Getting Started

School: Isenberg

Information below is meant to guide first year students in getting started with this major and choosing appropriate courses.  More advanced students interested in this major would also likely start with proposed foundation/pre-requisite courses.  Please refer to the Major page located in the left menu bar to learn about the full major requirements.

How to Explore the Major

Suggested General Education and Other Courses

All Undergraduates are required to satisfy the General Education Requirements. Guidelines for students are available at https://www.umass.edu/gened.  Students should choose a wide variety of Gen Ed courses, providing breadth of experience.

Any general education course that would fit the student's schedule is ideal.  The BBA Program includes a 21 credit Breadth Requirement of Non-Business Electives. One breadth requirement per semester may be taken with elective pass/fail grading. Only one Economics or one Resource Economics course may be used to satisfy credits for this requirement. Since admission to the BBA Program is highly competitive, it is especially important to explore alternative majors many of which may require a foreign language.

Suggested Major and Pre-requisite courses

Required prerequisites, including recommended sequence:

  • Three predictor courses, one of which MUST be MATH 127 or higher level calculus (i.e., Math 131), are required by the end of freshman year.  The two remaining predictor courses are typically ECON 103 (or RES-ECON 102), and ECON 104.
  • One predictor should be added per semester after the first year, thus first semester sophomore students need four completed predictors to apply, second semester sophomores need five predictors, and juniors need to have completed six predictors.
  • RES-ECON 212 or STATISTC 240 and ACCOUNTG 221** during the sophomore year.
    NOTE: Although current Isenberg majors usually complete ACCOUNTG 222 by the end of the sophomore year, prospective students may take Accounting 222 in the junior year.

    * RES-ECON 212 (or STATISTC 240) is the prerequisite for OIM 301.
    ** Non-Isenberg students can submit an online override to enroll in Accounting 221 or 222 or any other BBA Isenberg predictor course(s). The override form is available until the start of the semester: https://www.isenberg.umass.edu/programs/undergraduate/on-campus/advising/bba-course-override. ACCOUNTG 221 may be easier to enroll in during the Spring semester.

Minimum GPA or grades in prerequisite courses (if any):
Isenberg has shifted to a holistic approach in reviewing our on-campus application process with Academics still playing an important factor.  Although a minimum GPA requirement has not been set, students should strive to achieve a 3.7 GPA or above; complete MATH 127, ECON 103 (or RES-ECON 102) and ECON 104; and then apply to the BBA Program as soon as possible, in order to stand the best chance of being accepted. This GPA may go up or down in any given semester, depending on the strength of the applicants pool.

How to Declare/Change into the Major

For current & admitted students: This major is by application, therefore students must apply through an on-campus process to be admitted and declare a BBA major within the Isenberg School. The major may have criteria for admission/acceptance into the major (e.g., specific courses, GPA). Please note that students admitted to the Business Exploratory Track for their first year at the University do not have to apply. They simply must complete three predictors (Math 127 must be one of these three), and obtain a certain GPA to be admitted to the BBA program and declare a major within the school.

Two information sessions are held each semester. Check the Isenberg website for dates, times and locations. These sessions are conducted by Isenberg advisors who will be available to answer questions regarding the changing/declaring application process. Students may apply to the BBA program during the semester in which they complete the required number of predictor courses which depends on their term count; one of these predictors must be calculus. See www.isenberg.umass.edu/programs/undergraduate/on-campus/admissions/internal-transfers.

Prospective students must submit an online application. Applications are available in early November and early April. Application deadlines are December 1 and May 1. Admission decisions will be made after grades appear on SPIRE by mid-January and mid-June. First year, first semester students can only apply at the end of their second semester.

By the end of the semester in which they apply

  • First semester sophomores should have completed ECON 103 (or RES-ECON 102), ECON 104, MATH 127 (or higher level calculus) and RES-ECON 212 (or STATS 240) at the time of application.
  • Second semester sophomores should have completed ACCTG 221 in addition to all of the previously listed courses for first semester sophomores.
  • Juniors should have completed at least six of the predictor courses. Only one course, the sixth predictor, may be chosen from the following list: OIM 301, FINANCE 301, MANAGMNT 301, MARKETNG 301.

Students who apply as juniors generally should have completed at least six of the predictor courses. ACCTG 221 must be the fifth predictor. Only one course, the sixth predictor, may be chosen from among the following list: OIM 301, FINANCE 301, MANAGMNT 301, MARKETNG 301.  Completing these courses does not guarantee admission. Realistically, students entering their junior year without having gained admission should be considering other majors.

Summary of Requirements for the Major

Range of credits required: 60-72.

Refer to the Major page located in the left menu bar to learn more. 

The Isenberg School of Management offers a Bachelor of Business Administration (B.B.A.) Degree with five majors: Accounting, Finance, Management, Marketing, and Operations & Information Management. Students can select a major during the major declaration timeframe each semester after meeting with an academic advisor about the specific requirements for each major.

Is there a minor?
A five-course Minor in Business is available to non-Isenberg students. Contact the Isenberg Undergraduate Programs Office at 413-545-5610, undergrad@isenberg.umass.edu or visit https://www.isenberg.umass.edu/programs/undergraduate/on-campus/academics for information on how to apply.

For further information, contact:
Isenberg Undergraduate Programs Office
206 Isenberg
(413) 545-5610
undergrad@isenberg.umass.edu
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