Popular Business Administration Degree Launches at WSU Everett
Despite being 300 miles apart, WSU Everett and the Carson College of Business are working side by side to support decades of change in Everett’s industrial community culture that once suggested high school graduates don’t need a degree for a successful career.
This fall, students are able to earn a degree in business administration for the first time at WSU Everett. The program increases student access to The Next Carson Coug, the Carson College of Business flagship undergraduate curriculum implemented in 2019 at other WSU locations.
“Offering this degree on the WSU Everett campus moves the Carson College closer to our goal of becoming the first choice for undergraduate business education in the Pacific Northwest,” says Chip Hunter, Carson College dean. “The Next Carson Coug undergraduate curriculum ensures students graduate with key skills in communication, teamwork, professionalism, ethics, and career management employers value.”
“The business administration degree from the Carson College is an incredibly strong tool to propel a student’s career in a diverse set of industries that are growing locally,” WSU Everett Chancellor Paul Pitre says. “Current students have been adapting impressively today so they are prepared for a career now and when we are beyond this pandemic. Today is the day to earn credentials that have proven to increase annual earnings and better protect careers during a recession.”
Increased Access to Education Pays Off
Business administration becomes the second Carson College offering and the eighth bachelor’s degree program in WSU Everett’s fleet. Others are hospitality business management, data analytics, electrical engineering, integrated strategic communication, mechanical engineering, organic and sustainable agriculture, and software engineering.
“We aim to change the thinking that a degree is not necessary for a successful career,” says Pitre.
History proves his point: Employment and wage outcomes during the Great Recession consistently improved with each level of educational attainment. According to the Federal Reserve, 39 percent of those employed in February 2020 from households earning under $40,000 suffered a job loss in March, while 63 percent of workers with at least a bachelor’s degree worked entirely from home.
Graduates Will Help Build Snohomish County’s Economy
“A key asset of our Everett campus is that students from all programs collaborate frequently in group projects and cocurricular and extracurricular activities. It often inspires students to earn a minor in another program or double major,” says Pitre. “Adding a popular, contemporary, and innovative bachelor’s degree program in business administration makes all our graduates more career ready and attractive to local employers.”
All WSU Everett bachelor’s degree programs are designed for transfer students, but even students currently at a community college or participating in Running Start or similar programs are eligible to dual-enroll at WSU Everett, and programs are accessible to those who have some college experience but have not completed their degree.
Students interested in the business administration degree may apply at everett.wsu.edu.