For prospective students interested in accredited business administration degree programs in Illinois, there is a large variety of schools and degree levels to choose from in the state that is often referred to as a microcosm of the nation. This is due to the diverse areas of the state offering strong opportunities in business, industry, and agriculture. With more than 20 accredited four-year universities across the state, coupled with the numerous business, financial, and cultural opportunities to be found in Chicago alone, this state has a lot to offer potential business administration graduates. To see more accredited business administration degree programs in Illinois, visit Business Administration Degree Programs in Illinois (M-Z).
Bradley University
Foster College of Business
Bradley University is a private, independent university offering degrees at various levels and concentrations. The Foster College of Business offers nine undergraduate degree programs, seven minors, and five advanced, graduate degree options. Across these degree programs, the Foster College of Business serves more than 1,000 students. Students choosing to study business administration will gain both theoretical and practical knowledge to prepare them for a wide variety of business and managerial positions upon graduation.
Bachelor of Arts in Business Management & Administration
One of the most flexible degree programs in the Foster College of Business, the Bachelor of Arts in management & administration prepares students to remain marketable regardless of changes in economic conditions, personal interests, and global location. In addition to general education requirements, students are required to take three prescribed management courses for this degree, and four electives within the Management and Leadership department. These electives can be geared toward the student’s particular interests in business, or they can be taken as part of a concentration in either human resource management or legal studies in business. In addition to these requirements for the business management & administration degree, the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements include the equivalent of two years’ worth of credits for a foreign language. Graduates are prepared for entry-level positions in larger organizations and mid- to upper level positions in smaller companies.
Bachelor of Science in Business Management & Administration
Requirements for the management & administration degree program are the same regardless of whether the student is seeking a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree. Students seeking this degree will also be required to take three prescribed management courses and four electives within the department. They can choose the same concentrations or simply choose from options that interest them for these electives. Both degrees require a minimum of 124 credit hours, which include the general education requirements as well as the coursework within the Management and Leadership department. However, instead of the foreign language requirement, the student seeking the Bachelor of Science degree must complete a minimum of six courses chosen from the areas of physical and natural sciences, mathematics, computer science, statistics, or quantitative methods. These are in addition to the other general education requirements.
Minor in Business Administration
The Minor program in business administration is designed for non-business majors who seek limited business knowledge and skills to enhance their personal career choices or who may wish to seek a graduate degree in business at a later time. It requires a total of 27 credit hours in coursework that covers principles of accounting, economics, and marketing, as well as courses in business legal environments, organizational management, quantitative analysis, and finance. In addition, students must maintain at least a 2.0 GPA for courses within the Foster College of Business and must have a cumulative 2.0 GPA when first declaring the minor. Approval is needed from the Dean of the Foster College of Business before the student begins the minor program, and the Dean is also needed to approve the recording of the minor on the student’s transcripts once completed satisfactorily.
Master of Business Administration
Bradley University offers an accelerated Master of Business Administration program, designed to provide students with their MBA in two years of meeting just two nights each week. This degree requires a total of 33 semester hours gained through 12 courses. Of these, nine courses totaling 24 semester hours are required core courses designed to prepare students to take on leadership roles within their organizations by emphasizing interpersonal communication skills and building analytical and strategic thinking skills. This MBA program focuses on transferring theory into practical experience, both within the student’s current work environment and beyond. The course culminates with a Capstone Course, concentrating on strategic planning and problem-solving within a real world business or organizational issue. The nine remaining semester hours are for three elective courses, and can be used to concentrate on finance, management, or marketing or to simply choose courses from all three areas.
Accreditations
- Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International)
Contact Information
Bradley University
Foster College of Business
Baker Hall 123
1501 W. Bradley Avenue
Peoria, IL 61625
309-677-2253
radson@bradley.edu
http://www.bradley.edu/academic/colleges/fcba/
DePaul University
Driehaus College of Business
DePaul University is the largest Catholic university in the nation, with more than 24,000 students, ten colleges and schools, and almost 300 degree programs, undergraduate and graduate. The Richard H. Driehaus College of Business is one of the nation’s ten oldest business schools and the first at a U.S. Catholic university. It is also the first to open in Chicago’s Loop, near the city’s financial and business district. In addition to the all-encompassing business administration degrees, there are degree programs in specific concentrations as well.
Bachelor of Science in Business (BSB) with Major in Business Administration
The BSB in Business Administration is a degree program designed for the student that seeks a broad-based business degree with a strong liberal arts foundation, rather than a degree in a specific area of business, such as finance or accounting. The business administration BSB offers the most flexibility while still allowing students to take courses in specific concentrations as part of their elective requirements. The degree requires a total of 192 credit hours, consisting of 66 hours of business core requirements, 80 hours of liberal core requirements, 30 hours of major requirements, and 16 hours of open electives. Overall, students will take foundational courses in subjects such as finance, accounting, marketing, business law, mathematics, management information systems, and management, in addition to two specific courses required for the major and electives within the business college.
Master of Business Administration (MBA)
The Master of Business Administration degree program continues the flexibility seen with the undergraduate degree described above, allowing students to achieve a generalized Master degree or one that is concentrated in a particular facet of the business world. The MBA provides a more career-minded curriculum and offers choices of taking an accelerated full-time MBA program or a flexible program that allows students to choose day or evening classes and various campuses from quarter to quarter, designed to provide for the working adult who is seeking a graduate degree while perhaps already pursuing a career. Toward this end, DePaul also offers a part-time MBA program. In each case, core required courses are the same, and electives are chosen from one or more concentrations to meet the student’s specific career interests from areas such as accounting, marketing, finance, hospitality, and real estate finance.
Accreditations
- Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International)
- Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools
Contact Information
DePaul University
Driehaus College of Business
1 East Jackson
Chicago, IL 60604
312-362-6783
commerce@condor.depaul.edu
http://driehaus.depaul.edu/Pages/default.aspx
Eastern Illinois University
Lumpkin College of Business and Applied Science
Eastern Illinois University is a public, comprehensive university serving more than 9,000 students through seven colleges and schools, including the Lumpkin College of Business and Applied Science. It offers 47 undergraduate degree programs, 27 graduate degree programs, and seven post-baccalaureate certificate programs. Within the business school, students can avail themselves of six undergraduate majors, five minors, and the MBA program. The Lumpkin College of Business and Applied Science combines classroom learning with hands-on experiences designed to mirror real-world job requirements.
Bachelor of Science in Business (BSB) in Business Administration
The BSB in Business Administration degree program is offered only at the Parkland College campus and is designed for students who wish to earn their degree while working full-time or having other obligations during the day. Courses are offered exclusively during evenings and weekends. This degree provides a broad business background and includes courses in finance, management, marketing, and management information systems. The program is structured so that each course meets for three hour sessions once a week during the fall and spring semesters and twice a week during the summer session. It is designed to be completed within six semesters. For any of the Bachelor degrees in business, students must complete general education requirements, business core courses, and the major requirements. This program offered at the Parkland campus is intended to cover the major requirements.
Business Administration Minor
The minor in business administration is a program designed for students majoring in non-business areas such as liberal arts or sciences disciplines but who want to gain fundamental knowledge of business areas. It involves four core courses in subjects such as finance, finance accounting, marketing, and management and organizational behavior, and three additional business course electives of the student’s choice. Electives can be chosen from various business areas and subjects, including computer concepts and their applications for business, legal and social environments of business, entrepreneurship, investments, working capital management, and more. Students involved in non-business majors, including students declaring this minor, are not allowed more than 25%, or 30 semester hours, of undergraduate coursework in business courses. As the requirements for this minor will likely take at least 21 semester hours, students are advised to choose electives wisely for their particular areas of interest.
Master of Business Administration (MBA)
The MBA program at Eastern Illinois University offers three pathway choices, these being the MBA with Research Option, Applied Management Option, or Accountancy Concentration. The Research Option pathway focuses on business research and quantitative methods of research, and is designed for students who intend to continue into a doctoral program for business administration or otherwise may be interested in conducting research with a faculty mentor. The Applied Management Option pathway is more hands-on and concentrates on business-related skills such as teamwork and analytical skills that can be practiced immediately. The Accountancy Concentration is for students with an undergraduate degree in Accounting and prepares students for the Certified Public Accountant exam. All of the MBA programs are offered both full-time and part-time and at both the Eastern Illinois main campus and the Parkland College campus, with courses beginning either late afternoon or evening.
Accreditations
- Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International)
- Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools
Contact Information
School of Business
Eastern Illinois University
600 Lincoln Avenue
Charleston, IL 61920
217-581-2627
business@eiu.edu
https://www.eiu.edu/business/
Illinois Institute of Technology
Stuart School of Business
Illinois Institute of Technology is a private, independent, nonprofit, research university that offers degrees at all levels in subjects strong in math and science, as well as business and law. The Stuart School of Business offers programs that emphasize real world application and socially responsible perspectives. The various degree programs offered within this school also focus on skills leading to strategic competitiveness, a concept designed to prepare graduate for success in a global economy.
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration
This degree requires a total of 126 completed credit hours, and provides for specializations in finance and marketing, as well as specializations in any other discipline offered through the Institute. Credit hours are compiled in general education courses, business core courses, electives, specialization courses, and project courses. Every student at the Illinois Institute of Technology also participates in an interprofessional projects program as part of the project courses required for the degree. Business students work with chemistry and law students to develop best practices in Co2-reducing technologies in real world settings and working with sponsors that could be potential employers after graduation. In addition, students interested in public administration have the option of taking a co-terminal degree program to earn the BS in Business Administration and a Master in Public Administration degree together over a five-year time span and with fewer credits needed if taken separately.
Minor in Business
The Stuart School of Business offers two minor programs, the Minor in Business and a Minor in Entrepreneurship, each of which requires five courses and is available to any Illinois Institute of Technology student except those already majoring in business administration. The business minor offers coursework in the fundamentals of accounting, economics, and strategic decision-making. Students taking the business minor gain further professional knowledge designed to supplement the skills and knowledge gained through the coursework for their respective major field of study. And because all students at the university are required to complete the interprofessional project detailed as part of the baccalaureate degree, skills learned through the business minor can help to enhance the teamwork and creativity skills applied while working on whichever project applies to the student’s major.
Master of Business Administration (MBA)
This Master of Business Administration degree is the only MBA degree program in Chicago offered through a technical school, providing an environment that gives graduates of this degree program a unique advantage when seeking employment with companies where technology provides a competitive advantage. The MBA program requires completion of 48 credit hours, made up of 11 core courses and five elective courses that can be chosen from a long list of concentrations offered here, in subjects such as corporate finance, management, risk management, technology and marketing, and emerging markets. The program is designed to provide a cutting-edge and innovative curriculum designed to create graduates that will have an impact on the next economy while advancing their own careers. Once again, students interested in public administration can also choose a dual Master degree program and gain a Master of Public Administration in addition to the MBA.
Accreditations
- Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International)
- North Central Association of Colleges and Schools
- Member of the Association of Independent Technological Universities
Contact Information
Stuart School of Business
Illinois Institute of Technology
10 West 35th Street, 18th Floor
Chicago, IL 6016
312-906-6500
admission@stuart.iit.edu
http://stuart.iit.edu/
Illinois State University
College of Business
Illinois State University is Illinois’ first public university, currently serving more than 19,000 students in seven academic colleges and schools, including the College of Business. The College of Business is houses in a modern version of the Oxford College model, combining state-of-the-art technologies with the ability to maintain a corporate presence in and among classrooms, giving students the ability to interact and network with proven business professionals and successful Illinois State alumni.
Major in Business Administration (BUA)
This degree program is once again for students seeking a broad foundation in business without having to concentrate on a specific area such as finance or marketing. It provides a broad and interdisciplinary background in business administration and includes coursework from all of the various specific areas, including accounting, finance, marketing, management theory and practice, organizational behavior, and more. The goal of the program is to prepare students to plan, organize, motivate, and control work functions and processes of a firm or organization in their field of choice after graduating. Students improve their communication, team-building, and critically thinking skills through courses taught by faculty from all of the specialty areas of the College of Business, providing a truly interdisciplinary education designed to prepare students for not only their initial career choices but for the inevitable changes in the business world of the future.
Master of Business Administration (MBA)
The MBA program at Illinois State University provides two options for students seeking this path, the traditional MBA program and the Corporate MBA program. Both offer the same MBA degree, but the corporate program is an accelerated program designed for working adults who wish to gain the advanced degree without taking a break in their careers. The MBA degree involves courses totaling 60 credit hours and generally takes about two years to complete. Courses are offered in the evenings and are comprised of core courses and electives. In addition, students who enter the MBA program without an undergraduate degree in business will need to take several foundational business courses in order to have the best chance at success in the graduate business coursework. Otherwise, MBA students all take the same nine core courses, and can choose a focused path for their three electives or take them from different areas.
Accreditation
- Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International)
Contact Information
College of Business
Illinois State University
Campus Box 5500
Normal, IL 61790-5500
309-438-2251
http://business.illinoisstate.edu/
Loyola University Chicago
Quinlan School of Business
Loyola University Chicago is the city’s private, Jesuit catholic university, serving more than 15,000 students in ten schools and colleges and across four campuses in the Chicago area. In true Jesuit tradition, the Quinlan School of Business not only offers superior academic experiences, but also strives to produce business leaders who are responsible and can improve and strengthen the global business system. Loyola graduates put theory into practice in areas of private business, non-profit, and government sectors.
Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA)
Loyola University offers several majors that result in the Bachelor of Business Administration degree, including all the usual specific focuses available in business courses, such as accounting, finance, marketing, and various management paths. Curriculum, regardless of focus, stresses communication skills, both oral and written, and an understanding and competence with the latest in information technology as it pertains to the global business world. In addition to general education requirements, students take courses in ethics and values, and find four core values integrated across the curriculum. These four values are understanding diversity both within the U.S. and around the world, understanding and promoting justice, understanding faith and the ways in which it works globally, and promoting engaged learning. Students are also required to take at least one “engaged learning” course, with hands-on learning taking place outside of the classroom.
Business Administration Minor
This minor is available to students who are not otherwise enrolled in the Quinlan School of Business and requires completion of 18 credit hours in a variety of prescribed courses. Students choose three courses from a listing that involves courses in accounting, economics, business information systems, and statistics, and then three more courses from a listing that involves subjects such as business finance, operations management, microeconomics, macroeconomics, legal business environments, marketing, and managing. Students are allowed no more than two courses in economics for this minor. Some courses have prerequisites that have to be satisfied prior to attempting them, and students must have a GPA of 2.0 or better for all business courses attempted. As all students are required to take at least one engaged learning course as described above, that course can be a part of the minor if the student so chooses.
Master of Business Administration (MBA)
This MBA offers a broad business education designed to prepare students for a variety of leadership and management positions. The degree includes foundational courses in each of the main areas of business, to include finance, accounting, ethics, economics, human resources, operations management, marketing, and statistics. It is offered through both a part-time and a full-time schedule of courses, to provide the most flexibility for working professionals. In the final semester of the MBA program, students will take a capstone course as a culminating experience of the program, providing students with both hands-on experience and a valuable asset for their resume. Specialty Masters degrees are available for students who want to concentrate on a specific area of business, and students also have the options of seeking dual degree that results in simultaneous completion of the MBA and a specialty Masters in their field of choice.
Accreditation
- Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International)
Contact Information
Quinlan School of Business
Loyola University Chicago
820 N. Michigan Avenue
Chicago, IL 60611
312-915-7057
quinlan@luc.edu
http://www.luc.edu/quinlan/index.shtml
If you check out these degree programs, not only will you be well-prepared to work in a world-class financial and business district like that found in Chicago, but you’ll have the confidence and preparation to do business on a global scale. If you’re looking for choices in business degrees and schools, consider the variety of accredited business administration degree programs in Illinois.