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Your Business Degree Explained

One of your core responsibilities as a student is to educate yourself on the requirements of your degree program. According to WSU Academic Regulation 108, all WSU students have the ultimate responsibility for meeting all graduation requirements, including planning their program of study each semester in consultation with their academic advisor.

Your Carson College of Business degree includes four different graduation requirement groups:

  1. WSU requirements: UCORE courses, Writing in the Major, and the University Writing Portfolio.
  2. Carson College of Business Core Course requirements: Lower- and upper-division business core courses.
  3. Carson College of Business Co-Curricular requirements: International Experience requirement and the Carson Career Amplifier Program.
  4. Major requirements: Major courses typically at the 300- and 400-level; for International Business majors, foreign language fluency and foreign study requirements; and for students pursuing a B.A. in Hospitality Business Management, 1000 hours of paid industry experience.

After you’ve completed at least 120 semester credits and all associated requirements while earning a minimum 2.5 cumulative business GPA*, you’ll graduate and earn your Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Business Administration or Hospitality Business Management (depending on your major) from the Carson College of Business.

If you have questions about your degree requirements, seek clarification from your academic advisor.

*Your cumulative business GPA is calculated using all of the business courses your complete at WSU. Transfer coursework is not included in your business GPA.

Catalog Info on WSU Requirements
Catalog Info on Business Degrees
Course Descriptions & Prerequisites
Apply to the College of Business

Academic
Advising

Contact the Advising Team

Carson Center for Student Success Todd Hall, Room 101 cb.advisors@wsu.edu
(509) 335-5480

To earn a degree from Washington State University (WSU), you must complete:

  • 120 semester credits
  • 40 upper division (300-400 level) credits
  • 2.0 minimum cumulative GPA
  • UCORE or Honors, Writing Proficiency, and College requirements

UCORE (University Common Requirements)

All undergraduates must complete UCORE, which covers general education. If you have a transferable associate degree, most UCORE requirements may already be satisfied. More details are available on the UCORE website.

Writing Proficiency Requirements

You must complete:

Honors College Curriculum Requirements

If you’re in the Honors College, you’ll complete the Honors curriculum instead of UCORE. Learn more on the Honors College Curriculum webpage.

General Requirements

  • 9 upper-division business courses in-residence at WSU
  • 2.5 minimum cumulative business GPA

Please note: ECONS courses, with the exception of ECONS 327/I_BUS 470, are not business courses. Therefore, they do not count toward the upper-division in residence requirement or your cumulative business GPA. Additionally, business courses completed during a study abroad program (excluding faculty-led programs) do not count toward the in-residence requirement for business.

Lower-Division (100-200 level) Business Courses

  • Accounting: ACCTG 230, 231
  • General Business: B_A 100, 201/202/203 or 211, 212
  • Business Law: B_LAW 210
  • Professionalism: HBM 105
  • Business Statistics: MGTOP 215
  • Management Information Systems: MIS 250

Approved Substitutions: ACCTG 298 (HONORS) = ACCTG 230 & ACCTG 231; STAT 212, STAT 360 or STAT 370 (for transfer students and change of majors with previous credit) = MGTOP 215.

Mathematics Courses

  • Math for Business: MATH 201 (C or better)
  • Business Calculus: MATH 202

You must complete through MATH 202 (Business Calculus). Based upon your ALEKS Placement Score or transfer math courses, you may place at any point along the business math sequence below:

MATH 100 → MATH 103 → MATH 201 → MATH 202

Approved Substitutions: MATH 106, MATH 1XX (Pre-Calc) = MATH 201; MATH 1XX (1 Qtr. Cr. Calc), 140, 171, 172 = MATH 202.

Economics Courses

  • Microeconomics: ECONS 101
  • Macroeconomics: ECONS 102

Approved Substitutions: ECONS 198 = ECONS 101 & ECONS 102.

Upper-Division (300-400) Business Courses

  • Finance: FIN 325
  • International Business: I_BUS 380
  • Management Operations: MGTOP 340*
  • Marketing: MKTG 360

*School of Hospitality Business Management majors are required to take HBM 494 in place of MGTOP 340.

Additional Courses

  • Technical Writing: ENGLISH 402 or 403*
  • Social Science/Humanities Electives: Choose 12 credits with a [SSCI] or [HUM] designation (excluding courses in ACCTG, B A, B LAW, ENTRP, FIN, HBM, I BUS, MGMT, MGTOP, MIS, and MKTG), or courses in ANTH, ART, ASIA, CES, CRM J, DTC, ECONS, ENGLISH, FOR LANG, HISTORY, HONORS 270, 280, 370, 380, H D, HUMANITY, PHIL, POL S, PSYCH, SOC, and WGSS (excluding ECONS 101, 102, 198, 327, ENGLISH 101, 105, 402, 403, H D 205, HISTORY 105, 305).
  • Public Speaking: Choose One COM 102, H_D 205 or MKTG 279** (only offered on the Vancouver campus)

Approved Substitutions: Completion of the HONORS curriculum satisfies COM 102/H_D 205/MKTG 279 requirement.

*English 403 is approved only for non-native speakers of English.
**These courses will also complete the [COMM] ucore requirement.

The International Experience Requirement (IER) is intended to help you approach business from a global perspective. You can complete the IER through:

  • Study abroad
  • Foreign Lanaguage Fluency
  • Post High School International Experience (minimum 6 months).
  • Approved Courses
  • Other Approved Experiences

Your advisor can provide additional details on how to complete the IER as well as a list of approved courses offered each semester.

You will participate in 7-10 hours of activities and programs per year to develop durable skills, including leadership, communication, career and self-development, and professionalism. The program builds upon itself as you progress, leading to career readiness at graduation. You should expect to complete one segment of the Amplifier Program per year. Details about the Amplifier Program can be found here, with specific activities and completion tracked in Suitable. You can also use our Carson Career Amplifier Checklist to get started.

Each major requires 21-27 upper-division credits, two [M] writing courses, and a [CAPS] capstone course. You should aim for a C or better in all courses to meet prerequisites.

Example Major: Accounting

  • Core Courses: ACCTG 330, 331, 335, 338, 433, 439
  • Electives: One upper-division ACCTG elective, one upper-division business elective
  • Capstone: MGMT 491 or ENTRP 492

Example Major: Hospitality Business Management

  • Core Courses: HBM 101, 280, 358, 381, 401, 490 or 491, 494
  • Other Required Courses: MGMT 450; ECONS 305 or 323
  • Electives: two upper-division business electives
  • Capstone: HBM 493 or 495

You may officially declare your business major when you complete the following prerequisites. Most students complete these prerequisites during their first two semesters. This process is not competitive—any student who completes the requirements will be admitted.

New WSU Students transferring 0-29 college and/or test credits

New WSU Students transferring 30+ college and/or test credits

You will be eligible to declare your business major when you first enroll at WSU if you meet the following criteria:

  • 30+ semester credits with a cumulative GPA of 2.50+
  • Math 106, 171, 201, 202, or equivalent with grade of C
  • ECONS 101 or 102 with grade of C

By meeting the above requirements, you will not need to complete B_A 100, HBM 101 or B_A 102. Students in the School of Hospitality Business Management are still required to complete this course.

If you don’t meet all the requirements listed above at the time of transfer, don’t worry!
You will still be able to declare your business major after you complete the following prerequisites:

Please Note: The process of declaring your major in the Carson College of Business is also referred to as being “admitted to the major/college” at WSU.

Current WSU Students changing to or adding a business major

You will be eligible to declare your business major after you complete the following prerequisites:

  • B_A 100, HBM 105, ECONS 101 OR 102, and MATH 201 or higher with a C or better or ALEKS score of 80 or higher.
  • 2.5+ cumulative WSU GPA
  • 27+ semester credits
  • Completion of Tier 1 or Crimson Pathway 1 of the Carson Career Amplifier Program

Declare Your Business Major

The Carson College of Business offers checklists that show the courses required for each major and the order in which to take them to complete your business degree.

To plan your business major, follow these steps:

  1. Download the Materials: Get your major degree requirement checklist by navigating to the Degrees & Majors page and selecting the major you’re interested in. Then, download the blank long-term plan for either Business Administration or Hospitality Business Management.
  2. Review and Mark Completed Courses: Check your academic progress report on myWSU to see which courses you’ve already completed. Mark the remaining courses you need to take.
  3. Create a Long-Term Plan: Using your degree requirement checklist and blank long-term plan, organize your remaining courses by the semester you plan to take them. Include when you plan to complete each segment of the Carson Career Amplifier Program, the High-Impact Learning Experience (HILE), and the International Experience Requirement (IER).
  4. Plan Your Semesters: Ensure you take at least 12 credits per semester to be a full-time student and aim for 14-16 credits per semester to graduate in four years. If you plan to study abroad, note which semester you will do so.
  5. Check Credit Requirements: Make sure your plan includes at least 120 semester credits, 40 upper-division (300-400 level) credits, and 9 WSU upper-division business courses by graduation.
  6. Meet with Your Advisor: Schedule a meeting with your academic advisor to review your plan and ask any questions.

Please Note: For the summer term, full-time status requires a minimum of 6 credits, and you should generally take no more than 9 credits. For the winter term, you can take up to 3 credits.

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