Business students must be well versed in the principles of accounting, so students should expect to complete basic, intermediate and advanced accounting courses before earning their degree. Basic accounting courses introduce students to accounting principles and how they relate to financial statements. Students also become familiar with managerial accounting in these courses and discover how to use accounting to plan and make smart business decisions. In more advanced accounting courses, students will gain an in-depth knowledge of accounting principles and how they relate to financial reporting, debt investment and stockholders' equity.
Business students also must have a strong grasp of marketing principles and how to effectively market a business or product to create a strong brand. Courses in marketing include an introduction to marketing research in which students learn marketing research methods and data analysis. Students may also take a course in buyer behavior and study how demographic and socioeconomic principles influence decision-making. Other marketing courses include business-to-business marketing in which students study selling products to nonconsumer buyers and international marketing, which delves into distributing and promoting products in world markets.
For students who see themselves in upper-level positions, management courses can help them learn how to oversee the operations of a company. Management courses will cover behavior and organizational theories and how they can be used to boost individual, group and organizational performance. Management courses will also help students identify employees with knowledge, skills and abilities and how to manage those employees so they can experience further success. Students will study how to effectively handle leadership or ethical crises and how to successfully negotiate.
Business students will take finance courses to gain a solid understanding of how financial and investment decisions can impact organizations. Students will become competent at financial mathematics, budget planning, trading strategies and portfolio management. Students will study financial statements and learn how to analyze them and apply the information to future financial decisions. International finance principles are also taught, which includes studies on exchange rates, international payments and international liquidity. Finance courses also cover ethics in which students will learn about issues such as insider trading.