Department Dean:  Henry Lowenstein, Ph.D

Department Office:  Business Development

Center, A128

Telephone:  (661)  654-2157

email:  d.kirk@csub.edu

email:  schbpa@csub.edu

Website:  www.csubbpa.com/

The mission of the School of Business and Public Administration:

The School of Business and Public Administration provides educational programs in business, public administration, applied economics and non-profit management-complemented by applied research and instructional development-to serve our diverse student body.  We prepare graduates to make knowledge-based decisions to address challenging issues facing organizational leaders in our region and global environment.

Back to the top 

Program Description

As an accredited professional school, we are dedicated to educating students to become more effective and efficient managers in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors, operating in our complex and dynamic environment.  The primary skills emphasized in the School include effective written and oral communication, critical thinking, leadership, strategic planning, problem identification, problem policy/economic analysis.  Emphasis is also placed on an integrated perspective to decision making in the context of the economic, social, political, and ethical forces that exist in modern society.

In recognition of the School’s commitment to quality, our programs are internationally accredited by AACSB - International (Business), the Certified Financial Planning Board of Standards (CFP) (Finance), and NASPPA - The National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (Public Administration), placing us in the top 20% of business schools in the world.

The demanding programs in the School build upon the general education curriculum that prospective business and public administration students complete in the freshman and sophomore years.  The knowledge and skills acquired in these broadly based programs are enhanced as the student enters the upper level professional programs within Business and Public Administration.

In pursuing its educational mission, the School’s objective is to be responsive to the needs and desires of its primary service area as well as the external market.  The faculty of the School, recognizing this need, has pursued applied research interests both within and outside the primary service region.  These research efforts have been critical to the growth and development of the School and have contributed significantly to the attainment of educational goals of the institution.  In recent decades the relevant geographical area of the School has expanded far beyond local, regional or even national boundaries.  Decisions made today consider the global environment within which most organizations operate.  Research and teaching efforts of the School are designed to reflect ongoing changes in the economy and society.

In an era of expansive information technology, the effective manager must be able to locate, retrieve, consolidate, and integrate relevant information across key administrative disciplines.  Management and economic decisions must be made with consideration of the impact of marketing, operations, finance, human resources and other critical areas on the organization as a whole.  Computer and communication technology facilitates the integration and evaluation of this data.  Information technology must be factored into all disciplines as an essential administrative tool, not merely a separate discipline.

The School recognizes that its student clientele require a holistic understanding of business and public administration; able to easily relate one functional area to another and draw upon skills learned in a variety of specialties for purposes of analysis and decision making.  Consequently, both the undergraduate and graduate curricula are constructed on a strong core that places an emphasis on the development of generic analytical and management skills.

Excellence in business and public administration education is a key tenet of our programs.  The School is staffed with a faculty drawn from many of the top schools of business and public administration in the United States and foreign nations.  As the School grows in response to ever increasing numbers of new students, the faculty has grown not only in physical numbers but in the necessary skills required to meet the new technological and conceptual changes occurring in the private and public sectors.  As an effective educational institution, BPA seeks to be proactive to these changes rather than reactive.

The lead-time required to train future managers in new technologies can often be relatively short time frames.  This requires close contact with practicing managers in the public and private sectors as well as close and continuous contact between the academician and the practitioner.  The faculty of the School of Business and Public Administration interfaces with practitioners in their research and consulting efforts.  Combining this approach with outstanding academic credentials yields a faculty truly capable of preparing the managers of the future as well as enhancing today’s managers, many of whom comprise the graduate student population in the School.

A particularly significant organization that provides invaluable services and support to the School is the Executive Advisory Council.  This is a group of over 30 senior executives from national, regional and local businesses and governmental agencies.  The Council advises the Dean of the School in matters concerning the needs of the public and private sectors, in the evaluation of the graduates from the programs, in the trends that are appearing in the various sectors and acts as a sounding board for new programs or changes to existing programs, as well as providing support in development efforts.  The Public Policy and Administration Advisory Board is a group of city, county, state and national government administrators, as well as nonprofit and health care directors, who offer their expertise to the department on curriculum and the needs of the current public administration sector.  The Certified Financial Planning Advisory Board advises our finance and accounting areas on trends and standards in the financial services field.  A new Advisory Board in Sports Management is assisting the new program in its future growth.

Structurally, the School of Business and Public Administration is organized into four major departments:  Finance and Accounting, Management and Marketing, Applied Economics, and Public Policy and Administration.  These four departments represent the degrees and concentrations offered in the School.

Degree Programs

Undergraduate:

•     Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with concentrations in:

         Accounting

         e-Business

         Finance

         Management

         Management Information Systems

         Sports Management

         Marketing

         General Business

•     Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with an area of emphasis in:

         Applied Economics

•     Bachelor of Science in Economics with areas of emphasis in:

         Business Economics

         Financial Economics

         International Economics

         Economic Applications

•     Bachelor of Arts in Public Administration

Graduate:

•     Master of Business Administration (MBA)

•     Master of Public Administration (MPA)

•     Master of Science in Administration-Health Care Management (MSA-HCM)

Both the undergraduate and the graduate business programs are accredited by the AACSB - international.  This is particularly significant in that only 426 institutions in the World have both their undergraduate and master’s programs accredited.  The School is one of 50 business degree granting universities certified by the Certified Financial Planning Board of Standards to prepare students to qualify for the CFP (Certified Financial Planner) designation.  The National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration accredits the Public Policy and Administration masters program.  The School of Business and Public Administration is one of the smaller schools nationally to have their programs accredited by AACSB and NASPAA, a confirmation of the quality of the faculty and their dedication to excellence in education.

Back to the top 

Organizations

The School has active chapters of Beta Gamma Sigma, the top national academic honorary for business majors, and Pi Alpha Alpha, the top national honorary for Public Affairs and Administration.  The School also hosts chapters of Sigma Iota Epsilon, national management honorary, Alpha Mu Alpha, national marketing honorary, and Alpha Kappa Psi, national business fraternity.  Students also participate in the activities of the University Accounting Association (UAA), the Financial Management Association (FMA) and Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE).

Back to the top 

Business Research And Education Center

The School maintains the Business Research and Education Center to (1) support faculty research opportunities and activities, (2) be actively involved in community-based outreach programs as a resource to local and regional businesses and to economic development efforts, (3) provide a local and regional forum for lifelong learning experiences, and (4) create and administer programs that promote student participation within the university and the community, such as scholarships, internships, cooperative education, and community service projects.  Several of the programs within the Center include:

•     Family Business Institute is a Public/Private Alliance among the School of Business & Public Administration, Kern County family owned businesses, and service professionals that provide a comprehensive program promoting the success of family owned businesses in Kern County.  It is a specifically designed resource that addresses the myriad of issues pertaining to family businesses.  The goal of the Institute is to develop a body of knowledge and problem solving techniques that are accessible to all members.

•     Kern County Technology Transfer Group is a proactive, dynamic Public/Private Alliance that brings together local, state, and federal government agencies, businesses, universities and colleges, economic development organizations, and the media working together to facilitate the commercialization of technology within the Kern County region.  The activities of the Group are strategically structured into a cohesive framework that provides the essentials for motivating members to independently progress and compete technically in a technical world.  The “commercialization of technology” is the mission of the group.

•     Central California International Trade Alliance Program is a Public/Private Coalition project that provides extensive consulting through service professionals to businesses engaged in, or interested in pursuing the export of products or services.  CSUB interns, under the direction of service professionals and faculty, perform comprehensive research to identify specific business opportunities and to address the myriad of regulations and procedural complexities involved in exporting products and services for clients.  The Program provides the interns practical hands-on experience in dealing with Global Market transactions and issues.

•     The Public Service Institute is a functional bridge between California State University, Bakersfield and the public service community of Kern County and the University’s service area.  As such, the Institute brings together in a working coalition, management personnel from the public, nonprofit, volunteer, and health sectors with appropriate faculty and administrators from the CSUB community.

Back to the top 

American Institutions Requirement

The School of Business and Public Administration offers an interdisciplinary course in conjunction with the Political Science Department, INST 275 Administrative Processes in Government (see page 120) that satisfies the U.S. and state and local government American Institutions requirement.

Back to the top 

The Intensive English Language Center

The Intensive English Language Center (IELC) is designed to prepare international undergraduate and graduate students for successful academic study in American colleges and universities.  The IELC offers a language immersion program into American English.  The no-credit program offers daily instruction in reading/vocabulary, writing/grammar, and listening/speaking.  TOEFL preparation is available.  All classes at IELC are taught by experienced ESL teachers.  Class sizes are small with much individual attention given to each student.