Master of Business Administration
The MBA program is offered on the Aurora Campus, in the full-time Plus One format, and online.
Program Description
The Master of Business Administration offers a comprehensive curriculum designed to give students a broad understanding of business operations and hone their problem-solving and team-building skills. The MBA core courses provide a strong foundation in fundamental business concepts, including marketing, organizational behavior, accounting, finance, operations management, and strategic management. Building on this foundation, elective courses allow students to pursue concentrations that have direct relevance to their careers and future professional goals.
Aurora University business students will apply business theory and research to current business trends and real-world case studies and learn from professors who are established experts in their industries. Students will gain knowledge and skills that can be put immediately to work in their profession, maximizing the ROI from the degree program.
MBA Plus One Program
In addition to the evening and online MBA programs, AU offers a selective MBA Plus One program designed for early career professionals. The MBA Plus One program is a full-time, day cohort version for completing the MBA program, generally intended for students who have completed their bachelor’s degree within 24-36 months preceding the start of the cohort.
Since the MBA Plus One program is designed for early career professionals with typically fewer years of professional experience, the cohort emphasizes not only MBA content found in the evening and online MBA programs but development of professional skills and dispositions through a required professional experience.
The MBA Plus One program and registration for its courses are limited to students admitted to the MBA Plus One program. As a cohort, all MBA Plus One students are required to successfully complete a prescribed MBA curriculum that achieves the same program learning outcomes of the general MBA. In the evening and online modalities of the MBA program, students have the flexibility to choose any combination of approved elective coursework to meet the degree requirements. Given the highly focused nature on early career academic and professional development in the MBA Plus One program, a student’s elective options are more narrowly prescribed and focused to align with a specific professional pathway. Students seeking to fulfill the MBA degree requirements through other courses than those prescribed by the MBA Plus One will be require to receive special dispensation from the Program Director.
Admission Requirements
The general admission requirements can be found in the “Graduate Admission Requirements” section. Requirements for admission include:
- A completed Graduate Application for Admission (aurora.edu/auapply)
- Submit transcripts (official, sealed in envelope) for all prior college and/or university credit. Aurora University accepts official electronic transcripts at AU-Etranscripts@aurora.edu
- Bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution with a grade point average of 3.0 or greater (on a 4.0 scale). Students with a GPA of less than 3.0 will be considered on a case-by-case basis
- A professional resume
- Applicants may be required to complete an interview the program director and provide letters of recommendation
MBA Program Detail
Aurora University’s MBA program accepts students from all academic backgrounds, and an undergraduate degree in business is not required. There are no prerequisite courses required for admission to the MBA program. In the interest of ensuring student success, the Program Director may require limited foundational coursework for students whose academic and experiential backgrounds suggest they would benefit from such preparation. Decisions about required foundational business courses are made collaboratively with students and are based on review of academic transcripts, professional experience, and the results of a personal interview.
The Master of Business Administration is offered in the regular (Online) and a Full-Time Plus-One format. The program requirements for each are listed below.
Program Requirements - MBA
The MBA degree requires 36 semester hours: 18 semester hours of required core courses plus 18 semester hours from electives and/or selected topics courses.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Core Courses | ||
| MBA-6020 | Marketing Management | 3 |
| MBA-6030 | Leadership and Organizational Behavior | 3 |
| MBA-6045 | Budgeting and Financial Management | 3 |
| MBA-6075 | Operations Management | 3 |
| MBA-6085 | Ethics and Decision Making | 3 |
| MBA-6100 | Strategic Management | 3 |
| Selected Courses | ||
| Select 18 semesters of approved elective coursework of the following: 1, 2, 3 | 18 | |
| Corporate Finance | ||
| Applied Business Research | ||
| Economics | ||
| Human Resource Management | ||
| Data Analytics | ||
| Design Thinking | ||
| Nonprofit Management and Leadership | ||
| Communication Management | ||
| Global Business Immersion | ||
| Project Management Planning | ||
| Project Management Execution | ||
| Entrepreneurial Management | ||
| Comprehensive Healthcare Management | ||
| Leadership of Not-For-Profit Organizations | ||
| Leading Organizational Development | ||
| Leading Strategically | ||
| Leading Teams | ||
| Selected Topics in Bus Administration | ||
| MBA Internship 1 | ||
| Applied Research, Insights, and Evaluation | ||
| Total Credits | 36 | |
- 1
MBA students may also select up to four 6000-level ACC, HLS, MPA, MKT, and PED graduate courses to fulfill the MBA elective requirements (maximum total of 12 non-MBA elective semester hours).
- 2
Students must complete 18 semester hours of approved elective coursework. Students can select the combination of approved elective courses that meet their academic and professional careers. The elective courses listed are approved for the generalist elective pathway.
- 3
Not all electives are offered at all locations. Consult the schedule of classes each term to identify which electives are currently being offered.
Program Requirements - MBA Plus One Program
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| MBA-6020 | Marketing Management | 3 |
| MBA-6030 | Leadership and Organizational Behavior | 3 |
| MBA-6045 | Budgeting and Financial Management | 3 |
| MBA-6075 | Operations Management | 3 |
| MBA-6085 | Ethics and Decision Making | 3 |
| MBA-6100 | Strategic Management | 3 |
| MBA-6200 | Human Resource Management | 3 |
| MBA-6940 | MBA Internship | 3 |
| Required Professional Track | ||
| Select one of the following approved tracks: 1 | 12 | |
| Strategic Management Track | ||
| Corporate Finance | ||
| Data Analytics | ||
| Communication Management | ||
| Project Management Planning | ||
| Digital Marketing Track | ||
| Consumer Insight for Marketing Decisions | ||
| Marketing Analytics and Data Storytelling | ||
| Converged Media Strategy | ||
| Marketing Innovation Capstone | ||
| Healthcare Track | ||
| Cultural Competence and Professional Effectiveness | ||
| Healthcare Finance | ||
| Healthcare Information Management | ||
| Comprehensive Healthcare Management | ||
| Sport Management Track | ||
| Networking and Career Options in the Sports World | ||
| Sport Ticket Sales | ||
| Sport Partnership Marketing Sales | ||
| Interdisciplinary Relationships in the Sports World | ||
| Total Credits | 36 | |
- 1
In addition to prescribing the preceding 24 semester hours of coursework, the MBA Plus One requires that students select one of the following approved tracks (12 semester hours) as part of fulfilling the elective requirements of the degree.
Graduate Degree Requirements
- When a student's academic performance does not meet minimum standards, the instructor should send an academic alert to the student.
- A student is placed on academic warning at the end of any semester when their cumulative or semester program/major GPA is less than 3.0.
- A student, placed on academic warning for a second time (not necessarily consecutive semesters) will be academically dismissed, for poor scholarship.
- A student, will be academically dismissed if their Term GPA is 0.00 in any given semester.
- A graduate student, who is dimissed from Aurora University for poor scholarship may apply for readmission after one full semester away (Spring, Summer, or Fall).
- To be considered for readmission, a new application for admission and a petition for readmission are both required to be filed no less than 30 days prior to the requested semester of return, with the Office of Admissions.
- The petition will be reviewed by an academic program committee, comprised of the academic program director/chair and two faculty designated by the Jurisdictional Academic Dean, to make a determination based on the academic standards of the program. The academic program committee may require an in person meeting with the student as deemed necessary.
- Should readmission be granted, the student will be readmitted on Academic Warning. Should the cumulative program GPA fall below 3.0 in a subsequent semester, the student will be dismissed from the university.
- A student who had already had their petition for readmission denied by the academic program may appeal the decision to the Jurisdictional Academic Dean over the program. The step must be completed in the form of a written request to the Academic Dean within one calendar week after the student has been informed of the program committee decision. The Academic Dean will appoint two faculty members to serve on an ad hoc committee working to review the student's appeal. The ad hoc appeal committee will review all relevant materials and meet with the student and others, as deemed necessary. The decision of this ad hoc appeal committee is final. The ad hoc appeal committee will then report back to the program and the University Registrar regarding the final decision and its reasoning.
Attendance Policy
Attendance is mandatory for all class sections. If a student is to be absent for any reason, the student must discuss the expected absence with the course instructor before it occurs.
Academic Standards and Evaluation
Grades will be assigned to each student at the conclusion of each course according to the procedures outlined in the section “Graduate Grading System.”
At the graduate level, a “C” grade indicates less than complete mastery of the content of a course. Only two grades of “C” are accepted at the graduate level in the MBA program. If a “C” is received within the first three courses, the student may be removed from the program by action of the Program Director.
Residency Requirement
A minimum of 30 semester hours of graduate credit must be earned at Aurora University to receive the MBA degree. A maximum of six (6) semester hours of graduate credit may be transferred from an accredited college or university and applied to the requirements of this degree. Any coursework submitted for transfer must be approved by the Director. See the section “Transfer of Credit” for the conditions governing the transfer of credit.
Learning Outcomes
- The student will demonstrate a mastery of communication appropriate to the field of business administration. The student will master the ability to participate in and contribute to the business decision-making process, including the ability to communicate with diverse audiences.
- The student will demonstrate master’s-level competency in effective collaboration in the context of business administration. The student will demonstrate an ability to collaboratively lead, motivate, and manage a diverse workplace within and across organizations, nonprofit institutions, and community stakeholders.
- The student will demonstrate master’s-level competency in business administration research and analysis. The student will be able to engage in data driven decision-making in the context of business administration. The student will master the ability to analyze, synthesize, think critically, solve problems, and make decisions.
- The student will demonstrate a master’s-level competency in ethical decision-making. The student will be able to articulate and apply a corporate social responsibility values perspective, including the ability to identify ethical dilemmas and systematically apply ethical principles to identify appropriate courses of action.
- The student will demonstrate a masters-level competency in the discipline of business administration. The student will be able to demonstrate expertise in foundational and contemporary business administration theories and research (e.g., marketing, organizational behavior, financial management, managerial accounting, operations management, and strategic planning).
- The student will master the ability to apply disciplinary knowledge. The student will be able to demonstrate the ability to apply the functional areas of business as a manager (e.g., marketing, organizational behavior, financial management, managerial accounting, operations management, and strategic planning).