What is a Bachelor of Business Administration? Understanding the BBA, Majors, and More
Earning a college degree is a great way to get ahead. But with so many majors, there are lots of avenues to help you get ahead, no matter what stage of your career you’re in. In a world saturated with business professionals, what do you need to stand out?
With so many choices, it’s good to narrow down your options while still getting the best return on your investment. The Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) can provide you with what you need. But what is a Bachelor of Business Administration? It’s a flexible and dynamic business degree that empowers you with knowledge and skills for the ever-evolving business world.
In this blog, we’ll detail what a BBA is, what majors you can specialize in, and what career paths the BBA can set you on. At Walsh College, we have a BBA program powered by real-world professionals and specialized majors that rival other programs across the country.
What is a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA)?
A Bachelor of Business Administration is a bachelor’s degree with built-in business experience from start to finish. It can easily get confused with a Bachelor of Arts in Business, but that degree often involves more elective courses that aren’t related to business. With a BBA, you can hone in on the skills you want to specialize in instead of electives that aren’t related to your career field.
What Do You Learn in a BBA Program?
A BBA program prepares you for the business world by teaching you everything you need to know to thrive in the workplace. Essentially, you’ll learn a broad range of business skills alongside a more specialized major. Core courses of a BBA program usually include subjects like:
- Critical thinking
- Business strategy
- Business communication
- Ethics and law
- Cybersecurity
- And more.
With a BBA, you can also choose what major you want to focus on. As you proceed through your degree program, more and more of your courses will focus on the area you choose, whether that’s marketing, accounting, finance, or something else.
What Can You Do with a BBA?
A BBA degree equips you with a strong business foundation upon which you can build a rewarding career. Graduates develop a versatile skillset that prepares them to lead, innovate, and strategize across a variety of industries and sectors. Everyone from CEOs to solo-entrepreneurs have earned their BBA as the first step to climbing the success ladder and transforming their organizations. The full list of opportunities are too numerous to list here, but the following list of majors illustrates the breadth of opportunities available.
What are BBA Majors?
While a BBA degree focuses on a broad range of business topics, most universities also offer specializations or majors as part of the BBA program. These majors help you hone in on your career development goals. That way, you’ll graduate with more expertise in your career field and gain real-world skills while still in college.
Walsh College offers 13 different majors within our BBA program, including 7 majors that are new to the 2023-24 academic year. These majors are common among BBA programs, but at Walsh, our courses are taught by professors who actively work in their field of study and provide on-ground experience for their students.
BBA Majors
Accounting
For accounting students who are interested in pursuing a CPA certification or other options, this major will provide a comprehensive understanding of financial statements, accounting principles, and tax laws. Graduates will be prepared for careers in corporate accounting, financial analysis, and more.
Business Analytics
In today’s data-driven business landscape, there is a growing demand for professionals who can use information to solve complex problems. This major will teach students how to analyze data, identify trends, and develop insights to inform decision-making. Graduates will be well-equipped to pursue careers in business intelligence, data analysis, and other related fields.
Entrepreneurship
For students who dream of starting and running their own business, this major will provide the skills and knowledge needed to turn their vision into reality. Students will learn how to develop business plans, secure funding, and manage the day-to-day operations of a small business.
Information Systems Management
With technology playing an increasingly important role in every aspect of business, there is a growing need for professionals who can manage IT systems and lead technology initiatives. This major will provide students with a strong foundation in both business and technology, preparing them for roles such as IT manager, systems analyst, and more.
International Business
Through an international business major, students gain a comprehensive understanding of the global business environment and prepare themselves for careers in the international marketplace. The program offers a balanced curriculum that combines core business knowledge with specialized courses in international business practices, strategies, and cross-cultural management.
Operations
In a fast-paced business world, optimizing every area of a company is essential for success. This major will teach students how to identify opportunities for improvement, implement efficient processes, and manage supply chain logistics. Graduates will be well-suited for roles in operations management, logistics, and supply chain management.
Project Management
From small projects to large-scale initiatives, effective project managers are needed to keep workflow moving and teams operating in sync. This major will teach students how to lead, plan, and execute projects of all sizes, preparing them for roles such as project manager, program manager, and more.
General Business
The Walsh Bachelor of Business Administration in General Business bridges real-world understanding with a nationally ranked business curriculum. You’ll gain a strong, comprehensive business foundation, giving you the knowledge and skills you need to elevate your career. A general business major is an excellent launchpad into your career or even into continued education like a Master of Business Administration (MBA.)
Finance
The Walsh Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance combines academic rigor and practical skill development based on real-world insights to prepare you for a successful career. Coursework includes accounting, business strategy, communications, economics, finance, information technology, and market analysis.
Human Resource Management
The Walsh Bachelor of Business Administration in Human Resource Management will give you the knowledge and skills to manage an organization’s most valuable asset–its people. The program is designed to provide a strong business foundation to enable you to make well-rounded and strategic decisions, foster a strong organizational culture, solve problems, and manage change.
Applied Management
With a Walsh Bachelor of Business Administration in Management, you’ll develop a thorough understanding of how business works. Coursework includes human resource and operations management, project management, market analysis, global business strategy, as well as accounting and communications courses to provide a comprehensive business education. This program is available entirely online or in our innovative hybrid format combining online instruction with time in a dynamic classroom setting.
Marketing
The Walsh Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing blends academic rigor and practical skill development to prepare you for a successful career in marketing. This comprehensive program combines marketing fundamentals and a strong business foundation with courses in accounting, advertising, communications, economics, finance, statistics, technology, and more.
What BBA Major is Right For Me?
As you navigate your career path and take the next step toward advancing in the workplace, you’re probably trying to determine what BBA major is right for you and the direction you’re going. Since the BBA covers such a wide range of business topics, it can be difficult to decide what you want to focus on. Here are a few ways you can narrow your focus and determine which BBA major is right for you.
Think About Your Passions and Skills
Look back at your career thus far and identify the work you enjoyed doing most in your day-to-day. What work did you do that stood out to yourself and others? Was it your exemplary leadership skills? Your keen attention to detail? Your knowledge of technology? Make a list of things you enjoy doing throughout your workday and compare them to different BBA majors. If you enjoy being in leadership roles, consider a major in management. If you love analyzing spreadsheets and organizing data, consider accounting or business analytics.
Take A Career Assessment
Career assessments can be helpful no matter what stage of your working life you’re in. While they’re not always foolproof, career assessments can help you narrow your focus to a few different directions and give you a framework of what you’re looking for when exploring different degree programs. You can also bring assessment results to a college admissions counselor, and they can help you narrow down those results even further.
Talk to A Career Services Specialist
Set up an appointment with a career services specialist at the college or university you’re interested in. Many colleges have career centers that are designed to help students chart a career path, meet their goals, and graduate on time. They are well-versed in helping professionals determine their strengths, the skills they need to get ahead, and potential majors they would thrive in. Walsh College features a robust career services center that is accessible to current students and alumni long after they have graduated.
Find Your Fit and Get Ahead with a BBA
In this blog, we discussed what a Bachelor in Business Administration is, how it works, and what it could do for you and your career. Now, it’s your turn to explore. Walsh College offers some of the most hands-on degree programs in the country taught by real industry professionals. Here, you won’t learn from a textbook. You’ll learn from the experts. Schedule an appointment with us today to determine your best path forward with a BBA from Walsh College.
