Business (BU)
BU 101 Introduction to Business (3)
Designed to introduce the student to the American business system and to analysis of business organization and operation.
BU 115 Entrepreneurship and Entrepreneurship Law (3)
Assists aspiring business owners and managers in recognizing issues relevant to starting-up, maintaining, and growing a company.
BU 180 Personal Finance (3)
Personal and family financial planning. Topics include: consumer legislation, consumer finance, family budgeting, estate planning, insurance, individual income tax, home buying, mortgages, retirement pensions, and investments.
BU 250 Management Information Systems (3)
Concepts of information systems; analysis, evaluation, and implementation of management information systems; data-base management; information systems and management. (Assumes intermediate knowledge of MS Office applications, including Excel spreadsheets.) Prerequisites: EN 101, and MA 116 (recommended) or MA 112, or MA 123, or MA 141, or MA 151.
BU 258 Foundations of Data Analysis (3)
Foundational knowledge and technology to perform fundamental data analysis supporting problem solving and evidence based decision making. Through hands-on experiences, students will identify, extract, prepare, and analyze data and communicate those results that inform decisions. Prerequisites: EN 101, MA 116 (recommended) or MA 112, and BU 250.
BU 259 The Business of Art (3)
Explores and analyzes approaches to art valuation, art appraisal, and entrepreneurship in the arts. Examines the art market, the art consumer, and the value of art. Business problems and opportunities in the world of art are identified, analyzed, and assessed. Prerequisite: MA 112.
BU 260 Business Plan Development (3)
Through application of an entrepreneurial framework, learn to evaluate opportunities and develop a business concept to determine feasibility and access funding. Gain confidence to use entrepreneurial thinking and action with future opportunities.
BU 302 Business Communications (3)
BU 305 Contemporary Information Systems (3)
BU 309 Business Data Communication and Networking (3)
BU 315 Legal Environment of Business (3)
BU 319 Labor Law & Legislation (3)
BU 342 Organization & Management (3)
Management theory and practice, including fundamentals of management; making things happen; meeting the competition; organizing people, projects, and processes; and motivating and leading. Emphasis is given to the development of management, organizational structures, organizational dynamics, the impact of environmental forces and use of analytical tools in the performance of the management function. Prerequisites: EC 200 and EC 201; one of the following: PY 100 or SO 100; and 2.0 GPA.
BU 343 Entrepreneurship, Creativity, and Innovation (3)
Provides students with an overall understanding of the entrepreneurship process. Specifically explores the dimensions of creativity and innovation, and how these can aid firm growth. Explores the scope of entrepreneurship as new venture development and examines entrepreneurship as a manageable process that can be applied in any organizational setting. Exposes students to a mix of theory and practice which is applied to real world situations. Prerequisites: BU 260, or EC 200, EC 201, and BU 342 (or concurrent).
BU 345 Human Resources Management (3)
BU 346 Organizational Behavior (3)
BU 347 Production and Operations Management (3)
Operations management in both manufacturing and service organizations. Use of models to make operations management decisions in the areas of productivity, quality, customer service, and production and process strategy. Prerequisites: BU 250, BU 342, EC 211 (or MA 346), AC 225, MA 116 or higher, and 2.0 GPA.
BU 355 International Business (3)
The global economic and political environment in which international trade and investment activities as conducted by multinational and national business organizations. Examination of the international dimensions of the areas of finance, management, marketing, operations, and business strategy. Prerequisites: AC 225 or BU 101, EC 200 and EC 201.
BU 356 Cross-Cultural Management (3)
Critical assessment of practices in managing a culturally diverse workforce. Applications of culture to ethics and values across the globe, communication, motivation, dispute resolution, and human resource management. Prerequisite: BU 342 (or concurrent).
BU 360 Principles of Marketing (3)
Marketing concepts and their relevance to organizational objectives and methods of operation. Marketing environment, marketing mix, marketing planning, strategy implementation, and assessment of marketing performance. Emphasis on improving marketing performance in a socially and ethically responsible manner. Prerequisites: EC 200, EC 201, and 2.0 GPA.
BU 361 Principles of Retailing (3)
Structural organization for retailing and the functional activities involved. Principles of site selection, staffing, planning, pricing, buying merchandise, sales promotion and expense management are included. Prerequisite: BU 360.
BU 362 Marketing Research (3)
BU 363 Promotion (3)
Examination of the promotion function of the marketing mix. Topics include: promotion strategy; management of the promotion mix (advertising, sales promotion, public relations); media strategy; and evaluation. Prerequisite: BU 360.
BU 364 Consumer Behavior (3)
The behavior of buyers of goods and services. An examination will be made of theories, concepts, methods and research findings of other disciplines and a study of the relation of these findings to management decision making. Industrial and consumer buying behavior will be considered within the context of the course. Prerequisite: BU 360.
BU 366 Sales (3)
A detailed examination of the selling dimension of the promotion mix. Topics include: personal communication; personal selling; relationship-building; and sales strategy and management. Prerequisite: BU 360.
BU 368 International Marketing (3)
Analysis of marketing management problems, techniques and strategies in international marketing, emphasizing changes in competition and market structure abroad.
BU 369 Entrepreneurial Marketing (3)
Framework to identify, create, and implement innovative marketing techniques for new ventures and small businesses in a resource-constrained environment. Creative strategies for the start-up phase for new products and services or in new markets and also applicable in large organizations. Prerequisite: BU 360.
BU 370 Entrepreneurship Clinic (3)
The capstone of the entrepreneurship program. Key building blocks: in class debate, field cases, redefinition and development of business ideas moderated by instructors. Students will be expected to work for and with entrepreneurs and develop business models that can be implemented. They will present a working model by the completion of the course. Successful entrepreneurs will participate as speakers/moderators and mentors for the participating students. Prerequisites: BU 343 or Admission to the School of Business.
BU 371 Digital Marketing (3)
Examines how digital technologies can employed to enhance and implement the marketing function. Provides an overview of the concepts defining the digital environment and examines the concepts and techniques that characterize marketing in the digital environment. Prerequisite: BU 360.
BU 374 Principles of Risk and Insurance (3)
The study of risk and insurance, dealing with the principal risks to which individuals are exposed, and the various means of dealing with risk, including insurance, risk retention, self- insurance, and loss prevention. Examines the responsibilities and activities for treating risk at three levels: personal and family, employer, and government.
BU 375 Property and Liability Insurance (3)
An advanced insurance course of current financial, legal and social problems involving property-liability insurance; analysis of legal problems involving insurance coverage, financial aspects, and governmental regulation of the property-liability insurance enterprise, and economic aspects of the insurance industry. Prerequisite: BU 374.
BU 378 Life and Health Insurance (3)
The problems of and the alternative techniques for the insuring of health and human life values from the differing viewpoints of the company, the economy, and the consumer. Among the topics covered are health and financial needs in the life cycle of the family, settlement options and the programming elements of business insurance, estate planning, probability theory mortality, rating and reserves, and the recent changes in the health insurance industry. Prerequisite: BU 374.
BU 381 Business Finance (3)
Theory and techniques of financial management, designed to provide the basic financial background needed by students in business, economics, or related fields. Topics include: capital budgeting, capital structure, dividend policy, the cost of capital, and working capital management. Prerequisites: EN 101, AC 224, AC 225, BU 250, MA 116 or higher, EC 211 (or MA 346), and 2.0 GPA.
BU 387 Credit Management (3)
BU 389 Entrepreneurial Finance - Small Business (3)
The financial aspects of the management of small business and entrepreneurial firms (sole proprietorships, partnerships, small nonpublic corporations). Prerequisite: BU 381.
BU 390 Principles of Real Estate (3)
A course that surveys the many areas of the real estate business and real estate investment. Financing, appraisal, loan closing, marketing, property management, land description, title transfer and other topics are included in the course.
BU 392 Real Estate Law (3)
Elements of property laws, purchase contracts, listing agreements, estates and trusts. Prerequisite: BU 315.
BU 393 Real Estate Appraisal (3)
An introduction to real estate appraising including the market comparison, cost and income approaches to value with emphasis on house appraisal.
BU 403 Special Topics/Business (3)
Selected topics announced in advanced. May be taken more than one semester. Prerequisite: Admission to the School of Business. Other prerequisites will be specified for each topic.
BU 404 Independent Study-Business (3)
Individual study of a topic in business. Activity must be supervised by a full-time School of Business faculty member with professorial rank. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business and consent of directing faculty member prior to enrollment.
BU 405 Honors Research-Business (3)
Restricted to those students seeking to qualify for honors in the major field and designed to provide an intellectual challenge for superior students with a strong interest in scholarship. Course activity must be supervised by a member of the full-time School of Business faculty with professorial rank. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business and consent.
BU 406 International Business and Entrepreneurial Experience (3)
First-hand business experience acquired in an international setting. Analysis of business problems, ideas, opportunities, techniques, and strategies in an international context. Emphasizes changes in competition and market structure abroad. Washburn students will work in teams with foreign students to solve a problem for an overseas company. With approval, this course may be taken for credit more than once. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business, BU 315, BU 347, BU 381 (or concurrent), and consent.
BU 416 Commercial Transactions (3)
Commercial law in the area of the Uniform Commercial Code, suretyship, insurance, professional responsibilities, etc. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business and BU 315.
BU 417 Legal Business Associations (3)
Examination of the law of agency, partnerships, corporations, and security regulations. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business and BU 315 recommended.
BU 419 Labor Relations (3)
Labor relations and collective bargaining including the history, structure, and policies of labor organizations. Mediation and arbitration are considered. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business and EC 341.
BU 449 Strategic Management (3)
Integrate the functional areas of business in formulating and implementing basic policy for business. Analytical approach to strategic decisions applied to practical examples of problems faced by business firms. May not be taken for graduate credit. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business, BU 342, BU 347, BU 360, BU 381, and 2.0 GPA.
BU 457 Multinational Enterprise Practices (3)
BU 460 Small Business Institute (3)
Student groups counsel and consult with small business firms selected by the Small Business Administration and the instructor. Field work with the firms provides opportunities to identify and analyze problems, and to make recommendations. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business, senior business major, and consent.
BU 461 Small Business Institute (3)
Student groups counsel and consult with small business firms selected by the Small Business Administration and the instructor. Field work with the firms provides opportunities to identify and analyze problems, and to make recommendations. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business, senior business major, and consent.
BU 470 Entrepreneurship Clinic (3)
The capstone of the entrepreneurship program. Key building blocks: in class debate, field cases, redefinition and development of business ideas moderated by instructors. Students will be expected to work for and with entrepreneurs and develop business models that can be implemented. They will present a working model by the completion of the course. Successful entrepreneurs will participate as speakers/ moderators and mentors for the participating students. Prerequisites: BU 115, BU 260 and junior status; or EC 201 and CM 335 and junior status; or admission to the School of Business.
BU 471 Marketing Management (3)
Examination of the strategic marketing management process planning, implementation, and control. Topics include: environmental, competitor, and customer analysis; market targeting; the marketing mix; and the international aspects of marketing management. Case analysis and marketing models are used. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business and BU 360.
BU 473 Marketing Channels (3)
The distribution function of the marketing mix. Topics include: channel structure and function; strategic channel development; channel management and logistics; direct channels, service channels, franchising, and international distribution channels. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business and BU 360.
BU 475 Theory of Insurance (3)
The nature and cost of risk in our economic society, and of the methods of handling it. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business and BU 375.
BU 477 International Finance (3)
The financial management of a multinational business enterprise. Develops strategies for investing internationally, including hedging exchange rate risk, adjusting to client preferences and home currencies, evaluating performance, estimating a corporation’s exposure to real exchange rate risk, strategies to hedge risk or to dynamically adjust to shocks, and reasons for a corporation to hedge. Also covers international capital budgeting, multinational transfer pricing, and international cash management. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business and BU 381, or equivalent (assumes accounting and statistics).
BU 483 Investments (3)
The theory and techniques of financial asset analysis including the fundamental, technical, and efficient market approaches. The course is designed to provide background needed by individuals (regardless of major) to make investment decisions. Topics include: market mechanism, mutual funds, the yield curve, fundamental common stock analysis, and portfolio theory. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business and BU 381.
BU 484 Applied Portfolio Management (3)
Provides students with the opportunity to practice investment analysis and portfolio management. Students will use industry tools to analyze investment strategies and allocate funds provided by the Washburn University Foundation to various investments held in a portfolio that is reviewed and updated in subsequent semesters. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business or declaration of the Actuarial Science major and BU 483.
BU 488 Financial Management (3)
Specialized skills in corporate financial management are developed through the application of techniques such as the discounted cash flow method, dividend valuation model, capital asset pricing model, and options pricing models. Problem areas covered include working capital management, capital budgeting, and capital structure. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business and BU 381.
BU 491 Real Estate Finance (3)
Methods of financing residential, commercial and industrial properties. The nature of mortgage loans for construction and permanent financing and land development. Sources of funds, lender requirements, and loan and investment yield analysis. Secondary mortgage market financing. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business and BU 381.
BU 493 Income Property Appraisal (3)
Techniques and methods used in appraising income properties. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business and BU 393.
BU 495 Real Estate Investment (3)
Cash flow and investment return analyses are applied to income-producing properties. The most commonly used methods of yield analysis are used in real estate investment case analysis. Financing, appraisal, taxation, and property rights are applied to apartment and office buildings, rental houses, shopping centers, industrial parks, and other types of properties. The capstone real estate course. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business.
BU 499 Internship in Business (3)
Professional work experience with a business firm or governmental agency in the following areas of specialization: finance and banking, management, and marketing. The work situation must create a new learning experience for the student. Credit hours may be used only as elective business hours and will not count toward the minimum 63 hours of accounting, business, and economics hours required of the BBA candidate. The grade will be awarded on a pass-fail basis, as determined by the supervising faculty member. Prerequisites: Admission to the School of Business, consent of the major area faculty, appropriate academic background, at least seventy-five (75) semester credit hours, at least a 2.5 overall GPA, and meet the general qualifications specified by the sponsoring business firm or governmental agency.
BU 522 Business Analysis Tools (3)
Quantitative methods in business decision making. Emphasis on the use of computer-based technologies in quantitative analysis, including the use of databases and spreadsheets. Prerequisite: College Algebra or equivalent and Admission to the MBA program.
BU 523 Quantitative Methods II (3)
Business statistics, data analysis, quality control statistics, computer states, computer-based. Prerequisite: BU 522
BU 526 Accounting and Finance for Managers (3)
Accounting is taught during the first 8 weeks of the semester and finance is taught during the second 8 weeks of the semester. The principles and concepts of accounting and finance. Emphasis on (1) the use of an accounting information systems for measuring and communicating financial information for planning, control, and decision-making, (2) applying time value of money concepts and trade-offs in risk and return in business decisions, and (3) analysis of financial information for capital structure formation, capital budgeting, and dividend policies. Prerequisite: College Algebra or equivalent and Admission to the MBA program.
BU 527 Marketing Concepts (3)
Role and importance of marketing in our economy; principles, methods, and problems involved in the management of marketing operations and activities. Prerequisite: EC 525 or consent of instructor.
BU 528 Production and Operations Systems (3)
Management of the production/operations function and service, retailing and manufacturing. Discusses models for strategic, tactical, and operational decisions. Prerequisite: BU 522 recommended, or consent of instructor.
BU 529 Human Behavior in Organizations (3)
Aspects of individual and group behavior as the affect the business environment. Prerequisite: None.
BU 616 Commercial Transactions (3)
Nature and sources of commercial law, legal process, common, and statutory law as they pertain to sales, negotiable instruments, secured transactions, suretyship, insurance and bankruptcy. (Not available to those who have taken BU 416.). Prerequisite: Admission to the Master of Accountancy program and BU 315 or Admission to the MBA program and BU 526.
BU 630 Entrepreneurship/Creativity (3)
Entrepreneurship as a way of thinking and acting applicable to new ventures in any organizational setting. Explores creativity and innovation as sources of entrepreneurial opportunities and entrepreneurship as a manageable process that can be applied in the private and public sectors. Includes a mix of theory and practice applied to the real world situations and may be co-taught by a practitioner with specific industry experience. Prerequisite: Admission to the Doctor of Nursing Practice program or Admission to the MBA program.
BU 653 Product Systems (3)
BU 655 Financial Strategies (3)
BU 656 Computer-Based Information Systems (3)
Computer-based systems for supporting management decisions. Prerequisite: BU 522 and Admission to the MBA program.
BU 657 Strategic Marketing Management (3)
An analytical approach to the marketing function of a firm. Development of competitive marketing strategy in a dynamic environment. Prerequisite: BU 526 (Accounting) and Admission to the MBA program.
BU 658 Managerial Skills/Professional Experiences (3)
Course will be composed of two components. In the first, managerial skills, students will acquire a set of skills to manage and group and individual dynamics in organizations. The second, Professional Experiences, will consist of local and regional CEOs, CIOs, CFOs, and middle managers presenting seminars addressing managerial issues they encounter in their professional lives. The emphasis of these seminars will be the legal and ethical responsibilities of organizations. Prerequisite: Admission to the MBA program.
BU 659 Strategic Analysis (3)
Study of approaches for defining, analyzing, and resolving complex strategic problems facing a profit and not-for-profit organization. Prerequisites: Admission to the MBA program. The course should be taken during the last two semesters of the MBA program after completion of most of the upper-level required courses.
BU 671 Legal and Ethical Issues (3)
The influence of legal, ethical, political, social, and regulatory issues in organizations. Prerequisite: Admission to the MBA program.
BU 674 International Business (3)
Study of international business and the multinational corporation. The environment of international business is analyzed, including political and economic factors. Financial, marketing and human resource management in the international context is addressed. Prerequisite: Admission to the MBA program, BU 526 (Accounting) or equivalent, or consent.
BU 677 International Financial Strategy (3)
BU 678 International Marketing (3)
The economic, political, legal, and cultural environments that affect a firm's international marketing program. Methods, policies, and organizations for marketing in various countries and cultures. Prerequisite: Admission to the MBA program, BU 526 (Accounting) or equivalent, or consent.
BU 679 Investments (3)
BU 683 Venture Creation (3)
Covers the entrepreneurial process from conception to implementation of a venture. Concentrating on attributes of entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial teams, their search for and assessment of opportunities, and the gathering of resources to convert opportunities into businesses. Students learn how to evaluate entrepreneurs and their plans for new businesses. While the heart of entrepreneurship is opportunity assessment, a holistic approach to venture creation is taken. Students work in teams to write a business plan for a new venture. Prerequisite: Admission to the MBA program.
BU 684 Mergers, Acquisitions, Ethics (3)
A study of the theory and techniques pertaining to mergers, acquisitions, and related ethical decision making. Coursework will include analysis and application. Students will analyze successful and failed mergers and related ethical issues. Requirements include student identification and potential merger parties and proposition of a structure and strategy for merger completion and integration. Prerequisite: Completion of foundation level requirements and admission to the MBA program.
BU 685 Business Intelligence Systems (3)
Business intelligence systems combine operational data with analytical tools to present complex and competitive information to planners and decision makers. The objective is to improve the timeliness and quality of inputs to the decision process. Business intelligence is used to understand the capabilities available in the firm; the state of art, trends, and future directions in the markets, the technologies, and the regulatory environment in which the firm competes; and the actions of competitors and the implications of these actions. Prerequisite: Completion of foundation level requirements, BU 656, and admission to the MBA program.
BU 696 Research Project in Business (3)
Individual study of selected problems in business or economics as conducted through extensive reading and research. Approval of project proposal must be obtained before enrolling in the course. Approved project proposals are to be filed with the MBA Program Director and faculty sponsor. Enrollment by consent of faculty sponsor and MBA Program Director only. Prerequisites: Admission to the MBA program and completion of all foundational courses. Cannot be taken during a student's first semester in the MBA program.
BU 697 Internship Experience (3)
Professional work experience in a business-related area pertaining to the MBA program curriculum with a business firm, governmental agency, or not-for-profit organization. The work experience must create a new learning experience for the student. Approval of the internship and its terms must be obtained from the MBA Program Director prior to enrolling in the course. Prerequisites: Enrollment by consent of instructor/MBA Program Director only. Admission to the MBA program.
BU 698 Special Topics/Business (3)
Special topics announced in advance. May be taken more than once. Enrollment by consent of instructor and MBA Program/MAcc Program Director. Prerequisites: Admission to the MBA Program or Admission to the MAcc Program.