College of Business
Georgette Chapman Phillips, Dean; Naomi Rothman, Associate Dean and Director, Undergraduate Programs; Yuliang Oliver Yao, Associate Dean, Graduate Programs; Paul Brockman, Senior Associate Dean for Faculty and Academic Affairs; Marietta Peytcheva, Chair, Department of Accounting; Chad Meyerhoefer, Chair, Department of Economics; Nandu Nayar, Chair, Perella Department of Finance; Andrew Ward, Chair, Department of Management; K. Sivakumar, Chair, Department of Marketing, Xiaosong (David) Peng, Chair, Decision and Technology Analytics (DATA) Department.
The College of Business offers a Bachelor of Science degree in business and economics. In the dynamic global environment of the 21st Century, today’s business students face unprecedented challenges. Lehigh’s College of Business prepares them to meet these challenges and to succeed. The mission of Lehigh University’s College of Business is to provide an intellectual and professional learning environment that advances knowledge through research and scholarship and that develops future leaders through experiential learning, rigorous analysis, and the discipline of a strong work ethic – the hallmarks of a Lehigh University business education.
The College of Business consists of six departments: accounting, decision and technology analytics (DATA), economics, Perella Department of Finance, management, and marketing. Its programs, accredited by the AACSB International—The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business—provide students with a solid foundation in business and economics principles. In addition to the traditional undergraduate majors of accounting, economics, finance, management, and marketing, the College offers innovative programs and courses that respond to today’s unique business requirements, including:
The Business Information Systems major answers a recognized need in the business world. As businesses seek to make themselves more productive and competitive, they have become more reliant on information technology. Students with a good understanding of information systems can help businesses enhance their use of this technology.
The Supply Chain Management major is another response to the complex environment facing business graduates. This undergraduate major gives students solid exposure to supply management, logistics, business-to-business marketing and operations management.
The Business Analytics major is to prepare students for today's data-driven world by imparting knowledge and developing skills that students need to collect, integrate, and analyze data and interpret results to support business decisions and process improvements.
The College of Business has joined with the College of Engineering to offer two cross-college programs. These programs, Integrated Business and Engineering (IBE) and Computer Science and Business (CSB), are described in full in the following “Crossing Boundaries” section.
All minors offered by the College of Arts and Sciences are available to College of Business undergraduate students. The engineering minor offered by the College of Engineering is also available to all College of Business undergraduates. The following College of Business minors are available to College of Business students: business information systems, supply chain management, management, and financial technology (FinTech).
In order to declare a College of Business minor, students must first have a College of Business declared major. There is no overlapping credit between College of Business major and College of Business minor courses or between College of Business minors.
BREAK Boundaries
As technology and business march ahead together, opportunity abounds for institutions of higher learning. The business makers of tomorrow are groomed in the classrooms of today. Seeking brilliance and purpose, our students explore, evolve and expand new thinking. Our college is a research-based institution that pioneers interdisciplinary learning and fosters the hard-working practical skills employers covet. And our careers are raised ever higher by the adventurous ingenuity Lehigh cultivates. Across disciplines, geographies, and ideologies, we see boundless possibilities. We are the students, alumni, professors, and friends of the Lehigh College of Business, and we break boundaries.
Entrepreneurship Minor
The program aims to prepare students from all undergraduate colleges at Lehigh with the skill sets, attitudes, and understanding of the processes to realize their entrepreneurial goals in either an emerging or established company setting. The program is designed to be generally accessible to students from all disciplines with an emphasis on innovation, the entrepreneurial process, and cross-functional integration. The minor can be added to any undergraduate degree at the university.
Real Estate Minor
The real estate program is designed to complement a wide range of majors, from art and architecture to civil engineering to environmental science to finance to marketing to economics. Students must take five courses comprised of both required and elective components which draw from several academic disciplines across campus. The program is housed in the Goodman Center for Real Estate and is open to undergraduate students of all majors.
Career Placement
The undergraduate programs in the College of Business provide the students with a strong foundation in business and economic principles necessary for success in business. Upon graduation, the majority of students from the College of Business enter business in many different professional positions, including accounting, investment banking, advertising, marketing, management consulting, and information systems. Further professional studies in law, graduate business schools, or specialized graduate education in economics, operations research, or other related fields are additional options open to graduates.
A required Student to Professional Co-Curriculum facilitates undergraduate preparation for the competitive job landscape.
Variety of Options
While preparing students for a career in business and economics, we recognize the importance of a well-rounded individual. At Lehigh, this important exposure to science, language, and the arts and humanities is accomplished by distribution requirements, within which the student has wide choice. Students take 48 credits outside the College of Business.
The Bachelor of Science in Business and Economics may also lead to admission into the Master of Business Administration program at Lehigh or another institution after graduates have at least 2 years of work experience. In addition, the college also offers the following graduate degrees: Doctor of Philosophy, Master of Business Administration and Engineering, Master of Business Administration and Educational Leadership, Master of Science in Business Analytics, Master of Science in Financial Engineering, Master of Science in Applied Economics, and Master of Science in Management.
Bachelor of Science in Business and Economics
The College of Business at Lehigh University prepares students to become business and community leaders in a broad range of organizations. Our undergraduate students acquire the knowledge and skills needed to excel in business. Overall, we expect our graduates to be able to successfully solve complex, unstructured business problems.
For the bachelor of science degree in business and economics, 124 credit hours are required. A writing requirement, which is included within the required 124 credit hours, is also a part of the college curriculum.
Planning Courses of Study
| First Year | Credits |
|---|---|
| ENGL 001 or 003 | 3 |
| MATH 021 or 081 | 4 |
| ECO 001 | 4 |
| BUS 001 | 1 |
| ECO 045 | 3 |
| BUS 003 | 1.5 |
| MGT 043 | 3 |
| BUAN 044 | 1.5 |
| 21 | |
| Second Year | Credits |
| ACCT 151 | 3 |
| ACCT 152 | 3 |
| BIS 111 | 3 |
| ECO 146 or 119 | 3 |
| FIN 125 | 3 |
| MKT 111 | 3 |
| SCM 186 | 3 |
| 21 | |
| Third Year | Credits |
| LAW 201 | 3 |
| BUS 203 | 1.5 |
| MGT 243 | 3 |
| BUAN 244 | 1.5 |
| 9 | |
| Fourth Year | Credits |
| MGT 301 | 3 |
| 3 | |
| Total Credits: 54 | |
Major Programs (15 credits - 23 credits)
By the end of the second semester of the sophomore year, students select a major consisting of sequential or related courses in one of the following major programs: accounting, business information systems, economics, finance, management, marketing, and supply chain management. A GPA of 2.0 or higher in the major program is required for graduation.
Double Majors
Students in the College of Business may pursue a double major within the college according to college guidelines, which include the requirements of each of the majors and a minimum of 10 courses (30 credits) between the two combined majors. Students must declare a single major prior to declaring a second major. Students planning to pursue a second major within the College of Business must meet a prerequisite GPA of 2.0 or higher.
Globalization and Diversity Requirements
Each student must complete a minimum of 3 credits in Diversity and 3 credits in Globalization. These courses may simultaneously fulfill other College of Business degree requirements.
Electives (52-55 credits) - depending on major
Students will earn 52-55 credits of electives. A minimum of 48 credits are to be taken outside the College of Business.
Students are required to take six (6) credits of humanities (HU), six (6) credits of social science (SS), and three (3) credits of science (NS) for a total of 15 credits of distribution requirements. Students should refer to the department in the catalog to determine which course offerings may be taken to satisfy these requirements.
In the College of Business, the pass-fail option is available for elective courses only. A student desiring Lehigh credit for a course taken at another institution must complete a transfer credit form and obtain approval from the appropriate Lehigh academic department in advance.
business CERTIFICATE Programs
Business Analytics Certificate
Today’s business environment challenges firms to use data as a driver in decision-making. All sectors of business are bursting with information that needs to be structured and analyzed in order to form meaningful insights. Upon completion of the certificate, students will:
- Understand the field of data science with an understanding of three distinct areas: predictive (forecasting), descriptive (business intelligence and data mining), and prescriptive (optimization and simulation)
- Apply data analytic tools in different business disciplines to formulate and solve business problems
- Demonstrate an understanding of fundamental computer programming constructs and concepts
- Understand how data is collected, prepared, stored, analyzed, modeled, and visualized for analytical business analysis and decision making
The Business Analytics Certificate is a 12-credit program that includes a mix of courses related to business analytics designed to give students exposure to computer programming, business intelligence, computer models, and data management in order to foster decision making in the modern enterprise. The certificate is open to all College of Business students, including CSB and IBE. To earn the certificate, students will take at least 12 credits and earn a grade of "C-" or higher in each course.
For a program overview with course information, please visit the College of Business website.
International Business Certificate
The International Business (IB) Certificate is intended to benefit those students seeking to broaden their understanding of international business and foster the development of their global mindset. The program encompasses a mix of courses relating to international business and management, courses designed to broaden a student’s functional knowledge and or cultural competencies, and requires participation in a global immersive experience. The IB Certificate is open to all undergraduate students from any major with the approval from the Directors of the IB Certificate Program. Students are required to complete a minimum of 12 credits and participate in an immersive global experience.
Students are required to take at least one (1) of the following two (2) courses:
- MGT 346 International Business
- MGT 342 Managing in the International Organization
To successfully complete the program, students must take at least one other approved College of Business course and then any combination of qualifying business or non-business courses to reach the 12-credit hour requirement. To count toward the IB Certificate, the content of courses must be highly salient to international business, and the student must obtain a grade of "C-" or higher. Exemplars of international business-related courses, as well as qualifying global experiences, can be found on the College of Business website.
Business Minor
The purpose of the business minor program is to enable non-business students to pursue a course of business studies which enables them to supplement their major studies and enhances their career options upon graduation. The overall learning objective of the program is to provide non-business students with the knowledge and skills with which to make more informed business decisions.
Courses offered in the business minor program are not open to students currently in the College of Business, nor may these classes count as substitutes for College of Business core classes should a student later decide to transfer into the College of Business.
Program of Studies
The business minor consists of 14 credit hours. The courses are integrated across the entire program and must be taken in a stepped sequence. These 14 credit hours plus the prerequisite consist of the following courses:
Required prerequisite course
ECO 001 – Principles of Economics (4) ECO 001 can be taken in either the freshman or sophomore year and must be completed prior to entering the Business Minor Program.
Required courses
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| BUS 125 | 1 | BUS 127 | 3 |
| BUS 126 | 3 | ||
| 4 | 3 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| BUS 225 | 3 | BUS 226 | 3 |
| BUS 326 | 1 | ||
| 3 | 4 | ||
| Total Credits: 14 | |||
Recommended courses
The courses required in the business minor program will be offered in a stepped sequence requiring completion of each course in the sequence before being able to continue to the next course. That is, students must first complete BUS 126 before taking BUS 127, BUS 127 before taking BUS 225, and BUS 225 before taking BUS 226. BUS 125 and BUS 326 are to be taken in conjunction with BUS 126 and BUS 226 respectively.
Program admission requirements
Each spring, approximately 100 students will be accepted into the business minor program for the following fall. Applications to the program will be made by students and submitted to the program director by the last Friday in January. An admissions committee comprised of the business minor program director and the business minor curriculum committee will make admission decisions based on G.P.A., experience, and interest in pursuing business opportunities upon graduation from Lehigh (to be evaluated on the basis of a written essay). Students will be notified of admissions decisions by the first week in March to begin registration for the fall semester. Applications are restricted to students from the P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science, the College of Arts and Sciences, and the College of Health only. The Director of the Business Minor program is Robert Kuchta, Professor of Practice, Department of Management, 330 Rauch Business Center (rok8@lehigh.edu).
GRADUATE PROGRAMS
Graduate degree programs offered by the college include the Master of Business Administration, the Master of Science in Applied Economics, the Master of Science in Business Analytics, the Master of Science in Management, and the Ph.D. in Business and Economics.
Interdisciplinary degree programs are offered through partnerships with other colleges:
- P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science - Master of Business Administration and Engineering joint degree
- P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science and the College of Arts and Sciences-Master of Science in Financial Engineering
- College of Education-Master of Business Administration and Educational Leadership joint degree
- College of Health-Master of Business Administration and Master of Public Health, dual-degree option.
Dual Degree Programs are available through the College of Business
- MS in Business Analytics with MS in Applied Economics (enroll in programs in any order)
- MS in Management with MS in Business Analytics or MS in Applied Economics (must enroll in MS in Management first)
The Accelerated 4+1 MS in Financial Engineering Program may allow the completion of the master’s degree in Financial Engineering in a one-year timeframe. Undergraduate students indicating interest are paired with program advisors who guide them through the completion of prerequisite work during undergraduate study. Undergraduates with room in their schedules may have the opportunity to take and reserve graduate-level courses during their undergraduate study, thus saving time and funds.
