs.

• BS in Business Administration

BSU  is accredited by Higher Learning Commission.

3. DePaul University

DePaul University of Chicago, Illinois, is a private Catholic research university founded by the Vincentians in 1898. DePaul has a student enrollment of 22,437. The university notably operates using a quarter system instead of a semester system. Bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs spanning 10 schools are offered.

• BA in Professional Studies – Business Administration

DePaul University  is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.

4. Drexel University

Founded in 1891, Drexel University is a private research university based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvanian. Today’s student population at Drexel stands at 24,190.

The school is widely known for its unique cooperative education program that makes paid, real-world experience a part of the educational process. Drexel undergraduate students can choose to pursue more than 70 undergraduate programs. Students seeking master’s and doctoral programs have more than 100 options.

• Bachelor of Business Administration
• BS in Business Administration – General Business
• BS in Business Administration – Marketing

Drexel University is regionally accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

5. East Carolina University

East Carolina University is a public research university in Greenville, North Carolina, dating back to 1907. ECU’s current student population of nearly 30,000 students can pursue degrees through nine undergraduate colleges, a graduate school, and four professional schools. ECU offers 102 bachelor’s programs, 76 master’s programs, and 16 doctoral programs in total.

• BSBA in General Business
• BSBA in Management
• BSBA in Management Information Systems
• BSBA in Marketing
• BSBA in Operations and Supply Chain Management

East Carolina University  is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

6. Florida International University

Florida International University in University Park, Florida, has grown to become the largest university in the Miami area since being established in 1985. FIU is distinguished among the R1 Doctoral Universities for very high research activity. It is a space-grant university with a student enrollment of 58,787. Students can pursue bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees.

• BBA in Finance
• BBA in Human Resource Management
• BBA in International Business
• BBA in Logistics and Supply Chain Management
• BBA in Management
• BBA in Marketing

Florida International University  is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.

7. Franklin University

Franklin University offers a BS in Business Administration that can be earned 100% online. Classes are 6 or 12 weeks long and taught by instructors with real-world business experience. The program offers opportunities to participate in simulation experiences to develop problem-solving skills. To graduate, students must complete a capstone project.

Franklin University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.

8. Indiana University East

Located in Richmond, Indiana University East is a regional campus of Indiana University. It was founded in 1971. Current student enrollment at IU East stands at 3,490. IU is divided into seven schools offering more than 60 options for bachelor’s and master’s degrees.

IU East is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.

9. Loyola University – New Orleans

Loyola University New Orleans is a private Jesuit university in New Orleans, Louisiana, with a student enrollment topping 3,759. Founded in 1904, Loyola has been named one of the best Southern regional universities offering masters and undergraduate degrees by U.S. News & World Report. Nearly all of the classes offered across Loyola’s five colleges are taught by full-time faculty. Bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs are offered.

Loyola University New Orleans  is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.

10. Mercer University

Founded in 1833, Mercer University is a private university with a main campus in Macon, Georgia. U.S. News and World Report have consistently ranked Mercer as one of the best private colleges in Georgia for 25 years. The school has also earned praise from the Carnegie Foundation. Mercer is a member of the Georgia Research Alliance. The university’s more than 8,677 students can pursue bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees.

• BBA in Accounting
• BBA in General Business

Mercer University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.

11. Oklahoma State University

Oklahoma State University offers hundreds of options for bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees across seven colleges for its more than 25,295 enrolled students. OSU’s main campus is located in Stillwater, Oklahoma. The university is designated as a school with high research activity by the Carnegie Foundation.

Oklahoma State University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.

12. Oregon State University

Oregon State University is a public research university offering more than 200 options for bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees. It is Oregon’s largest university. Founded in 1868, OSU boasts a current enrollment of 31,719. The school’s main campus is in Corvallis, Oregon. Notably, OSU has the distinction of being one of only four schools in the nation categorized as sea-grant, space-grant, and sun-grant institutions.

• BA in Business Administration – Digital Marketing
• BA in Business Administration – Family Business
• BA in Business Administration – General Business
• BA in Business Administration – Hospitality Management
• BA in Business Administration – Marketing
• BA in Business Administration – Retail Management
• BA in Business Administration – Supply Chain and Logistics Management
• BS in Business Administration – Digital Marketing
• BS in Business Administration – Family Business
• BS in Business Administration – Hospitality Management
• BS in Business Administration – Retail Management
• BS in Business Administration – Supply Chain and Logistics Management

Oregon State University  is regionally accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities.

13. Pace University

The main campus of Pace University is a staple of New York City’s academic scene. Established in 1906, Pace currently enrolls approximately 13,000 students throughout its bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs. Pace’s nine schools of study are shared between undergraduate and graduate studies. Pace’s Michael Schimmel Center for the Arts was the filming location for “Inside the Actors Studio” hosted by James Lipton.

• BBA in Business Studies
• BBA in Business Studies – Accounting and Internal Auditing
• BBA in Business Studies – Marketing and Management

Pace University is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools.

14. Saint Joseph’s University

Saint Joseph’s University is a private Jesuit university based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1851, the school has a current student enrollment of just over 8,000. It is one of 28 members in the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities. SJU students can pursue more than 60 undergraduate majors, 53 graduate programs, and multiple options for doctoral pursuits. SJU is comprised of 17 centers and institutes.

Saint Joseph’s University is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools.

15. San Diego State University

San Diego State University is a public research university situated in San Diego, California. SDSU was founded in 1897. According to Forbes, San Diego State University consistently ranks in the top 500 universities in the world. The school’s more than 35,000 enrolled students can pursue bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees.

San Diego State  is accredited by WASC Senior College and University Commission.

16. Temple University

Temple University is a public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The school was founded in 1884. Temple is among the world’s largest providers of professional education. Its more than 4,600 students can pursue bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in a wide range of majors. Temple’s notable alumni list includes Bob Saget, Kunal Nayyar, Tamron Hall, and Mark Levin.

• Bachelor’s in Business Administration

Temple University  is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

17. University of Alabama

The University of Alabama is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, that was established in 1820. It is the oldest and largest public university in Alabama. Nearly 40,000 students pursue bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees at AU. The list of notable AU alumni includes Harper Lee, Joe Namath, and Joe Scarborough.

• BS in Commerce and Business Administration

The University of Alabama is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.

18. University of Arkansas

The University of Arkansas is a public research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Founded in 1871, UArk has a student population of 27,778. Students can pursue bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees across 200 academic programs offered through 10 primary colleges.

• BS in Business Administration-Accounting
• BS in Business Administration – Supply Chain Management

The  U of A is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.

19. University of Arizona

The University of Arizona is a public research university in Tucson, Arizona, that was founded in 1885. Arizona’s more than 45,918 students can pursue bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arizona as a high-level research institution. The university has close alliances with NASA and other research institutions.

The  University of Arizona  is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.

20. University of Florida

The University of Florida is a land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located in Gainesville, Florida. Founded in 1853, UF is considered one of the R1 Doctoral Universities for very high research activity. The school’s more than 56,000 students can pursue bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees encompassing the arts and sciences.

• BABA in Anthropology
• BABA in Business and Economic Geography
• BABA in Educational Studies
• BABA in General Studies
• BABA in Geology
• BABA in Mass Communication
• BABA in Sociology
• BABA in Sport Management
• BABA in Travel and Tourism Management

The  University of Florida  is regionally accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

21. University of Illinois – Chicago

The University of Illinois at Chicago is a public research university located in Chicago, Illinois, with a student enrollment of 33,390. Founded in 1982, UIC offers 86 bachelor’s, 111 master’s, and 66 doctoral programs across 16 colleges. It is considered one of the RI Doctoral Universities due to its very high research activity.

The  University of Illinois at Chicago  is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.

22. University of Missouri

The University of Missouri is a public research university located in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri’s largest university. Enrollment at this flagship institution of the University of Missouri System stands at 30,046. Mizzou was founded in 1839. More than 300 degree programs in 13 academic divisions are available for bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs.

The University of Missouri is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.

23. University of New Mexico

The University of New Mexico is a public research university located in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, UNM offers bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degree programs today. It is one of the R1 Doctoral Universities due to its very high research activity. Student enrollment at UNM stands at more than 26,000.

• Bachelor’s of Business Administration

UNM is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission

24. University of South Dakota

The University of South Dakota is a public research university located in Vermillion, South Dakota. The school was established in 1862. Its current student enrollment stands at nearly 10,000 students. USD’s alumni list consists of 17 Truman Scholars, 12 Rhodes Scholars, and one Nobel Laureate. The school offers bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees.

The University of South Dakota is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.

25. Wilkes University

Wilkes University is a private university in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. More than 5,000 students are enrolled in the school. Undergraduate and graduate studies for bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees are offered across seven schools. Many programs of study at this respected research institution are offered fully or partially online.

• Bachelor of Business Administration (Accelerated)

Wilkes University  is an accredited member of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools.

Online Business Degrees

Click on the business major you’re interested in to jump to that section of the guide:

Business Administration

Human resources, organizational leadership.

Each of these degrees can help prepare you for rewarding but different careers in the business world.

There’s no doubt about it: Organizations need clear, organized bookkeeping. You can meet that need with a degree in accounting. As an accounting professional, you should be capable of tracking income and spending, maintaining records, handling payroll, and preparing taxes.

Accounting professionals are often employed by organizations. You could be the sole accountant for a small company or one member of an accounting or finance team at a larger corporation. Other accountants work for firms that serve multiple organizations or individuals.

As an accountant, you could also consider self-employment by offering your services to various clients. Finally, you could become a government tax professional or auditor.

To get ready for these careers, you’ll need to take classes on financial, cost, and managerial accounting. There may be courses like Business Math, Information Systems for Accounting Practice, and Local and Federal Taxation. In addition, you may learn about auditing practice. You may have the option to select a degree concentration, such as public accounting or tax accounting.

After getting a bachelor’s degree in accounting, you could consider advancing to a master’s program in accounting. With enough college hours in this discipline, you can become eligible to apply for status as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA).

If you know that a business career is in your future, but you aren’t sure which discipline is best for you, then consider a generalist degree in business administration. The courses you take can heighten your understanding of many different aspects of the business world. As a result, you can become a versatile employee.

Your career options after graduation will be varied. You might be able to work as an office administrator, serve on a human resources team, or get involved with an organization’s financial matters. This degree can also prepare you to take on a management role in a retail or office setting.

Business administration is one of the best business degrees due to the broad mix of classes that can contribute to your preparedness for these many different roles. You can learn about laws and regulations that affect businesses, ethics for professionals, and the economic principles that guide business activity. Also, you can receive introductions to finance, human resources, marketing, leadership, and other essential business disciplines.

During your bachelor’s degree program, you may discover that you have a particular interest in a certain business sphere, such as public relations, marketing, or finance. Consider building on your bachelor’s studies with a master’s in that particular area, or even check out some online DBA programs .

While accounting professionals primarily keep track of transactions that have already occurred, finance professionals use financial data to inform decisions for the future. If you have a head for numbers and data analysis, then finance may be a promising career option for you.

Finance students may have goals in mind, like working for a corporation, becoming a banker, getting a government job, or helping individuals take care of their money. Potential career paths include being a budget analyst, a financial examiner, a stock trader, a personal financial advisor, or a credit analyst.

Students in this field spend a lot of time working with numbers and figures. That means that you’ll probably take classes in statistics and economics. In addition, common course topics include finance law, ethics for working with others’ money, accounting, investing, and corporate finance.

You may also study financial markets and how they are connected across international borders. The classes can help equip you with the financial leadership skills needed for influential roles as a manager or another decision-maker. To continue your studies, you could consider getting a master’s degree in finance. You should also have a good foundation for a degree in accounting or economics.

It may be worth noting that a growing number of universities offer finance degree online programs for students interested in this option.

If your interest in business leans more toward the people side of things that the numbers side, then you might find great success in the world of human resources. HR professionals help businesses prosper by bringing in, training, and retaining top talent.

An undergraduate program can prepare you to take positions as a human resources specialist in a business, a nonprofit, a medical system, or an educational institution. After gaining experience, you may qualify to move into a human resources management position.

You may want to consider a particular aspect of HR, such as being a training and development specialist or working in a company’s compensation and benefits department. In college, you can study how to recruit talented employees for your organization and how to sort through applicants to identify the best ones.

You can also discuss how to train new hires and make sure that all employees are continually improving their skills. Other classes may address offering compensation packages and work environments that motivate good employees to stick around. You may also learn about mediating workplace or labor union disputes.

After graduation, getting a master’s degree in human resources may increase your chances of being promoted to a management position in this field. If you are interested in specializing even further within the profession of human resources, a growing number of universities offer both on-campus and online masters in training and development programs.

Your natural leadership skills can grow and develop during a bachelor’s degree program in management. Through your courses, you can learn essential skills for helping employees, teams, and organizations to be their very best.

Management professionals are needed throughout the business world. Examples of job titles include purchasing manager, sales manager, and human resources manager. You also could be the manager of a local establishment, like a retail store or a restaurant.

Keep in mind that you may have to start with entry-level positions but can work toward advancement as you gain experience. You’ll need to learn about many aspects of business before graduating with your management degree. These include human resources, statistics, global markets, supply chains, business technology, marketing, budgeting, and analytics.

To help you become a strong leader, you should also explore decision-making, team dynamics, project management, and organizational structure.For grad school, a master’s in management is, of course, a smart path to consider. You could also think about what area of management most interests you and further your education by studying that discipline.

For example, if your goal is to move into a marketing management role, then it would make sense to get your master’s degree in marketing.

What does it take to get customers to notice your organization and become loyal to it? You can learn that and more in a marketing program. The field of marketing addresses branding, advertising, promotions, and other public-awareness strategies.

As a marketing student, you may be getting ready for a career as an advertising sales representative, a marketing manager, or a promotions director. It can take time to get a leadership role in these areas, but a bachelor’s degree can be a good first step. Online marketing is a growing field, so you could become a social media director.

You can get set for these careers with courses that cover the different types of communication used by marketers, such as advertisements. In your studies, you can learn to provide messages that help the public connect with your brand and feel good about your products.

Other courses may cover theories of consumer behavior and teach you to gather market research before developing new products or services. You may also spend some time learning about the principles of effective visual design and written communication.

Your bachelor’s degree in marketing can help prepare you for a master’s program in advertising, marketing, social media, digital communication, or public relations.

Getting a degree in organizational leadership can help prepare you to rise to the top of an organization. With this degree, you can become equipped to lead groups through everyday decisions and times of great change.

Organizational leaders often take management positions. You could exercise your leadership skills as a project manager or a production manager. Alternatively, you could head up sales teams or office staff. Especially if you gain some management experience of your own first, you could become a management consultant who helps other organizations improve their leadership structures.

Your degree program is likely to include some psychology courses so that you can become more knowledgeable about how people think and how teams interact with one another. You may also study leadership skills for particular circumstances, such as managing interpersonal conflict, helping organizations go through transitions, and casting a vision for future growth and development.

To ensure that you are leading in the best way possible, you will need to think about legal regulations, ethics, and effective communication. You could consider getting your master’s degree in management or leadership. To put your organizational leadership skills to work in a medical setting, you might pursue a healthcare administration master’s degree.

Courses for an Online Business Administration Degree

The field of business administration encompasses accounting, finance, human resources, management, marketing, and more.

During your studies, you can learn at least a bit about each of these areas. You can also gain foundational skills related to business math, communications, technology, law, ethics, and interpersonal relationships.

• Economics: Studying microeconomics and macroeconomics can help you understand how economic factors influence the business climate.
• Ethics and Law for Businesses: In this class, you can discuss the regulations that govern business practices and consider your ethical framework for professional choices.
• Global Business: You can talk about how markets across the world relate to one another and how that can affect your business practices.
• Information Systems for Business: This course can introduce you to data-management programs and teach you how to use them in the workplace.
• Management in Organizations: You can learn how to oversee teams, encourage productivity, and lead groups through times of transition.

Your program may include opportunities to complete internships or other hands-on experiences. These can give you a good introduction to what it is like in the business world and allow you to try out the skills you’ve been working on.

Jobs in Business Administration

Not surprisingly, a degree in business prepares most people to work in the business world. With this degree, you might get a job in an office building, a store, or a financial institution.

All types of organizations, from large corporations to local businesses to nonprofit groups, need the guidance and expertise of trained business professionals. If you want to focus your attention on working for a midsize or large company, your business knowledge may make you a good candidate for a job like an office administrator or administrative services manager.

Working in a specific department, you might be a human resources specialist, an accountant, a social media coordinator, a marketing specialist, or a budget analyst. You could also look for positions in a company’s public relations, logistics, or purchasing department.

You could choose to work in the financial sector as a banker, an analyst, or an insurance underwriter. Your work could determine whether an applicant qualifies for a credit card or receives a loan. Trading stocks and bonds could be another career path that’s in your future.

Some business majors end up pursuing self-employment. You could work as an independent account who serves a variety of clients, a personal financial planner, or a management consultant. Opening a small business in your community is another viable option.

Business Administration Degree Salary

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of business positions is expected to grow over the coming years. For the next ten years, jobs in the business and finance sector are expected to rise by about 5%. Currently, the average annual salary for business and finance professionals is $72,250 per year.

The following table includes additional salary information for specific jobs.

The above salary averages are not a guarantee of future earnings. Wages can vary greatly in different areas of the country, and education level and the amount of experience you have will play a large role in how much you will be paid as well.

Professional Organizations for Those with a Degree in Business Administration

You can gain valuable knowledge and sharpen your skills by joining an organization for businesspeople. These groups connect professionals from similar occupations through conferences, publications, online resources, and other valuable tools.

Joining a group can give you access to these benefits and help you network with others in your field.

• American Management Association : AMA provides online and in-person training modules and certificate programs for business professionals. Becoming a member gives you discounts on these resources as well as access to informative publications.
• Entrepreneurs’ Organization : EO helps entrepreneurs enhance their business development by providing access to local and international events. To help you grow between in-person sessions, there are also online classes and podcasts available.
• Future Business Leaders of America-Phi Beta Lambda : FBLA-PBL aims to prepare middle school and high school students for future careers in business. Those outside of the target demographic, such as business professionals, can join the Professional Division to support student chapters, receive publications, and attend conferences.
• United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship : USASBE serves entrepreneurs and those who teach and perform research on topics of interest to small business owners. By joining, you’ll also become a member of International Council for Small Business, and you’ll get to enjoy the group’s publications and the USASBE Video Library.
• American Business Women’s Association : Women in the business world can join ABWA for networking and industry resources. You may also get the chance to participate in events held by a local chapter.

You may be able to join a few different groups at a student rate. Trying out membership while you’re in school can give you a better idea of which groups you want to pay full-price for after graduation.

Certification and Licensure Following a Business Degree

To increase your competitive edge when looking for business jobs, you may want to look into industry certification. Pursuing extra credentials shows that you’re a committed learner who strives to better yourself and invest in your career.

The certification program you choose to pursue will depend on your area of specialty. For example, human resources professionals may want to consider one of the programs from HR Certification Institute (HRCI). If you’re in marketing, look into certification from the American Marketing Association.

Six Sigma is a program that can benefit business professionals from many disciplines. Through online and in-person classes, you can learn to improve your business through careful data analysis. Over time, you can progress through multiple levels of this certification program.

Ensuring You Get an Accredited Online Business Degree

It’s important to get your business degree from an accredited school. The U.S. has six organizations that can grant regional accreditation to colleges.

Accreditation indicates that schools behave in responsible ways and educate their students well. If you don’t choose a regionally accredited school, you can’t count on getting a good education. Fortunately, both traditional and online business schools can receive regional accreditation.

Business colleges are also eligible to apply for programmatic accreditation from industry organizations.

• Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business International (AACSB) : To become accredited by AACSB, business schools must demonstrate their proficiency in 15 different areas. By aligning with an additional six standards, schools can also receive accreditation for their accounting programs.
• Accreditation Council for Collegiate Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP) : More than 1,000 business programs demonstrated their adherence to ACBSP standards. A select few have received separate accreditation for their accounting programs as well.

You may want to look for a school with this type of approval, so you’ll know that you’re gaining the skills that employers currently need.

Financial Aid for Online Business Degrees

Getting a college education is a valuable endeavor, but it comes at a price. You may need financial aid to help you afford the tuition.

Applying for federal assistance is usually the first step that students should take. To get started, you’ll need to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) . You may qualify for grants or loans. Work-study may be another option.

In addition to applying with the federal government, you should see what’s available from your state. Although government funding is useful, it’s not always enough to make ends meet. You may need to turn to private sources for additional help.

You could borrow money through private loans; just keep in mind that the interest rate will probably be higher than with a government loan. Scholarships are another important source of funding. You could look into national scholarship programs or explore your local area for community groups that help with tuition.

As a business student, it’s smart to look into scholarship programs that are geared toward this field.

• Abbott and Fenner Scholarship : This $1,000 award from the consulting firm Abbott and Fenner is available to high school upperclassmen and current college students. Applicants must submit an essay.
• Virtual Business Scholarship : Knowledge Matters distributes around $5,000 in scholarships through an online competition for high schoolers. To participate, your school must have an All-Access Virtual Business license.
• Business, Economics, and Public Policy Scholarships : The National Society of High School Scholars provides scholarships of up to $1,000 for students who plan to major in public policy, business, or finance. You can apply during your senior year of high school.
• Jane M. Klausman Women in Business Scholarship : Female business students can apply for this scholarship from Zonta International. Most awards are $2,000, but some international students can receive $8,000 prizes.

Many scholarship programs award funds to the students they feel are the most qualified. Some use financial need to determine who receives their awards.

Questions Related to Earning an Online Business Degree

Here are our answers to a few more questions you might have.

Can You Earn a Business Degree Online?

Yes, you can earn a business degree online. Many universities offer business degrees through online courses. You can get a general business administration bachelor’s degree or pursue a specialty like finance, global business, project management, healthcare administration, entrepreneurship, or organizational leadership.

When looking for online business degree programs, be sure to select a school that holds regional accreditation.

Can You Get a Business Degree Online Fast?

Yes, you can get a business degree online fast. A traditional bachelor’s degree takes about four years to earn, but you can speed up the process by enrolling in a school with an accelerated schedule.

Through fast-track classes, you may be able to cut a year or more off of your studies. Transferring in college credits can further shorten the program length.

What Is the Best Online College for a Business Degree?

There are many good colleges that offer online degrees in business. Choosing the best one for you requires considering what specialty you want to study and then researching which schools offer that program.

Regional accreditation is a must, and you may also want to look for programmatic accreditation from AACSB or ACBSP.

How Much Does It Cost to Get a Business Degree Online?

According to U.S. News, students pursuing online bachelor’s degrees spend, on average, anywhere from $38,496 to $60,593 on tuition. There may be technology fees and other additional costs as well.

Keep in mind that, compared to an on-campus degree, you may spend less since you won’t need to pay room and board fees.

What Is the Cheapest Online Business Degree?

Finding the college program that makes the smallest dent in your wallet can take some research. For some students, the best tuition rates will be found at in-state schools.

Other students may do better by getting a hefty scholarship for a particular institution. A college that lets you transfer in many previously earned credits can save you a good deal of money as well.

Is an Online Business Degree Worth It?

Yes, an online business degree is worth it for many students. The Bureau of Labor Statistics is projecting 5% job growth in business and financial occupations over the next 10 years. Common careers in this field include fundraiser, training and development specialist, loan officer, accountant, and management analyst.

Getting a college degree takes time and effort, but it’s a smart way to start your business career off on the right foot. Many employers will regard your bachelor’s degree in business as a sign that you’re well-prepared to work for them. With your business education, you can be ready to hold positions of responsibility in offices, stores, banks, and many other establishments.

Jobs in business are expected to increase in number over the next several years, so now is the time to apply to online bachelor’s programs in business administration.

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Online Bachelor's Degree: Business Administration

Business administration, degree at a glance.

• 120 credits
• Transfer up to 90 credits
• All courses available online
• Select hybrid courses available

TUITION RATES

• $324 per credit (in-state)
• $499 per credit (out-of-state)
• $250 per credit (military)
• Other fees may apply

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Strive to increase your earning power in an in-demand field by earning an online business administration degree from University of Maryland Global Campus. This hands-on program may help you build a comprehensive grounding in multiple subject areas, including marketing, accounting, and finance. Learn important career skills from faculty members who bring their experience to the classroom. You’ll also be able to earn your degree on your own time, thanks to our generous transfer credit policy . Take that first step and apply today!

Learn Key Principles of Economics, Business, & Ethics

This 120-credit program may help you understand the ethical considerations, market principles, and management strategies that guide most modern businesses. Build crucial skills in finance, economic reasoning, statistical modeling, and human resource management. In addition, you may work on course projects that have real-world applications and stress the importance of global market forces. This program is a great fit for mid-level professionals looking to advance their careers and guarantee their futures in the growing business world.

Here are a few benefits of this online program: 

• Business administration majors can network with like-minded students by joining one of UMGC’s many relevant student organizations , including the accounting club , entrepreneurship club , or the finance club . 
• We offer competitive tuition rates for Maryland residents, as well as discounts for military servicemembers and their spouses and dependents.
• Our lifetime career services can connect UMGC alumni to job support and services after they graduate—and for the rest of their lives.

See Courses & Program Info

View a complete list of program courses, program-specific and degree-level requirements, and more.

View Business Administration Program Courses

This program requires 120 total credits .

• 33 Required Major Credits: Review the required major courses outlined below or view the recommended course sequence to progress through this program.  
• 41 General Education Credits: Review the options available to fulfill the 41 credits of general education coursework requirements for bachelor's degrees.
• 46 Minor & Elective Credits: Review a list of available academic minors or see the course catalog or Schedule of Classes to help you select elective courses.

Required Major Courses

• Introduction to Business and Management (3 Credits, BMGT 110)
• Principles of Accounting I (3 Credits, ACCT 220)
• Principles of Accounting II (3 Credits, ACCT 221)
• Management and Organization Theory (3 Credits, BMGT 364)
• Organizational Leadership (3 Credits, BMGT 365)
• Marketing Principles (3 Credits, MRKT 310)
• Business Law I (3 Credits, BMGT 380)
• Human Resource Management (3 Credits, HRMN 300)
• Business Finance (3 Credits, FINC 330)
• Business Ethics (3 Credits, BMGT 496)
• Strategic Management (3 Credits, BMGT 495)

Related Required Courses

The following required courses may be applied to general education requirements.

• Principles of Macroeconomics (3 Credits, ECON 201)
• Principles of Microeconomics (3 Credits, ECON 203)
• Information Systems in Organizations (3 Credits, IFSM 300)
• Introduction to Statistics (3 Credits, STAT 200)

Explore the Minor in Business Administration

Not ready to get started on a bachelor’s degree? You can pair a 15-credit minor in business administration with another major at UMGC. You can also explore related topics like accounting, finance, human resource management, law for business, marketing, and small business management and entrepreneurship.

Search Course Catalog

These requirements are for students who enroll in the 2023–2024 academic year . For prior year requirements, visit our catalog archive.

Bachelor’s Degree Requirements

In addition to the specific course requirements outlined on each bachelor’s degree webpage, UMGC maintains certain requirements for all bachelor’s degrees.

Develop Vital Skills with an Online Business Degree

Business degrees remain vital in today’s increasingly global business world. Employers are consistently looking for professionals who have the experience and credentials needed to succeed in the field. In this undergraduate degree program, you can expect to develop crucial skills in data analysis, marketing, business development, problem-solving, decision-making, finance, accounting, and managerial strategy. Our program directors refresh and update the curriculum regularly, with a focus on helping students achieve the following: 

Unlock Your Career Potential

This undergraduate program is designed to help you succeed in almost any modern business setting, including those in the public sector, the private sector, and the non-profit sector. Potential jobs titles in this industry include business analyst, management analyst, general manager, human resources generalist, product manager, and more. 

Practice Real-World Skills in Your Business Administration Courses

Throughout your business administration degree curriculum, your instructors will assign coursework that may help you prioritize real-world skills and experience. In past courses, students have been able to complete the following course projects:

• Analyze major challenges in choosing to do business internationally by writing a paper to develop critical thinking skills and acquire knowledge of international business.
• Create a SWOT analysis to introduce students to the planning process, one of the main functions of management.
• Analyze a strategic plan to show an understanding of how organizations develop and manage strategies to establish, safeguard, and sustain their competitive position.

Explore In-Depth Business Insights

Gain high-quality insight from our faculty and staff and delve deeper into a range of topics, including tips on how to become a better leader, as well as how to drive results in an on-demand economy. Other topics include organizational behavior and analysis and UMGC's suite of graduate business degrees, concentrations, and specializations.

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Robyn M., New Jersey BS in Business Administration

Amandine Y., Manhattan, KS BS in Business Administration

Get answers to questions that current and prospective students are asking about program admission, credibility, student organizations, and more.

What is an online bachelor's degree in business administration?

In this career-focused degree program, students can build a comprehensive, well-rounded base of practical knowledge. In this 120-credit online business degree, you’ll cover topics like the principles of accounting, business law, human resource management, data analysis, managerial strategy, and so much more. Our hands-on online bachelor’s degree in business administration can help you be prepared for a variety of positions in management and operations in for-profit, nonprofit, and public-sector organizations.

How long does it take to get an online bachelor's degree in business administration?

In this degree program, courses are offered year-round. The time it will take you to complete your business administration degree will depend on several factors, including your goals, how many transfer credits you have, your course load each semester (including requirements and electives), and whether you are able to benefit from one or more of our fast paths to credit , including credit for prior learning and credit for military education and training .

How much does an online bachelor's degree in business administration cost?

Tuition rates for the business administration degree from UMGC are very competitive and appear at the top of this page. We offer a low in-state rate for Maryland residents and a reduced tuition rate for military servicemembers and their spouses and dependent children. We also offer scholarships for those who qualify , an interest-free monthly payment plan , and no-cost digital materials in place of most textbooks to help make your education even more affordable.

What background do I need for an online bachelor's degree in business administration?

You do not need any business-related background or experience to apply for and graduate from this program. As long as you meet our undergraduate admission requirements , you can enroll in this program.

Are any certifications needed for an online bachelor's degree in business administration?

You do not need any prior certifications to enroll in or complete this business program.

Our helpful admissions advisors can help you choose an academic program to fit your career goals, estimate your transfer credits, and develop a plan for your education costs that fits your budget. If you’re a current UMGC student, please visit the Help Center .

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30 Best Online Bachelor’s In Business Administration

Find your degree.

Whether you’re wanting to start your own business or climb the corporate ladder, having an undergraduate degree in Business Administration (BA) is well worth it. A Bachelor of Arts (BABA) or Bachelor of Science (BSBA) will greatly expand your career opportunities in areas such as Marketing, supply chain management, international business, information systems, and more. Colleges and universities, recognizing the value of undergraduate business degrees, have developed online programs for working professionals or those who want to complete their degree. 

What Courses Are in an Online Business Administration Degree?

Online BSBA or BABA degrees all require similar classes. A typical program will include general education course requirements in English, history, math, social sciences, etc. You can also expect to take core business courses in such topics as Economics, Finance, communication, Accounting, Project Management and others. You can usually choose from concentration areas in areas of Healthcare Management , General Business, Marketing, Real Estate, or International Business. 

What Careers and Salary Can You Expect With This Degree?

Careers in business are nearly endless, but U.S. News and World Report names the highest paying careers for business undergraduates. Examples of some of the top careers and median salaries include: financial manager ($127,990), business operations manager ($100,930) health services manager ($99,730), financial advisor ($88,890), operations research ($83,390), and accountant ($70,500). 

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates business careers will grow at a faster than average 7% between 2018-2028. Influences on career growth involve global business opportunities, national economic growth, Marketing competition, and consumer confidence is expected to drive the need for those with a bachelor’s degree in business . 

What Are the Best Business Administration Degrees?

We know that you have educational goals that you’re itching to pursue, but you may not know where to start. The editors of Online College Plan utilize a unique ranking methodology based on the following three aspects:

40% Potential Salary After Graduation: Average mid-career salary of school alumni 

30% Institutional Accreditation: Regional and National Accreditation for the 2019-2020 school year 

30% Overall Degree Affordability: Average cost of undergraduate and graduate tuition per school

At Online College Plan , we strive to do our best to guide you and your family toward a fruitful academic career. The pursuit of knowledge is a noble one, and we want to help you reach your goals. Please feel free to visit our dedicated methodology page for a step-by-step breakdown.

Distance learning is nothing new to Penn State University. Since 1892, students have been receiving degrees without ever visiting the campus. The modern Penn State World Campus started online education in 1998 and offers over 150 online degrees and certificates. Included in the school’s online catalog is the Bachelor of Science in business. The degree requires 120 credit hours. 

You can choose from a variety of majors including management and marketing, health services, financial services, entrepreneurship, and accounting. You should expect to take core business courses in Strategic Business Planning, Project Management, Corporate Finance, Basic Management Concepts, among others, and general education courses in the humanities, natural sciences, and the arts. 

U.S. News and World Report names Penn State World Campus in the top ten “Best Online Bachelor’s Programs.” 

In 1997, a group of governors met to create a new education option for their states. What developed was an online, student-centered, affordable school. This is a competency-based curriculum, meaning you move at your own pace, advancing once you demonstrate an understanding of the coursework. The speed at which you go through this program is up to you. In fact, 68% of students graduate within 36 months, a year faster than with traditional programs.  

Western Governor University provides an accredited BS in business with concentrations in health information, IT, business, human resources, accounting, marketing, or healthcare management. Core courses are similar in all specialty areas and you’ll take general education in English, humanities, science, and others as part of the curriculum. 

Admission requires a WGU application, academic transcripts, a readiness assessment, an application for financial aid, and an interview. 

The origins of the American Public University System are rooted in the idea of a retired Marine officer and the development of distance educational opportunities for military personnel deployed worldwide. With reorganization, the American Public University System was formed to broaden the school’s reach to a larger audience. Today, you can enroll in APUS’s online BA in business administration and choose from nine concentrations. 

You’ll receive a solid foundation in business courses in law, finance, economics, accounting, and marketing. The degree requires 120 credit hours and the school has a generous transfer policy. First-time students need to have a high school diploma or GED for admission. Classes at APUS start each month. 

Ranked as one of U.S. News and World Report’s “Most Innovative Schools”, Florida International University has an online BA in business administration with a concentration in management. With this program, you’ll have classes in Information Systems, Strategic Management, Applied MacroEconomics, Marketing, Applications of Quantitative Methods, and more. 

The degree is completely online but you’ll receive individualized support from a success coach throughout your enrollment. Requiring 120 credit hours for completion, you’ll need to first complete pre-core coursework covering Macroeconomics, Statistics, and Business Calculus. 

If you’re an incoming freshman, you’ll need to submit an application and $30 fee, SAT/ACT scores, and a high school transcript for admission. Transfer students will need a minimum of 60 transferable credit hours, submit transcripts, application, and $30 fee. 

There’s more to the University of Florida than nearby beaches and championship Gator football. UF has an online BS or BA in business administration through it’s Warrington Business School. What’s the difference? The BS degree focuses on business subjects only, while the BA is interdisciplinary and lets you choose from eight concentrations in subjects such as sport  management, travel and tourism management, business and economic geography, mass communication, and others. 

You’ll need 120 credit hours for graduation with foundation courses in Marketing, Statistics, Finance, International Business, Real Estate Analysis, and more. Admission runs from mid-August through November 1 and requires an application, SAT/ACT scores, and academic transcripts. Transfer students must have a 2.0 GPA, an associates degree from a Florida school or 60 transferable hours from an accredited school. 

New Jersey’s flagship university in New Brunswick, Rutgers University is the eighth oldest college in the U.S., founded in 1766. Today, the Rutgers University-Camden campus offers an online BA in business administration degree. Requiring 120 credit hours, you’ll be receiving a world-class education 100% online and on your timeline. 

Prerequisites are required that include such courses as Micro and Macroeconomics, Business Statistics, Business Law, and Financial Accounting. You’ll complete general education courses and core business courses (Ethics, Communications, IT and Project Management) before finishing with major and elective coursework. A minimum of 18 credit hours from an accredited institution with a 2.50 GPA is necessary for admission. 

Founded in 1971 by the Rev. Jerry Falwell, Liberty University is one of the best known evangelical liberal arts schools in the country. With 17 schools and colleges, Liberty University offers over 400 online degrees and programs. One online degree is their BS in business administration with 20 wide ranging specialities in areas such as data analytics, general track, human resource management, international business, healthcare management, green and sustainable management, and more. 

The degree requires 120 credit hours for completion and includes general education coursework for a well-rounded experience. Liberty University has frozen tuition at the 2016 rates (through August 1, 2020) and provides online textbooks at no additional cost to you. This is a military friendly school and offers discounts and benefits for qualified service members. U.S. News and World Report recognizes Liberty University as one of it’s “Best Online Bachelor’s Programs.” 

The international reputation of Temple University’s Fox School of Business adds additional prestige to this online BA in business. This program provides six majors and nine minors, including supply chain, business, or human resource management, as well as accounting, marketing and legal studies. There’s an international business administration track available with six concentrations. 

Throughout your undergraduate degree, you’ll have access to the Center for Professional Development which focuses on your personal development, career and industry trends, and impression management. A total of 124 credit hours is needed for graduation, but an accelerated program is available and allows you to earn your degree in three years. 

Admission requirements include a 250-word essay, SAT/ACT scores, and academic transcripts. The admission officer will also look at extracurricular activities. 

If you’re looking for one of the country’s “Best Online Bachelor’s Programs” ( U.S. News and World Report) you may want to explore Colorado State University’s online BS in business management. Your degree will develop decision-making skills, understanding of legal perspectives, knowledge of technology, organizational structure, strategic planning, and more. Be prepared to take general education courses in areas like Principles of Management, Accounting, Information System Design, and others. 

You’ll also develop a capstone project using what you’ve learned and applying that to an actual business situation. This program provides the opportunity to specialize in numerous concentrations to customize your degree to your particular goals. Admission documentation is straightforward and includes academic transcripts, application, etc. You need to be at least 23 years old to apply. 

This school has 1,800 enrolled students, half of whom are receiving online degrees, and the proud motto “Small Campus. Big Degree.” One of those “big degrees” is their online, 120 credit hour, BS in business management. You’ll be receiving the same education as if you were taking classes on campus. 

This program has it all, with classes covering business courses in Operations, Ethics, Strategic and Project Management, Human Resources, Organizational Behavior, Marketing, International Business, and much more. There’s an internship component which provides practical work experience in a business in your home community. You may also want to explore the school’s study abroad program. 

ACT/SAT scores are optional for admission but you will need to provide an application, academic transcripts, and other documents. 

Here’s a U.S. News and World Report top 5 “Best Online Bachelor’s Programs.” Arizona State University’s BA in business administration requires 41 classes for 120 credit hours.

Among the courses you’ll take are Operation and Planning, Organizational Leadership, Operations, Planning,  Macro and Microeconomics, and of course, Accounting. Supply Chain Management, Marketing, Finance, and Business Administration are offered as electives. First year students need an application, ACT/SAT scores, in the top 25% in your high school graduating class, and a 3.0 GPA. Transfer students will need to either be working on, or have completed, an associate’s degree and provide school transcripts. Among the W.P. Carey School of Business faculty is a Nobel Memorial Prize winner in Economics. 

What do late night host David Letterman and Oprah “Significant Other” Stedman Graham have in common? They’re both graduates of Ball State University and you can be, too, without ever visiting the campus. 

Ball State Online has a nationally recognized online Bachelor in Business Administration program ideal for the working student which requires 120 credit hours for completion. You may be able to receive academic credit for your work experience through departmental exams, CLEP (College Level Examination Program), or military service credits. The degree requires core general education and business core courses. 

Business education is nothing new to San Diego State University, having provided courses since 1922. Nearly 100 years later, the Fowler College of Business offers an online BS in business administration completion degree for working adults. The school uses a team faculty approach to teaching to assure online students receive the same quality education as on-campus students. 

You’ll take courses in Accounting, Information Systems, Marketing, and Management in the core business studies. The program is self-paced, in 8-week blocks, and requires 49 credit hours (degree completion depends on you having a minimum of 120 credit hours total.) Each course is offered twice a year. SDSU is a “Best Colleges for Veterans”, “Best Value Schools”, and “Top Public Schools” by U.S. News and World Report. 

A BA in business administration from the Isenberg School of Management has five majors from which to choose in: management, marketing, accounting, finance, and operations and information management. Coursework is broken into general education, Isenberg Core Courses, Non-Business electives, and courses in your selected major. 

The university has awarded business degrees since 1947 and has been recognized as one of the best public business schools in the country. According to the university webpage, you should have at least 27 undergraduate hours from an accredited institution with a 3.0 GPA or better for admission. You may even qualify for one of the Isenberg School of Management scholarships.

You can earn an online BS in business administration degree at the University of Arizona’s Eller College of Management. This program builds a solid business foundation with courses such as Marketing, Communications, Business Ethics, Operations, and Information Systems. There are several business major courses in the areas of real estate, analytics, financial accounting, business decisions and economics.

The University of Arizona approaches program admissions a little differently than other programs. You’ll be admitted into pre-business and take general education and foundational business courses. You’ll need at least a 2.75 GPA, and 42 credit hours of UA courses.The school recommends you stay in contact with your online academic advisor through the pre-business phase to assure you’re on track. 

Oregon State University boasts about their programs and with good reason. U.S. News and World Report’s recognizes OSU in it’s ranking of “Best Online Bachelor’s Program” and of the “Most Innovative Schools.” The college offers both an online BS and BA in business administration to make you “profession-ready.” 

The 180 credit hours curriculum includes 60 hours of upper division classes. You’re able to choose from seven specialities: digital marketing, general business, marketing, supply chain logistics, retail, or hospitality management. While most business programs are geared toward corporate or industry, the seventh choice at OSU is a unique concentration in family business. 

Admission for first year students will require an application, GED diploma, SAT/ACT scores, as well as academic transcripts with at least a 3.0 GPA. Transfer students need a minimum of 24 credit hours as part of the transfer admission process. 

You ever want to be a Cowgirl or Cowboy? You have your chance by enrolling in the online, Oklahoma State University BS in business administration. Mascots aside, this degree will prepare you in general business, management, or marketing. One highlight of the general business major includes an opportunity for 1-3 weeks of study abroad, if you qualify. 

The Management degree offers specialties in sports, nonprofit or human resource management, and business sustainability.  Among information considered for admission are your high school GPA, community involvement, and ACT/SAT scores. Admission is assured if you ranked in the top 33.3% of your high school class and have a 3.0 GPA; or, a 3.0 GPA and 21 ACT/1060 SAT scores. 

Roll Tide! The University of Alabama offers an online BS in commerce and business administration. UA is the first public college in Alabama, founded in 1831, and has a long tradition of education, research, and NCAA athletics (aka Crimson Tide).

Requiring 120 credit hours, this degree through Bama by Distance, will provide you a solid base of general business practices and theories. In addition to general education in the humanities, English and math, the business curriculum includes studies in business strategy, accounting and finance, ethics, leadership, and more. You can choose elective courses in management and marketing. 

Admission requirements to the University of Alabama are straightforward and include a minimum 2.0 GPA, academic transcripts, application, etc. Be sure to check out the scholarships offered through the College of Continuing Studies for undergraduate distance-education students. 

This may be a good option if you want a broad, generalized degree in business. The BA in business administration, with a professional business concentration, is perfect for the working professional wanting to complete their degree or those with an associate’s degree. 

You’ll need at least 66 transfer credits to enter this program. In order to receive the degree, you must have a cumulative 120 credit hours. Courses you’ll take include Finance, Economics, Human Resources, Information Systems, Marketing, and other similar subjects. If you earn a 3.0 GPA or better in the first semester, you may be eligible for the accelerated schedule with academic advisor approval.

You need an associate degree for admission, but you may be considered if you complete 30 semester hours of the school’s general education along with 21 lower division business classes. The degree can be completed in three years.

Here’s another online degree completion BS in business administration through East Carolina University that offers you five concentrations. You can pick from general business, management, management information systems, operations and supply chain management, or marketing. Core business courses highlight Finance, Accounting, Marketing Management, and others. 

If you have an associate degree or at least 45 general education credits from an accredited school, you can be considered for admission. Are you a NC community college graduate? You’re guaranteed admission to ECU through the Pirate Promise program. You need a total of 120 credit hours for graduation. 

U.S. News and World Report ranks ECU in it’s list of “Top Public Schools.” 

While it would be tempting to attend school in Boca Raton and enjoy the beach, it’s not necessary. Florida Atlantic University offers an online BA in business administration completion program which ranks #1 in the Top 10 undergraduate degrees at FAU. 

The College of Business offers four specialty areas in management, accounting, marketing, and hospitality and tourism management. (The hospitality and tourism management concentration is offered in a hybrid format and requires an internship). You’ll be admitted to FAU as a pre-business online student. 

Graduates of Florida Atlantic University include an AT&T CEO, NASA astronaut, former President of Boeing-Japan, and Emmy and Grammy award winners. 

The online bachelor programs from Mizzou Online are recognized by U.S. News and World Report in it’s “Best Online Bachelor’s Programs.” One of those programs is the BS in business administration. With this program you’ll take classes in Finance, Micro and Macroeconomics, Management, Business Law, Marketing, along with a Strategic Management Capstone Project. 

The degree requires 120 credit hours.  Among admission documents are ACT/SAT scores and academic transcripts for first-year students and at least 24 credit hours for transfer students. The university’s Trulaske College of Business has a remarkable 92% graduate placement rate. 

If you have additional questions whether this is the right program for you, a Mizzou Undergraduate Ambassador (available online) is available to advise you. 

If you’re looking for a flexible, online BA in business administration to complete your degree, you may want to consider the University of Illinois-Chicago. The UIC program requires 60 credit hours (plus 60 transfer credits from an accredited institution). This is a cohort program with specific business course sequences in Business Strategy, Operations Management, Managerial Communication, Financial Accounting, and others.

UIC provides online access to library materials and textbooks are available online or as ebooks through vendors. Ranked #3 in U.S. News and World Report’s “Best Online Bachelor’s Programs” UIC is also considered in the list of “Best Colleges for Veterans” and “Top Public Schools.” 

Named for one of the most famous names in Arkansas and the U.S., business world, the University of Arkansas’ Sam M. Walton College of Business is a top tier public business school. You can receive a BS in business administration online with concentrations in general business, accounting, and supply chain management. 

This degree is designed to teach retail and supply chain management, economics, finance, accounting, and other business disciplines. UA supports its online students with innovative support by the Student Liaison Office, Online Student Orientation, and a “readiness quiz” to determine your potential for online success. 

As a graduate, you’ll join such distinguished business alumni as the CEO of Walmart, President of Conde Nast, Founder of Dillard’s Department Store, and the owner of the Dallas Cowboys.

This university developed their online BS in business administration with input and recommendations from industry and business leaders, as well as academic scholars. The result is a program that infuses theory with business world application. 

Requiring 120 credit hours for completion, you’ll take business courses in Human Resource Management, Organizational Leadership, Business Law, Principles in Marketing, Strategic Management, and Business Ethics. The school accepts up to 90 transfer credits from accredited institutions. 

UM-Global Campus was founded to meet the needs of servicemembers and working adults. Admission requirements are straightforward and include submission of an application, academic transcripts, and Federal Financial Aid Application. 

As their website says, Northern Arizona University brings college to you, with an online BS in business administration with six areas of emphasis. You can concentrate in management, logistics and supply chain management, human resource management, global business, entrepreneurship and small business, or marketing. 

You’ll need a total of 120 credit hours in business core courses, liberal arts studies, and your particular concentration. An internship may be required, so be certain to discuss that with your admission advisor.

NAU has been providing online education for over 20 years and has developed specific support for the online student. You’ll have access to 24/7 technical support, library resources, online tutoring, and student mentors. 

The twelfth largest university in Texas, Sam Houston State has the perfect degree if you’re unsure what business you want to enter after graduating. Offered online, this general business BA degree requires 120 credit hours for completion.

Along with the university core curriculum in English, history, humanities, math, and sciences, you’ll take business foundation classes in Accounting, Finance, Business Analysis, Operations and Strategic Management. If you’re a first year student, you’ll submit an application and fee, high school transcript, and ACT/SAT test scores. Transfer students with 12 or more credit hours, can make application and submit academic transcripts.  

Ranked in U.S. News and World Report as one of the best online bachelor programs, the university offers $1,000 scholarships for new online students. Sam Houston State University is a military friendly school. 

Nestled in the hills of North Carolina is Appalachian State University which has been offering quality education since 1899. Now, in the 21st century, Appalachian State offers an online BS in business administration through the College of Management. 

This program is a degree completion program and you’ll need a minimum of 70 transfer credit hours for admission from a NC community college or an AA from an out-of-state community college. Courses required for the BSBA degree include: Principles of Accounting, Legal Environment of Business, Principles of Economic MacroEconomics, and others. 

You can enroll full-time or part-time with this program and it’s estimated you can complete the degree in two years. 

One of your first decisions with Kennesaw State University’s online BA in business administration is choosing which concentration you want. The Coles College of Business offers specialties in information security and assurance, management, or marketing. Regardless of your major, you’ll need to complete 123 credit hours for this degree. 

Over 76% of KSU business graduates were employed after graduation or pursuing graduate degrees. Whether you’re a freshman, transfer, or adult learner, admission will require a $40 application and academic transcripts. Transfers students can transfer up to 30 credit hours. 

Founded in 1963, and a member of the University System of Georgia, KSU offers over 70 online, accredited degree programs. U.S. News and World Report named KSU in it’s “Most Innovative Schools” rankings. 

As this university’s website states, “Get a degree. Stay at home” and that’s exactly how you can get a BA in applied business management degree. This private school has a different approach to course progression for a degree. 

You’ll be required to complete certificate classes in Basic Accounting, Entrepreneurship, Social Media Marketing, and others, which is applied to the 120 credit hours required for the BA. The program also requires general education courses such as English, history, math, etc. 

Additionally, you’ll take 30 credits in electives, an Economics course, and an internship. The end result is you’ll have developed leadership skills, understand marketing, finance, and business analysis basics.  For admission you’ll need ACT/SAT scores, academic transcripts, and most importantly, be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or a close affiliation of the church. 

What courses will I take in business administration?

The average number of credits required for a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration will range from 120-124 credit hours. While the curriculum will differ from school to school, generally the core courses are similar. You can expect to take basic courses in Finance, Accounting, Business Ethics, Marketing, Operations Management, Organizational Leadership, Strategic Planning, Communications, and such. 

Be prepared to take general education courses before launching into your major. English, history, social sciences, fine arts, math, general science (geology, biology, etc.), will probably be part of your curriculum. 

What’s the difference between a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science in Business Administration?

Both degrees focus on business courses, but each has a different curriculum for electives and general education. As the name implies, a Bachelor of Arts will require non-business courses in the humanities. A Bachelor of Science will have more emphasis on math, science, and statistics. 

Either degree is acceptable for a Business Administration degree.

What careers can I pursue with a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science in Business Administration?

Career opportunities are available in a surprising number of fields with substantial job growth potential. Employers for graduates with this degree include everything from small businesses to large corporations, governmental agencies, non-profit organizations, healthcare systems or hospitals, retail stores, and more. 

You can gain skills to become a Financial Analyst, CPA, Global Economist, Marketing Director, Healthcare Administrator, Organizational Leadership, Business Consultant, etc. It will depend on your business interests and opportunities. A BABA is an excellent entry-level education for business and industry. 

Will my associate’s degree in business count toward a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration?

In general, yes. It may depend on the general education and business courses you’ve taken. Most schools will transfer credits from a community college and apply them to your bachelor’s degree. You should check with the admissions office of the school you’re interested in attending to find out what credits will transfer. 

I have an interest in marketing for businesses. Will this degree help me do that?

Marketing is typically included in the core coursework for a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration. Frequently, programs offer major concentrations in areas such as Marketing, chain supply management, and other business-related subjects. 

Do I need a Bachelor’s degree to find a job in business?

Depending on what your career goals are, you may not need an undergraduate degree. However, having a BABA will make you a more attractive hire to employers and can increase your salary potential 17% or more. 

What is accreditation and is it necessary for a Bachelor’s degree in business?

Accreditation, simply put, means an educational program which has been reviewed by program-specific experts and found to meet particular standards. Colleges and universities should hold regional accreditation such as the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), Middle States Commission for Higher Education (MSCHE), etc. 

Additionally, business colleges and schools will hold program-specific accreditation. These are the International Assembly of Collegiate Business Education (IACBE), Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP), and the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). 

As an online student, am I eligible for financial aid?

Yes, if you’ve submitted the  Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and meet the requirements. Schools will often offer special scholarships for distance education students or students in a particular department, but the FAFSA application is generally always needed. Business schools and colleges have generous alumni who fund scholarship programs for business students. One school has a particularly generous group of donors who contributed more than $400,000 for business students. 

I’ve been working in business for several years. Will my experience count?

It’s not unheard of for business programs to take life and work experience into consideration, especially if you’re an adult learner who’s been out of school for a while. Schools may request you take the College Level Examination Program (CLEP) exam to gauge your knowledge on specific subjects. If you have military training, you can sometimes receive credit for that. 

If I have A GED, can I apply for admission to a BABA or BSBA program?

Absolutely. You’ll need to provide the school with documents demonstrating your successful completion of a GED program. 

Online BBA degree

Application Deadline

Cost per credit, online bba degree.

The Online BBA degree from the C. T. Bauer College of Business at the University of Houston is a fully online program available in the following majors: Accounting, Entrepreneurship, Finance, Management, Management Information Systems, Marketing and Supply Chain Management. Our mission is to offer leading-edge, student-centered education that is accessible and affordable, founded on research and grounded in the real world.

Online BBA in Accounting

Online bba in entrepreneurship, online bba in finance, online bba in management, online bba in management information, online bba in marketing, online bba in supply chain management.

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Credential of Leadership, Impact, and Management in Business (CLIMB)

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• Digital Transformation
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• Business in Society
• For Organizations
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Business Strategy

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Key Concepts

Who will benefit, mid-career professionals, general managers, consultants and investors.

What You Earn

Certificate of Completion

Boost your resume with a Certificate of Completion from HBS Online

Earn by: completing this course

Certificate of Specialization

Prove your mastery of strategy

Earn by: completing any three courses within this subject area to earn a Certificate of Specialization

Creating Value for Customers

• An Introduction to Value-Based Strategy
• Sales Success and Willingness to Pay
• Near-Customers

Featured Exercises

Adding value through complements.

• Understanding Complements
• Shifting Value
• Navigating the Frenemy Relationship
• Discerning Complements from Substitutes

Competing with Network Effects

• Understanding Network Effects
• Which Markets Will Tip
• Strategies for Underdogs
• Digital Platforms and Innovation

Creating Value for Talent

• Linking Productivity and Customer Delight
• Competing on Flexibility
• Compensation Policy

Mastering Productivity

• Measuring Productivity
• Economies of Scale
• Teaching and Learning
• Good Management

Implementing Strategy

• Evolving Your Value Proposition
• Connecting Strategy, Activities, and KPIs
• Execution Challenges

How to Formulate a Successful Business Strategy

Our difference, about the professor.

Felix Oberholzer-Gee Business Strategy

Dates & eligibility.

No current course offerings for this selection.

All applicants must be at least 18 years of age, proficient in English, and committed to learning and engaging with fellow participants throughout the course.

Learn about bringing this course to your organization .

Learner Stories

Business Strategy FAQs

What are the learning requirements in order to successfully complete the course, and how are grades assigned.

Participants in Business Strategy are eligible for a Certificate of Completion from Harvard Business School Online.

Participants are expected to fully complete all coursework in a thoughtful and timely manner. This will mean meeting each week’s course module deadlines and fully answering questions posed therein. This helps ensure your cohort proceeds through the course at a similar pace and can take full advantage of social learning opportunities. In addition to module and assignment completion, we expect participation in the social learning elements of the course by offering feedback on others’ reflections and contributing to conversations on the platform. Participants who fail to complete the course requirements will not receive a certificate and will not be eligible to retake the course.

More detailed information on course requirements will be communicated at the start of the course. No grades are assigned for Business Strategy. Participants will either be evaluated as complete or not complete.

What materials will I have access to after completing Business Strategy?

You will have access to the materials in every prior module as you progress through the program. Access to course materials and the course platform ends 60 days after the final deadline in the program.

How should I list my certificate on my resume?

Once you've earned your Certificate of Completion, list it on your resume along with the date of completion:

Harvard Business School Online Certificate in Business Strategy [Cohort Start Month and Year]

List your certificate on your LinkedIn profile under "Education" with the language from the Credential Verification page:

School: Harvard Business School Online Dates Attended: [The year you participated in the program] Degree: Other; Certificate in Business Strategy Field of Study: Leave blank Grade: "Complete" Activities and Societies: Leave blank

Description: Business Strategy is a 6-week, 30-35 hour online certificate program from Harvard Business School. Business Strategy equips professionals with a simplified framework they can immediately apply to create value for customers, employees, and suppliers while maximizing returns and an organization’s competitive edge. Participants learn to evaluate trade-offs and align, prioritize, and formulate strategic initiatives for the greatest business impact.

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CLIMB enables new and experienced leaders to ignite their careers with a combination of vital and forward-looking business skills, self-reflection, and an immersive cohort-based learning experience with a diverse global network.

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Online College Bookstore Business Plan

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The College Cafe

Executive summary executive summary is a brief introduction to your business plan. it describes your business, the problem that it solves, your target market, and financial highlights.">.

The College Cafe is a student-to-student Internet marketplace providing college students with the opportunity to buy, sell and trade college textbooks, participate in auctions, post classified ads, provide teacher evaluations, and buy products for college.  The College Cafe’s target market consists of over 15.8 million college students who spend $200 billion annually.  The College Cafe was founded in July and is presently in its start-up stage.

1.1 Solution

The College Cafe will enable students to buy, sell, and trade used textbooks directly to other students, by-passing the university bookstores.  By selling textbooks to other students, the seller can receive more money than the bookstore will pay and the buyer can pay less than the bookstore charges.  In addition to textbooks, students will be able to sell class notes, old tests, computers, dorm accessories, used CDs, tutoring services or anything students wish to sell via an online student-to-student marketplace.  In addition, the College Cafe will offer other services such as classifieds, teacher evaluations, weblogs (bloggers), specialized content and retail. 

The College Cafe will establish itself as the leading online student-to-student marketplace by combining extensive market-specific expertise with Internet technologies to generate revenue while creating a win-win solution for students.  The College Cafe will achieve market dominance by utilizing extensive domain experience, a local grass roots marketing strategy, an exceptional management team, superior software, and the formation of strategic alliances, memberships and partnerships with companies within the college market.

The U.S. college student market is a growing yet underserved niche market.  The U.S. Department of Education expects the U.S. college student market to grow from 15.8 million students to 17.2 million in the next five years.  According to Harris Interactive college students are expected to spend over $200 billion this year. 

1.3 Opportunity

College students are eager to find ways to get “quick cash” at the end of every semester.  One method college students use is to sell their old textbooks at the end of every semester, however the re-sell market is controlled by the local university bookstore.  Because university bookstores monopolize the market, students receive only a fraction of the value paid for the book, typically 75% or less of the purchase prices.  The bookstores then re-sell the books back to other students, receiving over 125% profit.  The current situation creates a lose-lose situation for students and a win-win situation for bookstores.  Students are looking for convenient, money saving ways to purchase textbooks and to receive more value when re-selling textbooks at the end of each semester.

1.4 Financial & Capital Requirements

According to the opportunities and requirements for The College Cafe described in this business plan, we have determined the following financial projections:

• Generate exceptional revenues by the end of year one.
• Report profits during the 9th month of operation.
• Exceed a 1.5x increase in sales and profits by the end of year three.

The College Cafe will require an initial seed investment as well as later rounds of investment.  The initial seed capital will be used for marketing and customer acquisition, software and website development.

1.5 Objectives

The College Cafe will strive to achieve the following objectives:

• Become the leading Internet student-to-student marketplace
• Attract 500,000 registered users in the first year
• Achieve 50,000 visits per month
• Establish sustainable profitability within the first year

Company Summary company overview ) is an overview of the most important points about your company—your history, management team, location, mission statement and legal structure.">

The College Cafe was founded in July and is presently in its start-up stage.  The College Cafe website has been in operation with limited functionality since August of last year.  The College Cafe is currently being test marketed at Georgia State University.

2.1 Company Locations and Facilities

800 Peachtree Street – Unit 8429 Atlanta, GA 30308 United States

www.thecollegeCafe .com www.thecollegeCafe .net 

The College Cafe’s data center is hosted and maintained by Atl-Connect Internet Services.  Atl-Connect is located in Atlanta, Georgia.

2.2 Mission

The College Cafe’s mission is to provide college students a valuable and unique source for products, services and information.  In order to achieve our mission, The College Cafe commits to the following philosophies:

• It’s all about the product.
• Our customers are our employers.
• Don’t be greedy.
• Keep our employees happy.

2.3 Ownership

The College Cafe is a Limited Liability Company and is solely owned by its founder, Gerald Owens.

2.4 Keys to Success

Our key to success will lie in our ability to execute our business model.  In order to achieve success, we need to focus on the following areas to establish The College Cafe as a successful and profitable enterprise.  They are:

• Recruit an exceptional management and marketing team with extensive domain experience in the college market.
• Create and maintain a “Grass Roots” marketing campaign.
• Offer innovative and unique products and services.
• Form strategic alliances and partnerships with companies suppling products to the college market.

2.5 Management Summary

The strength of The College Cafe’s management team stems from the combined expertise in both management and technical areas.  The College Cafe recognizes that additional staff is required to properly support marketing, sales, research, and support functions.  Currently, The College Cafe is supported by three people with experience in e-commerce strategy, website architecture and design and graphic design.  Additional employees may be required in the areas of senior level management, Web development, marketing, sales, human resources/recruiting, administration, customer support and other critical operational positions.

The College Cafe will utilize current college students to fill positions in the areas of regional campus marketing, local advertisement sales, administration, customer support other non-critical operational positions.  These positions will be full-time, part-time and intern positions depending on the local market.  Using current college students will enable The College Cafe to receive inexpensive local employment and valuable market feedback from The College Cafe’s target market while also providing real world work experience to college students.

The College Cafe will utilize consultants and contractors during website enhancements and development efforts.

Board of Directors

At this time The College Cafe is seeking individuals for a Board of Directors.  These individuals will include highly qualified business and industry professionals/experts along with members of the investment team.  These individuals will assist our management team in making appropriate decisions, forming strategic alliances and taking the most effective action to be the industry leader.

2.6 Management Team

Our management team consists of three dedicated employees and two technical advisors.  Their backgrounds consist of more than 30 years of experience in e-commerce, marketing and the Internet technology.  In addition to their professional experience, the management team has over 30 years of college domain experience. 

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Kelly Mitchell – Online User Experience and Marketing Ms. Mitchell has 7 years’ experience in the interactive space, specializing in online branding, marketing, and user experience design.  Her most recent position involves leading a user experience team for a Fortune-50 company.  Ms. Mitchell has a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Georgia and has received art direction training from the Woodruff School of Art in Atlanta.  She is an active member of the Atlanta Interactive Marketing Association.

Andréa Powers – Marketing and Communications Ms. Powers has 10 years marketing and communications experience.  She has worked for two major corporations headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia and has experience  in sales, employee communications, public relations, interactive communications and technology marketing.  Ms. Powers has a wealth of knowledge regarding interactive web management, project management, account/vendor management, customer needs analysis, concept strategy, and building quality strategic interpersonal relationships.  She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications from Florida State University.

Chris Durant – Advisor Mr. Durant has 10 years technology and business experience in system integration.  He has worked for both large corporations, such as Georgia Pacific Corporation, and small start-up firms.  Mr. Durant has a Bachelor Business Administration in Management Science and Computer Information Systems from the University of Georgia as well as an MBA and graduated top of the MS/CIS program from Georgia State University with a concentration in electronic Commerce.  He also holds extensive network design experience and is an industry certified Network Engineer.

Brian Dupree – Advisor Mr. Dupree has 20 years experience in the technology industry.  He has extensive experience managing and developing mission critical software systems for business applications.  Recently, he has worked as a senior consultant for an e-business consulting company where he has participated in advanced web application projects.  Mr. Dupree holds a Masters Degree in Mathematics and Computer Science and a MBA with a concentration in e-commerce from Georgia State University.

2.7 Start-up Summary

Our start-up costs assumptions are shown in the following table and chart, and include Web hosting, software, development and marketing expenses.  The start-up costs were financed by direct owner investment.

Product Summary

The College Cafe will offer college students a unique blend of products, services, and content that is not offered by any single company on the Internet.  The College Cafe will aggregate participants, products, services and content to create a student-to-student marketplace and retail website targeting 15.8 million college students.  The following describe The College Cafe’s revenue models:

3.1 Textbook Exchange

The College Cafe will offer functionality to allow students to buy, sell and trade their used textbooks with other students.  Specifically, the Textbook Exchange functionality allows students to post their textbooks online for sale or trade, upload images, and indicate the condition of the book.  Students looking for used textbooks will be able to search for used textbooks for sale or trade in their local area or nationwide.  A fee will be charge for posting textbooks.  The fee may vary based on the asking price of the textbook.  Sample textbook categories include:

• Computer Science
• Engineering
• Political Science

3.2 Auctions

The College Cafe will offer a powerful auction package.  The Auction functionality will have many features such as Standard, Reverse, Multi Item, Dutch and Blind auctions; Flash Buy and Proxy Bidding.  A fee will be charged for posting items to be auctioned.  The posting fee structure will be similar to eBay’s.  Sample auctions categories include:

• Class Notes
• Used CDs & DVDs
• Computer Equipment
• Electronics
• Dorm Furnishing

3.3 Classifieds

The College Cafe will offer fee based, student targeted, classifieds ads.  Here many features such as image upload, Web links and nested categories will be offered.  A fee will be charged for posting a classified.  The amount charged will be based on the length of time the classified will be posted.  Sample classified categories include:

• Room Wanted
• Help Wanted

The College Cafe will sell products targeted to college students.  Margins will range from 10% to 50% depending on the product.  Sample product categories include:

• CDs & DVDs
• Dorm Furnishings
• University Merchandise
• General Merchandise

3.5 Teacher Evaluations

The College Cafe will enable students to post and review teacher evaluations.  The teacher evaluation functionality will be a value added service encouraging students to visit the site each semester.  Revenue for teacher evaluations will be generated from the sale of banner ad space located within the teacher evaluation pages.  Banner ad sales will be targeted toward local businesses on or around campus.  The fee for banner ad space will be determined by the length of posting, number of users for teacher evaluations and demand.

3.6 Bloggers

The College Cafe will offer Weblogs (Bloggers) services with topics tailored toward students.  Weblog functionality will be a value added service to encourage students to return to the site.  Revenue for the Weblog will be generated from the sale of banner ad space located within the Weblog pages.  Depending on the Weblog topic, banner ad sales will be targeted toward either local businesses in or around campus or national companies.  The fees for banner ad space will be determined by the length of posting, number of users for the Weblog and demand.  Weblog topics will include: 

• College Sports
• Entertainment

3.7 Future Products

Overall, we conclude that our current products, services and banner ad strategy will ensure a strong market presence and continued revenue growth.  However as part of our growth model, we will regularly examine new services, products, categories and content to support demand.

Brick & Mortar Locations – The College Cafe will evaluate opening retail outlets in proximity to college campuses to support and complement the online presences.  Franchise rights may also be available.

Employment Opportunities – The College Cafe will offer a local and national job posting service so that students may search for new opportunities within the local community and nationwide.  A fee will be charged for posting jobs.

Apartment Finder – The College Cafe will offer a local and national apartment finder service so that students may search for apartments within the local community and nationwide.  A fee will be charged for postings.

Club & Organization Finder – The College Cafe will offer a local and national club and organization finder service so that students may search for clubs and organization within the local community and nationwide.  A fee will be charged for posting.

• Wine & Dine
• What’s Happening

Market Analysis Summary how to do a market analysis for your business plan.">

The U.S. college student market is a growing yet under-served niche market.  The U.S. Department of Education expects the U.S. college student market to grow from 15.8 million students in 2003 to 17.2 million in 2008.  According to a Harris Interactive study conducted in the spring of 2002, college students spend an estimated $200 billion dollars per year.  As of 2003, it is estimated that college students were spending $1.4 billion online.

John Geraci, Vice President of Youth Research at Harris Interactive concludes: “The college consumer is easily overlooked since most information sources that marketers rely on for tracking consumer behavior tend to under-represent college students.  However, it is a consumer group that marketers should recognize as offering substantial opportunity.  Connecting with consumers during the college years can pay great dividends, both now and well into the future.”

4.1 Market Growth

According to the findings from the 360 Youth/Harris Interactive College Explorer Study estimated the U.S. college market will spend nearly $200 billion dollars a year.

University Bookstores The National Association of College Stores estimated U.S./Canadian university bookstore sales to be $11.12 billion for the 2001-2002 academic year and online textbooks sales to be an estimated $1.8 billion.  University bookstores sell a variety of items, ranging from textbooks to toothpaste.  The following table display the estimate of average product sales in the entire university bookstore market, from largest to smallest segments[1].

Textbooks The total textbook/course materials market is estimated to be $7.8 billion based on sales data for the 2001-2002 academic year.  The textbook market is made up of three segments – new texts, used texts, and custom-published materials(or course packs).  The percent of total store sales and estimated market size of each segment is provided below. 

Online Retail Jupiter forecasts that online retail spending in the will grow by 28 percent in 2003 to $52 billion.  The research company estimates that by 2007, online retail spending will reach $105 billion and account for five percent of all retail spending.  Jupiter estimates that the online retail will grow at an average annual growth rate of 21 percent between 2002 and 2007. 

[1] National Association of College Stores (2000-2001) 

4.2 Market Trends

The follow statistics indicate that college students are receptive to the Internet channel for the products, services and content offered by the College Cafe.  The following U.S. college student statistics were based on a report by the Student Monitor and the Harris Interactive Explorer Study. 

• Students average 10 hours per week listening to the radio

According to the Harris Interactive Study, college students spend an average of $287 per month on discretionary items (which is defined as spending on anything other than tuition, room/board, rent/mortgage, books/school fees).

Participation/Spending by College Students on Entertainment and Leisure Activities

Projections based on Spring 2002 360 Youth/Harris Interactive College Explorer Study; this represents a partial list of categories for entertainment and leisure activities.

The National Association of College Stores estimates U.S. college store sales to be $11.12 billion for the 2001-2002 academic year.  College stores sell a variety of items, ranging from textbooks to toothpaste.

4.3 Market Segmentation

The following table illustrates the future growth of rate of college students by age group and sex.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Current Population Reports, Series P-25, Nos. 1092, 1095, and “National Population Estimates,” December 2001, and “Annual Projections of the Total Resident Population: 1999 to 2100,” January 2000

4.4 Target Market Segment Strategy

The potential market for The College Cafe consists of 15.8 million college students enrolled in over 4,180 institutions.  For the Phase 1 launch of The College Cafe, we plan to focus our marketing effort on a subset market located in the Southeastern U.S.  We plan to expand to new markets with a phased approach focusing on a new region of the country each semester.  The Phase 1 target market segment will consist of the following universities:

Phase 2 will focus on additional colleges and universities located in the southeast with the addition of colleges and universities in the Northeast.

4.5 Competitive Anaylsis

Competitors of The College Cafe includes traditional university bookstores, online textbook retailers, textbook exchange sites, textbook price comparison sites, online auction sites and online content specific sites targeting the college student market.

4.5.1 University Bookstores

The major objective and strategy of university bookstores is to maintain competitive pricing and customer service.  The strengths of the traditional university bookstores are current customer relationships and location to the University.  The major weaknesses of university bookstores are the limited product selection and lack of value added services that can be offered online.

The National Association of College Stores estimates U.S./Canadian university bookstore sales to be $11.12 billion for the 2001-2002 academic year. 

There are approximately 4,840 college bookstores serving 4,182 institutions in the United States and 170 college stores in Canada.  Larger universities will often have several stores to serve students, smaller schools in a local area may be served by a single store, and several schools in an urban community may share multiple retail outlets.  While many college stores share a common mission, they vary widely in size, location, ownership, and customer base.

The majority of stores are owned or operated by the university they serve.  On-campus stores are mostly institutional, but they may also be contract managed, cooperatives, or student associations.  Off-campus stores are typically privately owned.

According to the NACS College Store Industry Financial Report 2003, college stores returned a median net income of 7.3% of net sales to their institutions.

NACS Membership by Sales Volume

4.5.2 Online Bookstores & Retail Websites

The major objective and strategy of online competitors is to maintain brand awareness, offer value added services, product selection/availability, order fulfillment and customer service.  The strengths of existing online bookstores and retail sites are current customer relationships and brand awareness.  The major weaknesses of online competitors is barriers to entry, concern about security & fraud, shipping charges, on-time fulfillment and returns processing.

Based on the 2003 College Store Industry Financial Report, total online sales at university bookstores for 2001-2002 are estimated to be $150 million or 1.41% of total college store sales.  With a “click and mortar” strategy, the university bookstore can offer the convenience of web ordering, paired with:

• Ease of returns
• The ability to pick up items for immediate use
• One-stop shopping
• Accurate information on what textbooks students need for their courses
• The trust and security of buying from a well-known source with an on-campus location

The following table lists some of the major independent online retailers not associated with a university bookstore:

Marketing Strategy

The College Cafe’s customers will be the 15.8 million college students in the United States.  This segment is a niche market that has no single business entity accounting for any significant percentage of total aggregated college student purchases.

The main business model for The College Cafe relies on college students providing textbooks, auctions, classifieds and teacher evaluations available on the website.  Therefore, our focus will be on the marketing strategy to increase student traffic and usage.  In turn, visitor volume and transactions will maintain the inventory of products and services offered.

The College Cafe recognizes the key to success as an extensive promotion strategy to attract users.  Once additional funding is secured the advertising and promotion plan will be implemented.

5.1 Strategic Alliances

The College Cafe is looking to form relationships with major companies in the college student market.  Companies that we will approach included university merchandise manufacturers or resellers, specialized content suppliers, new and used textbook wholesalers and local businesses.

5.2 Promotion Strategy

The College Cafe’s overall advertising and promotional objectives are to:

• Acquire customers and generate sales.
• Position The College Cafe as the market leader.
• Increase company awareness and brand name recognition among college students.
• Collect market research to create immediate and long-term marketing plans.

5.3 Marketing Programs

The College Cafe will attract customers by using a mixture of traditional and online advertising strategies to create a grassroots marketing campaign. 

Since the majority of The College Cafe’s customer acquisition will result from direct promotion local to universities, The College Cafe will recruit current college students to fill positions in the areas of campus marketing, local advertisement sales and implementation of a “grassroots” marketing campaign. 

The following is a list of advertising and promotional channels The College Cafe will utilize:

• Posting Flyer in and around campuses
• Direct Mailings
• University and local newspaper advertising and inserts
• Promotional item distribution
• Advertisements at on-campus kiosk
• “Welcome Back to School” registration booths 
• “Welcome Back to School” care-package inserts
• Sponsorship of recreational/intermural team sports
• Sponsorships of campus or community events
• University and local newspaper advertising
• Indoor/outdoor billboard advertisements at college sporting events
• Banner ads on select related sites with a significant level of traffic
• Links on related web sites
• Traditional media including direct mailings, magazines, radio and TV
• Registration with all the major search engines

The main business model for The College Cafe relies on college students providing the textbooks, auctions, classifieds and teacher evaluations that are posted on the website.  Therefore, our focus relies heavily on the marketing strategy that will increase traffic and usage and, in turn, maintain our inventory of products and services. 

For the retail business component we will establish relationships with manufacturers or distributors that offer drop-shipments direct to the customer.  This will allow The College Cafe to keep expenses associated with inventory and distribution to a minimum.

We will be contracting students as subject matter experts to provide the content in the weblogs.  The use of students as weblog content experts will help keep costs to a minium yet still providing interesting and relevant content.

For content and other value added service we will establish relationships with 3rd party vendors.  This will enable The College Cafe to offer a wide variety of products and services online yet allow The College Cafe to focus on the key business elements; textbooks, auctions, classifieds and teacher evaluations.

Services and Technology

The website is designed with the needs of the college student as the focus.  The College Cafe is built using Microsoft technologies which will provide the flexibility to easily expand products and service offerings in the future.  The College Cafe will initially host the website with an external web-hosting vendor thus reducing initial start-up cost.  At a later date, The College Cafe may elect to bring hosting in-house for better support and maintenance. 

The Textbook Exchange, Auction, Classified, and User Administration software was purchased from Xcent Software, Inc and modified to support The College Cafe’s business needs.  The rights to the source code of the Xcent’s software were included in the purchase price of the software.  This will enable our programmers to customize the software to support The College Cafe’s growing business needs.

The College Cafe website and databases are hosted by Atl-Connect Internet Services which guarantees 99.99% uptime.  In addition to Web hosting, Atl-Connects provides site monitoring and statistical performance metrics that include uptime, page views, unique users, banner impressions, search keywords stats and link stats from other sites.

The accompanying table lists important milestones with dates and managers in charge.  The milestone schedule also indicates our initial beta launch of the website at Georgia State University.

Financial Plan investor-ready personnel plan .">

The following are the summarized points from The College Cafe’s financial plan.  All charts and tables supporting these results are included in the appendix at the end of the business plan:

• The College Cafe will generate assertive revenues by the end of year one.
• The College Cafe will start reporting sustained profits during the 9th month of the 1st year.
• Sales and profits by year three will top 1.5x that of year one.
• The College Cafe will require an initial investment in capital to finance the marketing campaign and launch strategy.
• The College Cafe will require additional investment to fund additional Web development, sales and marketing efforts and general operating expenses.

The College Cafe will provide a complete student-to-student marketplace.  Investment contacts have already been approached and their expressions of satisfaction and encouragement are numerous.  We intend to continue our advances with more unique and effective business solutions for the the college market.  Based on the attached financial projections, we believe that this venture represents a sound business investment. 

9.1 Important Assumptions

The financial projections are based on the following assumptions and facts for the industry as outlined in our market analysis:

• As of 2003, college students spend and estimated $200 billion annually.
• There are over 15.8 million college students.
• The founders have contributed significant capital.
• The fee for posting textbooks will equal $3 per textbook.
• The fee for posting classifieds will equal $5 per classified.
• The sales margin for products sold will average 15% and vary based on product.

9.2 Start-up Funding

In order to implement The College Cafe Phase 1 marketing campaign and launch strategy, we are seeking an initial seed investment of $150,000.  An additional investment of $1 million will be required for operational expenses, continuing marketing campaigns, additional website enhancements, maintenance and support as necessary to establish and maintain The College Cafe as the leading online student-to-student market place.

As detailed in the Cash Balance chart for one year, The College Cafe will be able to begin and sustain its operations with the above mentioned investments.  We are confident the opportunities in the market place are so compelling that with year one cash flows, The College Cafe will grow and take advantage of the growth in the college market.

9.3 Use of Funds

Initial funding proceeds will be used primarily for marketing, additional website development and maintenance.  All the equipment needed will be leased or purchased, and included in the operational expenses.  The rest of the funds will be used as working capital to maintain the operations until revenues generated by The College Cafe will be at the point where we can sustain operational expenses.

9.4 Exit Strategy

The financial projections indicate that The College Cafe will have generated enough cash in the next five years to permit the exit of the outside investors if so desired.  It is the founders’ choice to continue with the company’s profitable operations until The College Cafe is presented with a viable offer for acquisition or the opportunity of an IPO is contemplated.

9.5 Key Financial Indicators

The following chart shows changes in key financial indicators: sales, gross margin, and operating expenses.

9.6 Break-even Analysis

A break-even analysis table has been completed on the basis of average costs/prices. 

9.7 Sales Forcast

The table and charts below show our forecasts for sales and costs of sales.  Annual figures for three years are shown.  Monthly estimates for the first year are included in the appendix.

9.8 Personnel Plan

The table below shows our forecasts for personnel.  Annual figures for three years are shown.  Monthly estimates for the first year are included in the appendix.

9.9 Projected Profit and Loss

The table and charts below present our forecasted for profit and loss.  Annual figures for three years are shown.  Monthly estimates for the first year are included in the appendix.

9.10 Projected Cash Flow

The table and chart below show our cash flow predictions.  Annual figures for three years are shown.  Monthly estimates for the first year are included in the appendix.

9.11 Projected Balance Sheet

The table below details our projected balance sheet.  Annual figures for three years are shown.  Monthly estimates for the first year are included in the appendix.

9.12 Business Ratios

Business ratios for the years of this plan are shown below. Industry profile ratios based on the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code 5942.9904, College book stores, are shown for comparison.

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• Completing Your Education in an Online Business Degree Program
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Finishing Your Business Degree: Cost and Considerations

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Returning to school is a common path for professionals seeking career advancement, but it can also present significant challenges. Enrolling in an online business degree completion program is an excellent strategy to make this transition smoother.

“These programs allow students to complete the program at a pace of their choosing,” says William Koehler , dean of Regis’s Sloane School of Business and Communication . “They can start off slowly and then ramp up when they get more comfortable in an academic environment.”

If this flexible online learning option sounds like the right path for you, here’s an overview of the value of completing your degree and how to effectively transition back to school as a working professional.

Take the next step towards completing your bachelor's degree. Download our free guide!

What Is a Degree Completion Program?

A degree completion program is designed for students who have previously earned college credits and wish to return to school to complete their undergraduate degree. These programs are particularly appealing for working adults who may have started their degree at one point in time but, for various reasons, were unable to finish.

Degree completion programs often provide a more flexible schedule, offering evening, weekend, online courses, or a combination of these, to accommodate the busy lives of working professionals. These programs focus on streamlining the path to graduation by maximizing the transfer of previously earned credits and offering accelerated course options, thereby reducing the time and cost to complete the degree.

Is an Online Business Degree Completion Program Worth It?

Many learners prefer online degree completion programs for the flexible schedule they provide. During an online bachelor's degree, you can often meet graduation requirements at your own pace.

Is this type of degree really worth it though? In short, yes, an online business degree can significantly boost your professional profile—no matter what industry you work in.

“No matter what job you currently hold, you're going to learn things from your business education that you can instantly put into your work that can make you a better employee,” Koehler says.

This is largely why so many professionals are going back to school to complete their bachelor’s degree. It has become an important qualification in today’s job market. According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s educational attainment data , a larger percentage of Americans earned a college degree in 2021 compared to 2011.

“In some ways we went through a period of ‘credential inflation,’” Koehler says. “But the majority of occupations still require at least a bachelor's.”

The abundance of bachelor's degrees doesn’t diminish their value though. Instead, it underscores the necessity of this level of education in a competitive job market. It also gives you the foundational knowledge and critical thinking skills you need to excel in your field, adapt to new challenges, and drive innovation.

“It's not just about the credential itself,” Koehler adds. “It's about the knowledge students can get from the program and how they're able to apply that in what they're already doing.”

How to Go Back to School via Online Business Degree Completion Program

If you’re ready to go back to school, here’s an overview of how to achieve your professional goals through an online business degree completion program.

1. Find the Right Business Degree Completion Program For You

Finding the right business degree completion program requires careful consideration of your career goals, lifestyle, and learning preferences. Start by identifying accredited institutions that offer flexibility and the right modalities to fit your schedule.

In addition, consider the support services offered by the institution, such as career counseling, academic advising, and networking opportunities with faculty, alumni, and industry professionals.

By conducting thorough research and considering these key factors, you can find a business degree completion program that aligns with your personal and professional aspirations.

2. Apply for Degree Completion Admission

Applying for degree completion admission is a significant step toward advancing your education and career, so approach it with thorough preparation and a clear understanding of the program’s requirements and how they align with your goals. Applications for admission into a degree completion program involve a series of steps designed to evaluate your eligibility and fit for the program.

Application requirements differ by school. Regardless of where you apply, you should begin by gathering your academic transcripts from all previously attended institutions. These documents are crucial for assessing how many of your past credits can be transferred toward your degree completion, a process that significantly influences the duration and cost of your program.

Next, prepare any additional required materials, which may include a résumé, personal statement, or letters of recommendation. These documents provide insight into your professional experiences, goals, and the reasons you're pursuing degree completion. This can help admission committees understand your motivations and potential for success.

Once you have all the required materials, submit your application by the specified deadline.

3. Review Your Previous Credits

An online business degree completion program allows students to finish their education using previously earned college credits. Therefore once accepted, reviewing your current college credits is an important step in a smooth transition back to school.

According to Best Colleges , students can typically transfer up to 90 credits toward a bachelor's degree completion program. However, there's no standard amount. At Regis College up to 90 credits are eligible for transfer as long as those grades are above a C, but this number can vary between institutions due to how credits are evaluated.

For some schools, credits need to align with the program’s curriculum to be eligible. This requirement can make your education much longer if your past coursework doesn’t line up with your new career path.

Luckily, there are business degree completion programs that take a more holistic approach to credit transfers. For Regis’ business management degree , most of your coursework will likely transfer to the program.

“If students have 90 credits, but haven't taken a single business course, they might have to take one or two additional required courses,” Koehler says. “But that's going to be a very rare case. The truth is business is really an interdisciplinary field, so there are many ways to utilize coursework from different topic areas to meet business requirements.”

4. Apply for Financial Aid

Going back to school can be a difficult transition if you don’t carefully consider the financial commitment. Luckily, online business degree completion programs are a very affordable option.

“Given the way the pricing is done for these bachelor's completion programs, it's roughly comparable to paying for community college,” Koehler says.

Transferring college credits is one way to make your education affordable, but another method is applying for financial aid such as scholarships, grants, and loans. However, this is only applicable to students who meet enrollment criteria.

“If a student is taking at least six credits—so two courses per semester—then they are eligible for all types of need-based financial aid,” Koehler adds.

In those cases, federal financial aid—including Pell Grants and subsidized loans—is available to those who qualify and complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) .

In addition, many institutions offer their own financial aid packages and scholarships specifically designed for students in bachelor's completion programs. Work-study programs may also be available, offering the opportunity to gain work experience while earning money to help cover educational expenses.

No matter how you plan to pay for your education, It's important to research all available options and consult with financial aid advisors to fully understand what types of aid you’re eligible for.

5. Research Support Services

A bachelor's degree completion program is meant to help you re-engage with your academic and professional goals, but this doesn’t come without its challenges.

For example, balancing your commitments and adjusting to an academic setting can be difficult. However, support services and academic coaching are fundamental to your success when transitioning back to school.

Some examples of these services include:

• Academic advising
• Career services

Student support services like these offer guidance and reassurance if you’re apprehensive about continuing your education. As a result, it’s important to find a bachelor’s degree completion program that prioritizes your long-term academic success.

“At Regis, we do this through a robust student orientation that's not just about the coursework and format,” Koehler says. “It's also about how we can help you become a successful student again.”

This is a great example of how a program that emphasizes community, even online, significantly enhances your support network as you return to school. Engaging with faculty and peers online revitalizes your academic interest and expands your network, fostering a sense of belonging.

Embracing the resources and community within a completion program equips you with the tools and confidence needed to excel as an online student and beyond.

6. Prepare for Online Learning

Preparing for remote learning is crucial to your success in an online degree program. It ensures you’re familiar with the digital platforms and tools you'll use in your coursework, which can enhance your confidence in your technical skills.

In order to effectively prepare for remote learning, you’ll need a few things:

• Computer/device
• Reliable Wi-Fi
• Private space to work

Depending on the program you enroll in, you may need to download additional software for online coursework. These are meant to enhance your learning experience, allowing you to fully engage with your studies and gain practical technical skills relevant to the field.

While some programs don’t cover the cost of these resources, schools like Regis College want to ensure students are set up for success.

“As a Regis student, you get access to all the software you need no matter what,” Koehler says.

Choosing an online degree program that prepares you for remote coursework is crucial because it can help you seamlessly transition to online education. This enables you to effectively manage your studies, engage with course materials, and interact with instructors and peers, all of which are important to achieving your academic and professional goals remotely.

Get Ready to Go Back to School

If you’re apprehensive about the credibility of an online degree, remember that many schools are starting to offer remote learning options for students.

“People's attitudes are going to change over time, but slowly,” Koehler concludes. “Degrees from fully online institutions are still going to be viewed as less valuable credentials, but online degrees from institutions like Regis aren’t viewed that way. They will always hold their value.”

If you’re interested in taking the next steps to further your career, Regis’ Business Management degree completion program is tailored to students who want to get their education back on track. With flexible enrollment options, the program is designed to meet the needs of working individuals. Prospective students can transfer credits from past coursework and continue to expand their business management and leadership skills through Regis’s dynamic curriculum.

For more information about the benefits of completing your degree, contact an admissions counselor to find out if the Regis learning experience aligns with your career goals.

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How to Write an Online Business Plan in 2024

Written by Vanessa Petersen on July 26, 2023 Blog , Sell Online .

You’ve committed to turning your ecommerce or online business idea into something real. You want your small business to produce revenue and change the course of your life, but what’s your first step in realizing your dream? Developing a plan. If you’re not sure about how to write an online business plan, you’ve come to the right place.

One of the most essential tasks involved in starting any kind of business is to write a business plan. An online business plan won’t look that different from a traditional business plan and will include many of the same elements.

In this post, we’ll show you how to write an online business plan, including all the components and sections. We’ll also walk through how WooCommerce can help you put your plan to action and achieve your business goals.

Why write a business plan? 

Starting your own business is a great experience and something that will shape your life, fill you with self-confidence and independence, and inspire other people around you. A new business is also a serious endeavor that will take time, money, sweat, lots of decisions, and a degree of risk.

A traditional business plan template helps you document and keep track of your business goals, challenges, opportunities, and all the steps and processes involved with making your idea work. It will help you conduct thorough market research and set you up for success.

When you write a business plan, it can confirm that you’ve found the best online business to start , or provide clarity about the need to pivot.

It details all the things you will need to do in order to successfully launch and grow your business, and may include revenue projections, timelines for specific goals, concept art for products, and architectural drawings for any brick and mortar aspects of your business. 

Business plans help create a structure for your company’s development and keep you grounded in reality, focused, and not distracted by less important matters. 

If you have more than one person helping run the business, the business plan also keeps everyone unified around the same set of goals and objectives. 

Another reason to write a business plan is for situations where you are presenting your idea to someone else and asking them to invest. In that scenario, your business plan is also a sort of sales document. It makes the argument for why your business idea is so good and well-considered that an investor should want to be a part of it. 

But even if you’re self-funding your entire business — which is more common with online businesses — you still want to write the plan for the reasons given earlier.

The benefits of running an online business

Starting an online business or ecommerce store offers many of the same great benefits as any other business, but without as much risk. If you’re thinking of starting a business, here’s why an online one is a great option:

It has low startup costs

Without a storefront, you eliminate so many costs of running a business. With all the bills that come with having property — like rent, parking, furnishings and decor, etc. — there’s a much higher investment required to start a brick-and-mortar-based business. Online businesses still have startup costs, but they are much lower. 

It gives you freedom over your schedule

With an online business, you have more freedom to set your own hours, because you don’t always have to be open during the usual times. You can build your business to suit the lifestyle you want. Rearrange your time to get things done in the fastest possible way and take time off when you need it. 

You can start small

Once you have a location, it’s yours, and you have to make it work. With an online business, you can start very small, offering just a few products or even just a single service. You can more easily test the waters without making huge commitments with inventory, and other physical investments.

You can more easily pivot

If your online or ecommerce business doesn’t do as well as you expected, it’s easier to pivot and adapt to something new because you haven’t committed so much to making your original idea work. There are many business success stories where the business owner adjusted their idea after gaining some experience, and then it took off. It’s a lot easier to do that when you aren’t tied to a physical location.

But, there’s one thing online businesses have in common with every other type of business: You need a robust business plan to help guide your idea from concept to a successful reality that makes money and fulfills your dreams and goals. 

So, let’s get into business planning. 

How do I write my own online business plan?

Most formal business plans and business plan templates include seven sections, plus an executive summary. You’ll need to keep in mind who you’re writing your business plan for. If you are taking this to potential investors or will be seeking a business loan, your business plan needs to sell the idea of your business as a great investment opportunity and communicate the skills, expertise, and commitment you personally bring to the table. 

Here are the key sections of a traditional business plan format:

• Executive summary
• Company description
• Market analysis
• Organization and management
• Service and product line
• Sales and marketing plans
• Financial projections
• Funding request (if working with investors or partners)

Here’s a brief look at each step of creating an online business plan:

Draft an executive summary

In the executive summary, the first section of almost every business plan template, you’ll present your vision and focus on building excitement. If the business plan is a sales document, the executive summary is the lead. It gets the reader engaged and excited to hear more. 

Your executive summary should achieve two goals:

• Deliver the basic facts about your business
• Motivate the reader to keep going and get them excited about your idea

What facts should you include? Whatever helps the reader understand your business idea. Describe the industry and niche. Mention the target market. Briefly state the needs or problems your products and services will be solving. Touch on the potential for growth in terms of revenue and customers. 

For motivation, describe your mission statement and company values. What will set you apart from the competition? What is your value proposition as a business owner? What makes you different? Again — keep this brief. You’ll elaborate later. 

It might be a good move to write all the other sections first, then finish with the executive summary so it will be the most concise and best version of how you describe your business.

Write a company description

Here, you’ll give a brief overview of your company. What are your strengths, skills, and areas of expertise as a business owner that will position you for success? If you have a compelling story behind why you’re starting your business, you can include that too.

Conduct a SWOT analysis 

If you’re not sure where to start, consider doing a SWOT analysis , which is a diagram outlining your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. 

It’s a common part of many business plans and will help paint a realistic picture of what your business can achieve, and what stands in the way. You won’t include all of this in the company description, but your strengths and opportunities may fit here. 

Create a mission and vision statement

The company description is also the place to create a mission statement and a vision statement. What’s the difference between these? 

The vision is where you’re going, the mission is how you’ll get there. A vision statement paints a picture of a future reality for your customers and perhaps the world at large, as a result of your company’s influence. A mission statement expresses how you will achieve that.

The company description can elaborate on your vision and mission beyond just a single sentence, and later you can fine-tune what you write into a succinct pair of statements. Feeling some writer’s block? See company description templates by industry for some inspiration.

Include any unique attributes

If your company will involve particular attributes such as manufacturing, supply chains, dropshipping, affiliates, coaching or advising, online courses, or other relevant particulars, include that in your company description, too. 

State your business location, industry, niche, and other details

Also, state the location of your business, even though it’s online. Name your industry and niche target market again, and describe the nature of your company. For example, is it an ecommerce business, a consulting firm, delivery service, wholesale, or ad-based website? These are just some of many types of online business structures. 

You may also want to include whether your business is in any special class of business that might position it for special loan or grant opportunities like women-owned businesses or veteran-owned businesses.

After reading your description, readers should have a good understanding of what your business is about, why it exists, and how it works. Here’s a detailed look at company descriptions , with an example.

Perform a market analysis

A market analysis uses industry research to assess the scope of your business’s target market and describe the current competition in your industry. It can help you estimate the potential for success and prepare for the challenges you may face when you launch your online business or ecommerce shop.

Doing this research, and including it your business plan, can also help you:

• Identify industry trends
• Pinpoint opportunities 
• Diminish risks and reduce costs
• Generate new ideas for products and services
• Learn from the failures and shortcomings of your competitors
• Find ways to stand out from your competitors
• Discover new markets
• Refine your marketing plans

Now let’s dig into the elements involved in a thorough market analysis.

Understand your audience

Here, you will explain in detail who your target customers are and why they want or need what you’ll be selling. What problems or needs does your product solve? What will motivate people to buy from you? And why can’t they get it somewhere else just as easily? An ecommerce business competes against other ecommerce businesses as well as brick-and-mortar stores and shopping malls. Stores with omnichannel strategies compete with both. Why would someone choose you?

Share your key customer demographics, psychographics, and interests. Who will you be serving? What drives them? 

What are their values? If your product, service, or personal brand will appeal to a customer segment that also shares particular values, that’s a strength, not a weakness, and you can use that to win them over. 

Perform customer segmentation

Break down different categories of target customers your business plans to serve. One category could be age. Another might be life situations such as retirees, parents, divorcees, or living with older relatives. You could create a segment of people with particular health conditions, or who live certain lifestyles. 

But you can also get way more specific than that. Runners are different from hikers, who are different from bikers, yoga enthusiasts, and gym enthusiasts. Different supplements, philosophies about food, motivations for eating various foods — all of these present near endless possibilities for more narrowly defining your customer segments, all under the broad category of ‘health.’ And you might serve multiple segments. 

The more customer segments you know, the more effectively you can market to them. In an online store, good product descriptions call out the various customer segments that product is designed for.

Also, give a sense of the potential size of your target market. How many people need what you’re selling? Show how this market is large enough to justify your business and drive revenue. You might do this by studying revenue reports from other companies in your industry. Or look at specific products related to yours and research their sales and revenue performance. 

You may also perform a survey of some kind, or an online quiz, and use that to express the needs your potential customers have that aren’t currently being met.

Perform a competitive analysis

Study your competition. What are they doing well? What areas are they underserving? Where are they underperforming? Make note of what other companies in your industry are struggling with or failing at so that you can deliver something more valuable and gain a competitive advantage.

It could be product quality, customer service, or selection. Maybe their ecommerce store is badly designed and hard to use. Perhaps there’s a huge industry serving the masses, but customers who have more particular tastes or needs aren’t being well-served by the big companies. Those customers might spend more on something that delivers what they really want. 

Maybe your key competition has been rocked by scandal. Maybe a company went out of business, was sold, or closed down due to retirement and there’s an opening in the market you want to leverage. 

The main point of the competitive analysis is to persuade investors that there’s an underserved market that your business plans to cater to. You must be able to promise something that no one else is currently delivering. Otherwise, why should your business exist? Put them at ease by demonstrating proper market research.

Refer to your SWOT analysis and present any potential threats from the competition here, too.

Outline management and organizational structure

Next, present your management and legal structure. Is your company an LLC, sole proprietorship, S corporation, partnership, or some other arrangement? Who’s in charge of what? If you have different departments, list out the leadership for each one. If relevant, you might even include some information about the expertise of your leaders concerning the areas under their charge and the tasks they’ll be performing.

Remember — if your business plan will be used to persuade investors to help fund your business idea, this sort of information will reassure them that your company has strong and competent leadership. 

If there’s a chain of command, use a diagram or other method for laying out who reports to whom. 

List your products and services

What are you selling? You’ll touch on this briefly in the earlier sections, but here is where you’ll expand on the details. If you have an array of similar products, such as food flavors or clothing variations, list as many as seem relevant. But focus on the spirit of the business plan — you’re simply communicating what your business is about, not listing every SKU in your projected inventory. 

Also, include information about your products such as quality, durability, expirations, patents, and whatever else will give a clear picture of what you’re selling.

For service businesses and memberships that may include multiple packages, bundles, or tiers, describe each of these so your readers get a sense of how you’ll appeal to different types of customers and price points. 

Develop a sales and marketing strategy

Having products is great, but how do you intend to sell them? How will people find your business? How will anyone know you exist? And once they know, what will motivate them to buy from you and not from your competition? What is your unique value proposition — the thing that sets you apart from your direct competitors?

You’ll need to develop an initial marketing plan to help promote your business, products, and services to your target customers.

And remember, competition isn’t limited just to other businesses. Sometimes, competition is against the customer’s time, or their budget, or mere indifference — the conflict between doing something and doing nothing. Your SWOT analysis should touch on several of these potential barriers to the success of your online business.

Your marketing plan will obviously change over time, but give your readers and potential investors a sense of how you plan to launch and grow your business. 

Discuss media channels you plan to use, such as pay-per-click (PPC) ads , social media , email marketing , affiliate marketing , direct mail, referrals, joint ventures, search engine optimization (SEO), webinars, influencer marketing , and live events. Describe the ones you actually plan to use, and explain the core strategy you’ll begin with and how you will measure success. 

Also, include a sense of your marketing budget. If you will have a dedicated marketing team, or actual sales professionals using a particular process or sales script, discuss that as well. 

For ecommerce businesses, include a discussion of how you plan to leverage platforms like WooCommerce, which features a host of extensions that can help manage your business , engage customers, save money, and promote growth .

Make financial projections

You’ve made a lot of claims in your business plan, but how will your investors be convinced of your future success? At some point, you have to show them the money. 

If this is a brand new business with no income, where will your finances come from for the first year? Give realistic financial projections for anticipated profits and losses, as well as growth expectations for the first five years. Include financial documents if you have them, including profit and loss statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements. Include costs of employment, manufacturing, and other investments both one-time and ongoing.

Your financial projections should reference your:

• market analysis 
• anticipated sales volume 

Investors will feel more confident when they can see your business plan does not rely entirely on just one or two ‘wins.’ For example, if your entire plan hinges on selling on eBay or Amazon , what happens if Amazon suspends your store, changes the terms, or you struggle to get noticed there? 

If your plan depends on winning over a few Instagram influencers, what if they don’t come through? It’s really easy to say what you hope will happen. But actually making it happen is another thing. Business success happens more easily when you apply a multi-channel marketing and sales approach. 

Your financial projections will feel based in reality, when you can demonstrate some prior successes, either in other businesses you’ve already launched, test audiences, local sales you made, prior experience, or data from other businesses. 

Explain your funding request — if applicable

If you intend to ask investors to help fund your business idea, present your request in the final main section of your business plan. If you’ve already secured funding from other sources, include that here as well. An investor will feel better knowing they are not the only one who believes in the potential of your business. 

Will your funding request be for a one-time payment, monthly, annually, or at some other interval? How do you plan to repay their investment? Will you allow them to charge interest? How much ROI can you promise them? 

How WooCommerce can help

WooCommerce can help you build a scalable online business that supports your business plan. No matter what you’re selling, WooCommerce offers a suite of flexible tools that allows you to customize your store to meet your needs and goals. 

Here are just some of the benefits your business will enjoy when you choose to build your store with WooCommerce:

• Sell absolutely anything you can imagine . From physical items and digital downloads to subscriptions, memberships, bookings, courses, and affiliate products, WooCommerce provides everything you need. Want to run a wholesale store? You can do that, too!
• Harness the power of WordPress . Since WooCommerce is a plugin specifically for WordPress, you can take advantage of powerful features like the block editor and blogging capabilities. 
• Capture payments securely. Choose from a large number of payment gateways, from popular options like PayPal and Stripe, to more niche processors for specific locations and types of regulated products. And with tools like WooPayments , you can keep customers on-site, capture a variety of currencies, and even accept digital wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay.
• Customize your shipping options. Offer free shipping, charge based on weight, set fixed prices, or calculate shipping costs based on real-time carrier rates. You can even use extensions like Table Rate Shipping to create complicated shipping rules based on conditions that you set. And with WooCommerce Shipping , you benefit from discounted shipping labels and the ability to print right from your dashboard. 
• Connect to your social media channels. Use extensions to sync your store with social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. You can even sell on those platforms alongside your store without having to update inventory and information manually.
• Integrate with marketing tools. Quickly connect your store to any number of marketing tools, from email platforms like MailPoet to CRMs like Jetpack CRM . You can also implement a number of marketing strategies, from abandoned cart emails to loyalty programs.
• Keep track of your numbers. Ecommerce accounting is a big part of running an online business. While you can easily view data in your dashboard, you can also sync with tools like QuickBooks to make your accountant’s life a little bit easier.
• Manage inventory. Update your inventory levels manually or connect to tools like Scanventory to sync with your warehouse. Running low or out of stock? Add a wishlist option so customers get an alert as soon as it’s available.

As you can see, WooCommerce is well-equipped to handle any type of online store and support you as you grow. Here are a few more reasons that WooCommerce should be your go-to choice for implementing the ecommerce side of your online business plan:

WooCommerce itself is free! Many extensions for WooCommerce can also be found for free in the WordPress.org plugins library or on the Woo Marketplace . If you need to start your website with a limited budget, but want to build on a platform that can grow to support a thriving, high-traffic store, WooCommerce is an excellent option.

You have full control over your store

Unlike other ecommerce solutions that are tied to the platform’s own web hosting, WooCommerce is designed to be used with WordPress along with any hosting provider of your choice. You are also free to use whatever payment processor you want without any additional fees from WooCommerce. You can also customize your site’s appearance and functionality more extensively than you can with other ecommerce platforms and with less (or no) coding knowledge.

Thousands of free and premium extensions

There are over 800 free and premium extensions for WooCommerce on WooCommerce.com alone and over 1,000 in the WordPress.org plugins library . There are also hundreds of independent developers and agencies that offer premium and custom extensions for WooCommerce so that you can customize your store with the exact features you need. 

Excellent support and large community of users

WooCommerce is used by over 3.9 million stores — 23% of all online stores worldwide . The support team is available to answer questions and the documentation library is extensive and thorough. There are also plenty of independent resources for learning how to use WordPress and WooCommerce.

Dedicate time and resources to put your online business plan in action

A successful business plan is one that empowers and guides the business owner to launch their online or ecommerce business, and possibly secure funding. But it only works if you use it.

One advantage of starting an ecommerce store or online business is that you aren’t as locked down by deadlines. With a physical location, once you start paying the rent, you better have your business plan ready to put into action. 

But the beauty of being online is that you have more flexibility on the front end. Despite having more wiggle room with your timelines, you still need to keep your momentum going forward. Staying on track with your business projects and goals is one of the keys to reaching profitability sooner and turning your business plan into reality. A few quick tips:

• Schedule your time. Block out hours and specific days to work on your business.
• Treat it like a job, not a hobby. Build on your momentum week after week.
• Always keep learning. Research your industry, competition, target audience, and potential customers. Learn marketing — you can never know too much.
• Try stuff! Take risks, make calls, create campaigns, write content.

Your business plan template should give you a concrete list of tasks and business objectives. Once you write a business plan, then you can implement it.

Frequently asked questions about writing an online business plan

What are the seven steps of a business plan.

The seven key elements of a business plan are the executive summary, company description, market analysis, organization and management, services and products, marketing plan, and financial projections. If you’re making a funding request, that would be an eighth section.

Where can I find business plan templates?

You can find a free business plan template online, for general business plans as well as for specific industries. However, since each business is different and your plan must be authentic and specific to your company — a business plan template can only get you so far. 

If you need design inspiration for your own custom business plan template or want to start with a pre-designed template that you can customize, you can purchase one for a relatively low cost through a stock resources site like Envato Market or Creative Market .

Do I need a business plan if I am already running an online business or ecommerce shop?

Business plans aren’t only for people who are launching new businesses. You can create a business plan at any time to help you maintain or change the direction of your store or just to get a better picture of the health of your business. Below are a few different types of business plans that you might want to consider for your established online business:

• Operational business plan. Outlines the structure of your business operations, staffing, and logistics.
• Feasibility plan. Feasibility plans are like mini business plans that cover new business ideas and outline steps for implementation.
• Growth business plan. This plan is for businesses that want to demonstrate opportunities and plans for growth to attract investors.
• Maturing business plan. This plan is for businesses looking to merge with or acquire other companies, significantly expand, or go public.
• Strategic business plan. Any time your business wants to shift strategies regarding products or marketing or any other major changes to your previous business plan, you’ll want to create a new strategic business plan to address your new goals and the steps involved in achieving them.

What software should I use for my online business plan?

Your business plan should include some images, graphs, and graphic elements in the layout, so you’ll want to at least use word processing software to put your business plan together. If you have access to Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, Canva, or Adobe Creative Cloud, you’ll have some other options that might lead to a more professional layout.

Here’s a list of free and paid software that can help you put together your online business plan outline:

What do investors want to see in a business plan?

The most important piece of information to show investors in your business plan is potential for profitability. Investors don’t want to throw money at a sinking ship, no matter how cool and exciting the business sounds. 

Most investors also want to make sure that they’ll see a decent return on their investment in a relatively short time period — probably around 5-7 years. How much of a return they’ll expect will depend on your industry and what kind of investor they are. 

Investors will also want to see that you clearly understand your business, your industry, and that you have concrete, actionable steps for achieving, maintaining, and growing profitability. They’ll want to make sure that the key people on your team also understand your business and the roles they play and they’ll want to see that each person has a good amount of experience in their field and the required skill sets to fulfill their job duties, if not go above and beyond. 

Any details you can include that highlight unique aspects of your business will also be important. Any area where you have a competitive edge, are offering a unique or proprietary solution, have established any celebrity endorsements, have the backing of other investors, or have secured special grants will be of special interest to investors.

Create your plan for success

Now that you understand what goes into creating a formal business plan, it’s time to write one! Take the time to think through and consider each aspect of the list included in this article, and you’ll be well on your way to finding success.

And WooCommerce is here to support your business every step of the way, with powerful and flexible tools that help your business grow. Start selling online today !

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Master of Business Administration

An Online MBA Degree That Prepares You to be a Successful Business Leader

You're ready to become a leader and rise to the next level in business. A master's degree in business administration is the step you need to take you further in your professional career and potentially earn a higher salary. A reputable online MBA degree program can be the difference-maker for your future by helping you understand business practices and management skills. This master's in business administration is focused on equipping you with skills and credentials that helps distinguish your value in the business world.

Compare this degree:  Also considering the MSML degree program?  This article can help you understand the differences .

Graduates can finish within 

WGU lets you set a schedule so you can finish your MBA in just one year. You are in control of the schedule and timing for your online MBA program.

*WGU Internal Data

Tuition per six-month term is

See what your online MBA will cost at our university. Tuition charged per term—rather than per credit—helps students control the ultimate cost of their degrees. Finish faster, pay less!

Average salary increase

Master of Business Administration graduates report an average salary increase of $14,025 after completing their WGU degree.

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MBA Courses

Program consists of 11 courses

At WGU, we design our curriculum to be timely, relevant, and practical—all to help you show that you know your stuff.

This program is composed of the following business and management courses. You will typically complete them one at a time as you make your way through your program, working with your Program Mentor each term to build your personalized degree plan. You’ll work through each course as quickly as you can study and master the material. As soon as you’re ready, you’ll pass the assessment, complete the course, and move on. This means you can finish as many courses as you're able in a term at no additional cost.  One year MBA students can complete all of their coursework in just two WGU terms. You will set a schedule with your Program Mentor to enable you to finish your program quickly.  Learn more about the one year MBA program at WGU. 

To ensure WGU graduates acquire the knowledge and skills sought by today’s employers, our Master of Business Administration—like all of WGU's School of Business programs—was developed with significant input from experts and business leaders who serve on our Business Program Council.

This course covers principles of effective management and leadership that maximize organizational performance. The following topics are included: the role and functions of a manager, analysis of personal leadership styles, approaches to self-awareness and self-assessment, and application of foundational leadership and management skills.

This course focuses on strategies and tools that managers use to maximize employee contribution and create organizational excellence. You will learn talent management strategies to motivate and develop employees as well as best practices to manage performance for added value.

This course prepares students for the communication challenges in organizations. Topics examined include theories and strategies of communication, persuasion, conflict management, and ethics that enhance communication to various audiences.

This course focuses on the strategic importance of operations management to overall performance. This course also emphasizes principles of supply chain management relevant to a variety of business operations ranging from manufacturing goods to retail services. You will examine the various planning, control, and decision-making tools and techniques of the operations function.

This course examines how economic tools, techniques, and indicators can be used for solving organizational problems related to competitiveness, productivity, and growth. You will explore the management implications of a variety of economic concepts and effective strategies to make decisions within a global context.

Marketing Fundamentals introduces students to principles of the marketing environment, social media, consumer behavior, marketing research, and market segmentation. Students will also explore marketing strategies that are related to products and services, distribution channels, promotions, sales, and pricing.

This course provides you with the accounting knowledge and skills to assess and manage a business. Topics include the accounting cycle, financial statements, taxes, and budgeting. This course will improve students’ ability to understand reports and use accounting information to plan and make sound business decisions.

This course examines the ethical issues and dilemmas managers face. This course provides a framework for analysis of management-related ethical issues and decision-making action required for satisfactory resolution of these issues.

This course covers practical approaches to analysis and decision-making in the administration of corporate funds, including capital budgeting, working capital management, and cost of capital. Topics include financial planning, management of working capital, analysis of investment opportunities, sources of long-term financing, government regulations, and global influences. This course will improve students’ ability to interpret financial statements and manage corporate finances.

This course presents critical problem-solving methodologies, including field research and data collection methods that enhance organizational performance. Topics include quantitative analysis, statistical and quality tools. You will improve your ability to use data to make informed decisions.

MBA Capstone is the culminating course in the MBA program that provides an integrative experience with all competencies and assessment topics throughout the program. Students synthesize concepts from previously completed coursework and demonstrate an understanding of responsible practices for growing and running a business. This course promotes a meaningful connection between the academic work and career experience.

Program consists of 11 courses

Capstone Project

Special requirements for this program

At the end of your program, you will complete a capstone project that represents the culmination of all your hard work—a project that allows you to take what you’ve learned and apply it to a real-world situation, proposing a solution to an actual issue you face in your place of business.

Skills For Your Résumé

As part of this program, you will develop a range of valuable skills that employers are looking for. 

• Management: Identified and determined the resources required to effectively support an organization or process, ensuring optimal functionality and efficiency.
• Operations: Developed comprehensive systems with standard operating procedures (SOPs) for distinct parts of a business, promoting consistency, compliance, and operational excellence.
• Communication: Leveraged appropriate communication techniques to effectively persuade and guide outcomes.
• Data Analysis:  Applied analytical and logical reasoning skills to uncover valuable information crucial for decision-making processes.
• Written Communication:  Addressed internal and external stakeholders using the most suitable written communication strategy for each audience, fostering effective communication and engagement.
• Business Development:  Developed strategic plans for acquiring new business and expanding existing business in collaboration with the business development team.

“Because of WGU's competency-based program, I didn't have to get into things that I already knew. Instead I was able to use that for the things that were more challenging for me to learn.”

—Alvyn Joy Halili MBA

WGU vs. Traditional Universities Compare the Difference

Traditional Universities

TUITION STRUCTURE

Per credit hour

Flat rate per 6-month term

Schedule and wait days or even weeks to meet with one of many counselors

Simply email or call to connect with your designated Program Mentor who supports you from day one

Scheduled time

Whenever you feel ready

Professor led lectures at a certain time and place

Courses available anytime, from anywhere

TIME TO FINISH

Approximately 2 years, minimal acceleration options

As quickly as you can master the material, can finish programs in 1 year

Earning Potential

After graduation, WGU MBA master's degree graduates report earning $16,200 more per year*. Are you ready to make more money?

Entirely Online

Competency-based education means you can move as quickly through your degree as you can master the material. You don't have to log in to classes at a certain time—you are truly in the driver's seat of your education.  

The Master of Business Administration degree at WGU is 100% online, which means it works wherever you are. You can do your coursework at night after working at your full-time job, on weekends, while you're traveling the world or on vacation—it's entirely up to you.

Accredited, Respected, Recognized™

One important measure of a degree’s value is the reputation of the university where it was earned. When employers, industry leaders, and academic experts hold your alma mater in high esteem, you reap the benefits of that respect. WGU is a pioneer in reinventing higher education for the 21st century, and our quality has been recognized.

COST & TIME

Affordable Online Degree Programs

By charging per term rather than per credit—and empowering students to accelerate through material they know well or learn quickly—WGU helps students control the ultimate cost of their degrees. The faster you complete your program, the less you pay for your degree.

A College Degree Within Reach

There is help available to make paying for school possible for you:

The average student loan debt of WGU graduates in 2022 (among those who borrowed) was less than half* the national average.

Most WGU students qualify for financial aid, and WGU is approved for federal financial aid and U.S. veterans benefits. 

Many scholarship opportunities are available. Find out what you might be eligible for.

* WGU undergraduate students have approximately half the debt at graduation compared to the national average, according to the Institute for College Access and Success (2022).

Flexible schedule, you control where, when, and how fast you learn and graduate.

Schedules are tight and often unpredictable for busy professionals. That’s why we offer a flexible, personalized approach to how education should be. No interruptions to your work and family obligations. No rigid class schedules. No barriers to earning your degree on your own terms. Just a solid, career-focused online MBA program that meshes seamlessly with your current lifestyle.

"I was fortunate enough to finish my WGU degree program in six months because I was able to show what I knew and not have to sit in needless classes. I was able to showcase my strengths and still have plenty of time to work on my weaknesses, which really helped me finish my degree. I couldn't have done this anywhere else.”

—David Burks MBA

CAREER OUTLOOK

A Respected MBA Degree That Can Prepare You for a Successful Management Career

Goldman Sachs. Google. MGM. Microsoft. Apple. These giant organizations are changing the world, and WGU MBA graduates are there in the thick of it—making decisions as key leaders in top organizations. An online MBA degree from WGU has prepared these graduates to stand out from the competition, to take charge, and to make change. And a master's in business administration degree could do the same thing for you. Get an MBA online that is focused on helping you excel as a business leader and reach all your career aspirations.

WGU’s online MBA degree is designed for business professionals who are ready to advance their career. It is a university program that focuses on management, strategy, and business skills that are vital to your success as a leader. Earn an online MBA that gives you the skills to become the impactful business leader your organization needs.

Return on Your Investment

On average, wgu graduates see an increase in income post-graduation.

Average income increase from all degrees in annual salary vs. pre-enrollment salary. Source:  2023 Harris Poll Survey  of 1,655 WGU graduates.

Survey was sent to a representative sample of WGU graduates from all colleges. Respondents received at least one WGU degree since 2017.

Employment of top executives is projected to grow 6% from 2021 to 2031.

—U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

MBAs from WGU Are Leading Teams and Businesses in Diverse Industries

Problem-solving leaders are required in every industry, and strategic thinking is necessary at every successful company. If you're ready to broaden your business knowledge and advance your career, WGU's MBA program online can prepare you to be an effective leader and produce successful results wherever you go. Your business management career starts here! Our 5,300-plus MBA grads have great jobs and satisfying careers.

• President and CEO
• Vice president
• Executive director
• Chief strategic officer

Top Industries

• Private companies
• Healthcare organizations
• Nonprofit organizations
• Colleges and universities

Top Employers

• American Airlines
• Edward Jones
• Intermountain Healthcare
• Mayo Clinic

WGU Grads Hold Positions With Top Employers

ADMISSIONS & TRANSFERS

MBA Admission Requirements

To be considered for this program, you must:

• Submit a transcript verifying receipt of your bachelor’s degree from a recognized, accredited institution.

NOTE: You do not need to take the GRE or GMAT to be admitted to this program.  Learn why we don't require these tests.

Transfer Credits

Get Your Enrollment Checklist

Download your step-by-step guide to enrollment.

Get Your Questions Answered

Talk to an WGU Enrollment Counselor.

FINISH FASTER

The One-Year MBA

WGU's unique competency-based model allows you to move faster through your degree program. This online Master of Business Administration degree gives you the flexibility you need to earn your degree on your terms. You don't have to leave your job to pursue a master's in business administration—something you and your employer will both appreciate. No logging in, no set class times—you are in the driver's seat of your education.

WGU's one-year* MBA allows you to finish your Master in Business Administration program in only 12 months for just $9,510.

* Program can be completed in as little as 12 months. Pricing is based on 12-month completion of the program. Students that do not complete in 12 months and need longer to complete the program will need to pay for additional terms.

Frequently Asked Questions about MBA Programs

• General MBA FAQs
• Online MBA FAQs

What is an MBA?

MBA stands for Master’s of Business Administration. An MBA is a graduate-level business management degree that teaches you leadership skills for the modern business world. Those with an MBA often stand out among candidates for upper management positions.

Is it Masters or Master of Business Administration?

Both terms are commonly used, but the technical correct usage is Master of Business Administration, or a Master's in Business Administration. 

What can you do with a Master in Business Administration?

There are many job opportunities with an MBA degree. They include:

• Chief executive officer
• Chief financial officer
• Marketing manager
• International business development
• Chief marketing officer
• Sales manager
• Operations manager
• Human resources manager

What is the purpose of an MBA degree?

An MBA gives you additional skills and training that can help you progress in your career. You'll learn about strategy, communication, management, and leadership that will help you move into larger roles in an organization. An MBA trains you to become a business leader in many different kinds of industries.

What do you learn in an MBA program?

In an MBA program you'll have courses in accounting, finance, marketing, strategy, leadership, management, and more. 

Is a Master's in Business Administration worth it?

Yes! An MBA can help you boost your résumé and help you get higher pay, better job opportunities, and more. In fact, WGU MBA graduates earn an average of $16,200 more per year after graduation.

Why should you pursue an MBA?

An MBA is a great option for those who want to progress into management or leadership roles in an organization. Whether you want to move to a new company or have upward mobility in your current organization, an MBA can help you be prepared to move up.

What is an MBA good for?

An MBA teaches you leadership skills that can help you excel as an executive in a business setting. Earning an MBA can set you apart when you’re looking to advance into a management role within a corporation. The skills you learn in an MBA program may also help you start and manage your own business.

How long does it take to get an MBA degree?

In general, it takes around two years to earn an MBA degree. That said, through a competency-based online MBA program like the one offered at WGU, students may be able to earn their degree more quickly, sometimes in 18 months or less.

How many years does it take to get an MBA degree?

The number of years it takes to earn an MBA degree can vary depending on the university.

• Traditional university: 2 years
• Competency-based MBA program: 1 to 1.5 years
• Part-time MBA program: around 3 years

Can you earn an MBA completely online?

Yes. You can earn an MBA completely online. This unique model enables students to keep their current job while working toward their degree. Competency-based education models and on-demand classes, tests, and assignments make earning a degree online a valid option for busy working professionals or those with limited access to a brick and mortar university.

Does online MBA have any value?

Yes. With the growing prevalence and availability of online MBA programs, curriculum and acceptance criteria have become more rigorous. As higher education has moved increasingly to online formats, more employers are respecting online MBAs and finding online MBA grads to possess the skills necessary to add value to their business. 

Is an online MBA respected?

Yes. If you earn an MBA from an accredited and reputable university, it will likely be respected by employers. Many online MBA programs have gained enough of a reputation that employers now seek out graduates specifically from certain online programs and universities.

Which online MBA program is best?

The best online MBA programs in terms of ROI include:

• Excelsior College; 497% ROI
• Western Governors University; 267% ROI
• American Public University; 249% ROI
• Arizona State University—Skysong; 225% ROI
• Capella University; 171% ROI

Is an online MBA easy?

No. An online MBA is not necessarily easy. While an online MBA may offer more flexibility and accessibility than a typical in-person program, online programs are still competitive and rigorous. Many students, however, find that an online MBA is easier in the sense that it fits more seamlessly into their busy lives, as they can access courses, take exams, and complete projects anywhere they have internet access.

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Grace College Awards $5,000 To Visions of Q Studio At 12th Annual Business Plan Competition

April 25, 2024 at 4:55 p.m..

WINONA LAKE — Grace College business administration major and Marine Corps veteran Quinisha Williams was awarded $5,000 at the 12th annual Grace College Business Plan Competition on April 17. Her apparel printing business, Visions of Q Studio, won the first-place prize. Williams plans to use the $5,000 to help open a custom printing retail shop at 25 Kings Hwy., Winona Lake, according to a news release from Grace College. Visions of Q Studio’s mission is to provide high-quality custom apparel printing with no minimums and unlimited colors — all without degrading the print quality. “I was first told about this new direct-to-film printing method that was building momentum overseas in 2019,” said Williams. “It was a difficult process to learn in the beginning, but the potential proved to be worth the headache.” In 2021, Williams bought her first commercial DTF printer, and in 2022, the printing method started to earn recognition in the U.S. market. “After many attempts to launch my own business, I had given up hope that my business would make it past the front door of my home,” said Williams. “I decided to devote my free time to learning the printing method and discovering which consumables and settings achieved the best results.” By the time the Grace College Business Plan Competition applications were due, Williams was ready to try relaunching her business. “Although I had a lot going on in my life, I started to believe that maybe this was the time for a successful startup,” said Williams. In preparation for the competition, Grace's faculty supported Williams as she finalized details and made her business plan the best it could be. According to Williams, several of her mentors believed that the business had more potential than she did. “When I won, I was speechless,” said Williams. “The biggest reward for me was when I arrived home and told my children I won — that is when reality set in. My daughters Allessa, Nateri, Alanna, Valerie and Xiomara are why I keep pressing on.” As Williams reflects on her business journey, she is quick to express appreciation for the support she received at Grace. “I want to thank Grace College for the opportunity, as well as the judges, the sponsors and everyone involved,” said Williams. “I’m grateful for Dr. Rick Koontz and professor Melissa Chappell who helped me see the true potential in what I was doing, as well as Dr. Jeff Fawcett, who leads a wonderful School of Business.” To learn more about Visions of Q Studio or inquire about custom printing services, email [email protected] . The Grace College Business Plan Competition was sponsored by the William P. Gordon Institute for Enterprise Development, Beers Mallers Attorneys at Law, Strategic Venture Partners and Wildman Business Group. It is one of many opportunities Grace College provides its students to turn their dreams and goals into a reality. To learn more information about the School of Business, visit www.grace.edu/academics/undergraduate/academic-schools-departments/school-of-business/.

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The Evolving Danger of the New Bird Flu

An unusual outbreak of the disease has spread to dairy herds in multiple u.s. states..

This transcript was created using speech recognition software. While it has been reviewed by human transcribers, it may contain errors. Please review the episode audio before quoting from this transcript and email [email protected] with any questions.

From “The New York Times,” I’m Sabrina Tavernise, and this is “The Daily.”

[MUSIC PLAYING]

The outbreak of bird flu that is tearing through the nation’s poultry farms is the worst in US history. But scientists say it’s now starting to spread into places and species it’s never been before.

Today, my colleague, Emily Anthes, explains.

It’s Monday, April 22.

Emily, welcome back to the show.

Thanks for having me. Happy to be here.

So, Emily, we’ve been talking here on “The Daily” about prices of things and how they’ve gotten so high, mostly in the context of inflation episodes. And one of the items that keeps coming up is eggs. Egg prices were through the roof last year, and we learned it was related to this. Avian flu has been surging in the United States. You’ve been covering this. Tell us what’s happening.

Yes, so I have been covering this virus for the last few years. And the bird flu is absolutely tearing through poultry flocks, and that is affecting egg prices. That’s a concern for everyone, for me and for my family. But when it comes to scientists, egg prices are pretty low on their list of concerns. Because they see this bird flu virus behaving differently than previous versions have. And they’re getting nervous, in particular, about the fact that this virus is reaching places and species where it’s never been before.

OK, so bird flu, though, isn’t new. I mean I remember hearing about cases in Asia in the ‘90s. Remind us how it began.

Bird flu refers to a bunch of different viruses that are adapted to spread best in birds. Wild water birds, in particular, are known for carrying these viruses. And flu viruses are famous for also being shapeshifters. So they’re constantly swapping genes around and evolving into new strains. And as you mentioned back in the ‘90s, a new version of bird flu, a virus known as H5N1, emerged in Asia. And it has been spreading on and off around the world since then, causing periodic outbreaks.

And how are these outbreaks caused?

So wild birds are the reservoir for the virus, which means they carry it in their bodies with them around the world as they fly and travel and migrate. And most of the time, these wild birds, like ducks and geese, don’t even get very sick from this virus. But they shed it. So as they’re traveling over a poultry farm maybe, if they happen to go to the bathroom in a pond that the chickens on the farm are using or eat some of the feed that chickens on the farm are eating, they can leave the virus behind.

And the virus can get into chickens. In some cases, it causes mild illness. It’s what’s known as low pathogenic avian influenza. But sometimes the virus mutates and evolves, and it can become extremely contagious and extremely fatal in poultry.

OK, so the virus comes through wild birds, but gets into farms like this, as you’re describing. How have farms traditionally handled outbreaks, when they do happen?

Well, because this threat isn’t new, there is a pretty well-established playbook for containing outbreaks. It’s sometimes known as stamping out. And brutally, what it means is killing the birds. So the virus is so deadly in this highly pathogenic form that it’s sort of destined to kill all the birds on a farm anyway once it gets in. So the response has traditionally been to proactively depopulate or cull all the birds, so it doesn’t have a chance to spread.

So that’s pretty costly for farmers.

It is. Although the US has a program where it will reimburse farmers for their losses. And the way these reimbursements work is they will reimburse farmers only for the birds that are proactively culled, and not for those who die naturally from the virus. And the thinking behind that is it’s a way to incentivize farmers to report outbreaks early.

So, OK, lots of chickens are killed in a way to manage these outbreaks. So we know how to deal with them. But what about now? Tell me about this new strain.

So this new version of the virus, it emerged in 2020.

After the deadly outbreak of the novel coronavirus, authorities have now confirmed an outbreak of the H5N1 strain of influenza, a kind of bird flu.

And pretty quickly it became clear that a couple things set it apart.

A bald eagle found dead at Carvins Cove has tested positive for the highly contagious bird flu.

This virus, for whatever reason, seemed very good at infecting all sorts of wild birds that we don’t normally associate with bird flu.

[BIRD CRYING]

He was kind of stepping, and then falling over, and using its wing to right itself.

Things like eagles and condors and pelicans.

We just lost a parliament of owls in Minneapolis.

Yeah, a couple of high profile nests.

And also in the past, wild birds have not traditionally gotten very sick from this virus. And this version of the virus not only spread widely through the wild bird population, but it proved to be devastating.

The washing up along the East Coast of the country from Scotland down to Suffolk.

We were hearing about mass die-offs of seabirds in Europe by the hundreds and the thousands.

And the bodies of the dead dot the island wherever you look.

Wow. OK. So then as we know, this strain, like previous ones, makes its way from wild animals to farmed animals, namely to chickens. But it’s even more deadly.

Absolutely. And in fact, it has already caused the worst bird flu outbreak in US history. So more than 90 million birds in the US have died as a result of this virus.

90 million birds.

Yes, and I should be clear that represents two things. So some of those birds are birds who naturally got infected and died from the virus. But the vast majority of them are birds that were proactively culled. What it adds up to is, is 90 million farmed birds in the US have died since this virus emerged. And it’s not just a chicken problem. Another thing that has been weird about this virus is it has jumped into other kinds of farms. It is the first time we’ve seen a bird flu virus jump into US livestock.

And it’s now been reported on a number of dairy farms across eight US states. And that’s just something that’s totally unprecedented.

So it’s showing up at Dairy farms now. You’re saying that bird flu has now spread to cows. How did that happen?

So we don’t know exactly how cows were first infected, but most scientists’ best guess is that maybe an infected wild bird that was migrating shed the virus into some cattle feed or a pasture or a pond, and cattle picked it up. The good news is they don’t seem to get nearly as sick as chickens do. They are generally making full recoveries on their own in a couple of weeks.

OK, so no mass culling of cows?

No, that doesn’t seem to be necessary at this point. But the bad news is that it’s starting to look like we’re seeing this virus spread from cow to cow. We don’t know exactly how that’s happening yet. But anytime you see cow-to-cow or mammal-to-mammal transmission, that’s a big concern.

And why is that exactly?

Well, there are a bunch of reasons. First, it could allow the outbreak to get much bigger, much faster, which might increase the risk to the food supply. And we might also expect it to increase the risk to farm workers, people who might be in contact with these sick cows.

Right now, the likelihood that a farmer who gets this virus passes it on is pretty low. But any time you see mammal-to-mammal transmission, it increases the chance that the virus will adapt and possibly, maybe one day get good at spreading between humans. To be clear, that’s not something that there’s any evidence happening in cows right now. But the fact that there’s any cow-to-cow transmission happening at all is enough to have scientists a bit concerned.

And then if we think more expansively beyond what’s happening on farms, there’s another big danger lurking out there. And that’s what happens when this virus gets into wild animals, vast populations that we can’t control.

We’ll be right back.

So, Emily, you said that another threat was the threat of flu in wild animal populations. Clearly, of course, it’s already in wild birds. Where else has it gone?

Well, the reason it’s become such a threat is because of how widespread it’s become in wild birds. So they keep reintroducing it to wild animal populations pretty much anywhere they go. So we’ve seen the virus repeatedly pop up in all sorts of animals that you might figure would eat a wild bird, so foxes, bobcats, bears. We actually saw it in a polar bear, raccoons. So a lot of carnivores and scavengers.

The thinking is that these animals might stumble across a sick or dead bird, eat it, and contract the virus that way. But we’re also seeing it show up in some more surprising places, too. We’ve seen the virus in a bottle-nosed dolphin, of all places.

And most devastatingly, we’ve seen enormous outbreaks in other sorts of marine mammals, especially sea lions and seals.

So elephant seals, in particular in South America, were just devastated by this virus last fall. My colleague Apoorva Mandavilli and I were talking to some scientists in South America who described to us what they called a scene from hell, of walking out onto a beach in Argentina that is normally crowded with chaotic, living, breathing, breeding, elephant seals — and the beach just being covered by carcass, after carcass, after carcass.

Mostly carcasses of young newborn pups. The virus seemed to have a mortality rate of 95 percent in these elephant seal pups, and they estimated that it might have killed more than 17,000 of the pups that were born last year. So almost the entire new generation of this colony. These are scientists that have studied these seals for decades. And they said they’ve never seen anything like it before.

And why is it so far reaching, Emily? I mean, what explains these mass die-offs?

There are probably a few explanations. One is just how much virus is out there in the environment being shed by wild birds into water and onto beaches. These are also places that viruses like this haven’t been before. So it’s reaching elephant seals and sea lions in South America that have no prior immunity.

There’s also the fact that these particular species, these sea lions and seals, tend to breed in these huge colonies all crowded together on beaches. And so what that means is if a virus makes its way into the colony, it’s very conducive conditions for it to spread. And scientists think that that’s actually what’s happening now. That it’s not just that all these seals are picking up the virus from individual birds, but that they’re actually passing it to each other.

So basically, this virus is spreading to places it’s never been before, kind of virgin snow territory, where animals just don’t have the immunity against it. And once it gets into a population packed on a beach, say, of elephant seals, it’s just like a knife through butter.

Absolutely. And an even more extreme example of that is what we’re starting to see happen in Antarctica, where there’s never been a bird flu outbreak before until last fall, for the first time, this virus reached the Antarctic mainland. And we are now seeing the virus move through colonies of not only seabirds and seals, but penguin colonies, which have not been exposed to these viruses before.

And it’s too soon to say what the toll will be. But penguins also, of course, are known for breeding in these large colonies.

Probably. don’t have many immune defenses against this virus, and of course, are facing all these other environmental threats. And so there’s a lot of fear that you add on the stress of a bird flu virus, and it could just be a tipping point for penguins.

Emily, at this point, I’m kind of wondering why more people aren’t talking about this. I mean, I didn’t know any of this before having this conversation with you, and it feels pretty worrying.

Well, a lot of experts and scientists are talking about this with rising alarm and in terms that are quite stark. They’re talking about the virus spreading through wild animal populations so quickly and so ferociously that they’re calling it an ecological disaster.

But that’s a disaster that sometimes seems distant from us, both geographically, we’re talking about things that are happening maybe at the tip of Argentina or in Antarctica. And also from our concerns of our everyday lives, what’s happening in Penguins might not seem like it has a lot to do with the price of a carton of eggs at the grocery store. But I think that we should be paying a lot of attention to how this virus is moving through animal populations, how quickly it’s moving through animal populations, and the opportunities that it is giving the virus to evolve into something that poses a much bigger threat to human health.

So the way it’s spreading in wild animals, even in remote places like Antarctica, that’s important to watch, at least in part because there’s a real danger to people here.

So we know that the virus can infect humans, and that generally it’s not very good at spreading between humans. But the concern all along has been that if this virus has more opportunities to spread between mammals, it will get better at spreading between them. And that seems to be what is happening in seals and sea lions. Scientists are already seeing evidence that the virus is adapting as it passes from marine mammal to marine mammal. And that could turn it into a virus that’s also better at spreading between people.

And if somebody walks out onto a beach and touches a dead sea lion, if their dog starts playing with a sea lion carcass, you could imagine that this virus could make its way out of marine mammals and into the human population. And if it’s this mammalian adapted version of the virus that makes its way out, that could be a bigger threat to human health.

So the sheer number of hosts that this disease has, the more opportunity it has to mutate, and the more chance it has to mutate in a way that would actually be dangerous for people.

Yes, and in particular, the more mammalian hosts. So that gives the virus many more opportunities to become a specialist in mammals instead of a specialist in birds, which is what it is right now.

Right. I like that, a specialist in mammals. So what can we do to contain this virus?

Well, scientists are exploring new options. There’s been a lot of discussion about whether we should start vaccinating chickens in the US. The government, USDA labs, have been testing some poultry vaccines. It’s probably scientifically feasible. There are challenges there, both in terms of logistics — just how would you go about vaccinating billions of chickens every year. There are also trade questions. Traditionally, a lot of countries have not been willing to accept poultry products from countries that vaccinate their poultry.

And there’s concern about whether the virus might spread undetected in flocks that are vaccinated. So as we saw with COVID, the vaccine can sometimes stop you from getting sick, but it doesn’t necessarily stop infection. And so countries are worried they might unknowingly import products that are harboring the virus.

And what about among wild animals? I mean, how do you even begin to get your head around that?

Yeah, I mean, thinking about vaccinating wild animals maybe makes vaccinating all the chickens in the US look easy. There has been some discussion of limited vaccination campaigns, but that’s not feasible on a global scale. So unfortunately, the bottom line is there isn’t a good way to stop spread in wild animals. We can try to protect some vulnerable populations, but we’re not going to stop the circulation of this virus.

So, Emily, we started this conversation with a kind of curiosity that “The Daily” had about the price of eggs. And then you explained the bird flu to us. And then somehow we ended up learning about an ecological disaster that’s unfolding all around us, and potentially the source of the next human pandemic. That is pretty scary.

It is scary, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed by it. And I feel like I should take a step back and say none of this is inevitable. None of this is necessarily happening tomorrow. But this is why scientists are concerned and why they think it’s really important to keep a very close eye on what’s happening both on farms and off farms, as this virus spreads through all sorts of animal populations.

One thing that comes up again and again and again in my interviews with people who have been studying bird flu for decades, is how this virus never stops surprising them. And sometimes those are bad surprises, like these elephant seal die-offs, the incursions into dairy cattle. But there are some encouraging signs that have emerged recently. We’re starting to see some early evidence that some of the bird populations that survived early brushes with this virus might be developing some immunity. So that’s something that maybe could help slow the spread of this virus in animal populations.

We just don’t entirely know how this is going to play out. Flu is a very difficult, wily foe. And so that’s one reason scientists are trying to keep such a close, attentive eye on what’s happening.

Emily, thank you.

Thanks for having me.

Here’s what else you should know today.

On this vote, the yeas are 366 and the nays are 58. The bill is passed.

On Saturday, in four back-to-back votes, the House voted resoundingly to approve a long-stalled package of aid to Ukraine, Israel and other American allies, delivering a major victory to President Biden, who made aid to Ukraine one of his top priorities.

On this vote, the yeas are 385, and the no’s are 34 with one answering present. The bill is passed without objection.

The House passed the component parts of the $95 billion package, which included a bill that could result in a nationwide ban of TikTok.

On this vote, the yeas are 311 and the nays are 112. The bill is passed.

Oh, one voting present. I missed it, but thank you.

In a remarkable breach of custom, Democrats stepped in to supply the crucial votes to push the legislation past hard-line Republican opposition and bring it to the floor.

The House will be in order.

The Senate is expected to pass the legislation as early as Tuesday.

Today’s episode was produced by Rikki Novetsky, Nina Feldman, Eric Krupke, and Alex Stern. It was edited by Lisa Chow and Patricia Willens; contains original music by Marion Lozano, Dan Powell, Rowan Niemisto, and Sophia Lanman; and was engineered by Chris Wood. Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly. Special thanks to Andrew Jacobs.

That’s it for “The Daily.” I’m Sabrina Tavernise. See you tomorrow.

• April 26, 2024   •   21:50 Harvey Weinstein Conviction Thrown Out
• April 25, 2024   •   40:33 The Crackdown on Student Protesters
• April 24, 2024   •   32:18 Is $60 Billion Enough to Save Ukraine?
• April 23, 2024   •   30:30 A Salacious Conspiracy or Just 34 Pieces of Paper?
• April 22, 2024   •   24:30 The Evolving Danger of the New Bird Flu
• April 19, 2024   •   30:42 The Supreme Court Takes Up Homelessness
• April 18, 2024   •   30:07 The Opening Days of Trump’s First Criminal Trial
• April 17, 2024   •   24:52 Are ‘Forever Chemicals’ a Forever Problem?
• April 16, 2024   •   29:29 A.I.’s Original Sin
• April 15, 2024   •   24:07 Iran’s Unprecedented Attack on Israel
• April 14, 2024   •   46:17 The Sunday Read: ‘What I Saw Working at The National Enquirer During Donald Trump’s Rise’
• April 12, 2024   •   34:23 How One Family Lost $900,000 in a Timeshare Scam

Hosted by Sabrina Tavernise

Produced by Rikki Novetsky ,  Nina Feldman ,  Eric Krupke and Alex Stern

Edited by Lisa Chow and Patricia Willens

Original music by Marion Lozano ,  Dan Powell ,  Rowan Niemisto and Sophia Lanman

Engineered by Chris Wood

Listen and follow The Daily Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music

The outbreak of bird flu currently tearing through the nation’s poultry is the worst in U.S. history. Scientists say it is now spreading beyond farms into places and species it has never been before.

Emily Anthes, a science reporter for The Times, explains.

On today’s episode

Emily Anthes , a science reporter for The New York Times.

Background reading

Scientists have faulted the federal response to bird flu outbreaks on dairy farms .

Here’s what to know about the outbreak.

There are a lot of ways to listen to The Daily. Here’s how.

We aim to make transcripts available the next workday after an episode’s publication. You can find them at the top of the page.

Special thanks to Andrew Jacobs .

The Daily is made by Rachel Quester, Lynsea Garrison, Clare Toeniskoetter, Paige Cowett, Michael Simon Johnson, Brad Fisher, Chris Wood, Jessica Cheung, Stella Tan, Alexandra Leigh Young, Lisa Chow, Eric Krupke, Marc Georges, Luke Vander Ploeg, M.J. Davis Lin, Dan Powell, Sydney Harper, Mike Benoist, Liz O. Baylen, Asthaa Chaturvedi, Rachelle Bonja, Diana Nguyen, Marion Lozano, Corey Schreppel, Rob Szypko, Elisheba Ittoop, Mooj Zadie, Patricia Willens, Rowan Niemisto, Jody Becker, Rikki Novetsky, John Ketchum, Nina Feldman, Will Reid, Carlos Prieto, Ben Calhoun, Susan Lee, Lexie Diao, Mary Wilson, Alex Stern, Dan Farrell, Sophia Lanman, Shannon Lin, Diane Wong, Devon Taylor, Alyssa Moxley, Summer Thomad, Olivia Natt, Daniel Ramirez and Brendan Klinkenberg.

Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly. Special thanks to Sam Dolnick, Paula Szuchman, Lisa Tobin, Larissa Anderson, Julia Simon, Sofia Milan, Mahima Chablani, Elizabeth Davis-Moorer, Jeffrey Miranda, Renan Borelli, Maddy Masiello, Isabella Anderson and Nina Lassam.

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Posted by Sponsored Post Posted on 26 April 2024

7 tips how to write a business plan as a college student.

Writing a business plan as a college student can seem daunting, but it’s an excellent way to translate your ideas into a viable business. Whether you’re aiming to start a tech company, a small business, or a social enterprise, a well-crafted business plan is your roadmap to success. Here are seven practical tips to help you create a compelling business plan.

1. Start with a Clear Executive Summary

The executive summary is the hook of your business plan. It should concisely outline your business and why it will be successful. Include key elements like your business name, products or services, and the market needs your business will fulfill.

Key components to include:

• Business idea (what your business does)
• Business goals (what you aim to achieve)
• Target market (who your customers will be)
• Financial summary (the financial outlook of your business)

This summary should highlight your objectives and your plan’s financial goals, enticing readers to delve deeper into your writing. To write a business plan or any other document, you need to be able to capture your audience. If you are struggling with this, you can always order an essay on ukwritings essay service . This site can handle any student request. 

2. Conduct Thorough Market Research

Understanding your market is crucial. Dive deep into market research to validate the demand for your product or service. Analyze your competitors, understand your target audience, and identify market trends. This research will solidify your business idea and strengthen your strategies for reaching your market.

Research tips:

• Use online resources and databases
• Conduct surveys and interviews
• Analyze competitor strategies
• Identify industry trends

3. Define Your Business’s Structure

This section should detail your business’s organizational structure, including the roles and responsibilities of your team members. It should also clarify your business’s legal structure (e.g., sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation) and detail the key personnel involved. If it’s just you, explain how you plan to manage all aspects of your business, from sales to accounting.

4. Outline Your Products or Services

What exactly are you selling? Describe your products or services in detail. Explain the benefits they offer and why they are different from or better than what’s already available. Be specific about the features and advantages.

Elements to highlight:

• Unique features of your product/service
• Competitive advantages
• Pricing strategy
• Research and development

5. Develop a Strong Marketing and Sales Strategy

How will you attract and retain customers ? Develop a marketing and sales strategy outlining how to enter the market, attract customers, and achieve your sales goals. Be specific about the channels you will use to reach your audience, such as social media, online marketing, or traditional advertising.

Strategy points to include:

• Marketing channels (online, print, events)
• Sales tactics (discounts, promotions)
• Customer engagement strategies
• Growth tactics for scaling up

6. Create a Detailed Financial Plan

A critical component of your business plan is the financial plan. You must provide detailed financial projections, including startup costs, budget, cash flow, income statements, and balance sheets for the next three to five years. Use realistic assumptions based on your market research to support your projections. If you’re unfamiliar with financial statements, consider using business planning software or consulting an accountant.

Financial documents to prepare:

• Startup costs and capital requirements
• Projected income statement
• Cash flow forecast
• Break-even analysis

7. Review, Refine, and Edit

Your first draft won’t be perfect. Review and refine your business plan thoroughly. Have mentors, advisors, or knowledgeable peers critique your plan. Their feedback can provide invaluable insights that might improve your business’s viability. Finally, proofread your plan for grammatical errors and ensure it’s presented professionally.

Creating a business plan as a college student is an ambitious undertaking, but with these steps, you can craft a plan that not only outlines your business idea but also sets you up for success. Start small, think big, and plan thoroughly to turn your business dreams into reality.

Author: Ryan Mitchell

Ryan Mitchell combines his passion for writing with his experience as a student advisor to offer insightful articles that resonate with readers across educational topics. His expertise helps students navigate academic and personal challenges, enriching his content with practical advice. Dedicated and empathetic, Ryan’s work aims to empower students with knowledge and support.

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