College of Business

Mission - The College of Business will develop business leaders who embrace the values and virtues of Jesus.

Values and Virtues - Purposeful, Bold, Credible, Creative, Serving

Vision - To become a leader in Christian business education.
 

For over 100 years the Lipscomb College of Business has pursued one mission: teach students to do what is right and live the words of Psalms 78:72, “And David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them.” Our purpose is to prepare students to work and live with strong business acumen and integrity.

It’s an exciting time to be part of the College of Business. Lipscomb’s Undergraduate Programs were ranked #1 in Tennessee by Bloomberg Businessweek in 2016, #1 in Tennessee by Poets and Quants in 2017 and #1 Private Business Program in Tennessee by Poets and Quants in 2018. Our Part-time MBA program is ranked in the top 50 in the nation.

The College’s accounting program is ranked #1 in Tennessee and #47 in the country by College Factual. Christian Universities Online ranks our accounting program as #1 in Tennessee and #2 in the nation. 

Lipscomb offers the Bachelor of Business Administration (B.B.A.) degree for its business majors. The B.B.A. degree integrates leadership, team work, decision-making, technology, communication skills, ethics and a global emphasis into our academic programs. Hands-on practical applications can be achieved through our unique “Aspire” Program and internships, Pitch competitions, Financial Trading Lab, consulting, alumni engagement, formal mentoring, business clubs and global travel.

Bachelor of Business Administration

General Education

The general education requirements for the B.B.A. degree are shown under general education requirements in the Academic Program section of the catalog.

1. EC 2403  must be taken to fulfill the social science requirement.
2. The mathematics requirement will be satisfied with MA 2183  

Business Core (49 hours*) and Other Required Courses for B.B.A. Degree

Major 

Each student earning a BBA selects a major (Management, Marketing, Accounting or Finance) of 21-24 hours. Within each major, students also select a concentration.

Electives

Students pursuing the B.B.A. typically have 7 or more hours of general electives in order to complete the required 126 credit hours to graduate. The College of Business encourages students to use these hours in areas such as:

1. Minor - Based on their interests, students may use their open electives to pursue any of the minors offered by Lipscomb University.
2. Foreign language - As globalization increasingly affects businesses, students are strongly encouraged to consider studying foreign languages.
3. Computing and informatics - Information technology is a key enabler in the business world. Courses in the School of Computing and Informatics can be extremely valuable to business students.
4. Psychology and sociology - Students in management may find advanced study in psychology and sociology to be a valuable addition to their major coursework.

Business As Mission

A recurring theme throughout the undergraduate BBA program is “Business As Mission”.  BAM is real, sustainable and profitable business.  This exciting new way of thinking about the intersection of business and mission is a means of advancing the kingdom of God by leveraging the strengths of entrepreneurship, economics, and commerce for the common good of others. It is a way to bless lives, develop sustainable solutions, and break poverty cycles.  The College has a Center for Business as Mission that serves as a resource for students who seek to make a kingdom impact through entrepreneurship and within business. The center offers a minor and offers several courses.

Entrepreneurship

Another recurring theme throughout the undergraduate BBA program is entrepreneurship.  All students are introduced to the concept and the Center for Entrepreneurship offers a major and minor in two areas along with pitch competitions and co-curricular activities.  Students experience what it means to start their own businesses before graduation. In fact, upon graduation, an entrepreneurship student has a finely tuned business plan ready to execute, and that has survived student/faculty critique based on the experience of entrepreneurial faculty professionals who have been down the same road. 

ASPIRE Fellows Honors Program - Integrated

Aspire Fellows is a selective cohort program that integrates a year-long paid internship with focused class sessions and mentoring.  In this selective program, students integrate academics, real-world experience in a 700 hour directed work experience, and personal development.  In addition, students complete a month-long global trip in which they visit businesses and interact with executives.

The program runs for an academic year (summer, fall and spring) and is open to rising senior declared business majors.  The College of Business receives applications in early spring before the May term in which the student will begin. (See below for admissions requirements, process, and timetable.) Special scholarship funding may be available for participants.

Interested students must successfully complete the following courses in preparation for the program:

• Statistics
• Micro and Macro economics
• Financial and Managerial Accounting
• Business Analytics
• An Introduction to Business
• Leading and Managing People
• Principles of Marketing
• Prerequisites for Business Communications

Courses taken in the program are:

Principles of Finance

International Business

Operations and Supply Chain Management

Business Ethics

Business Communication

Business Policy and Strategy

Internship (7 credits)

Admissions Requirements

• 3.25 GPA that remains throughout the duration of the program
• Application, personal statement, and resume due by February 15; admission decision by March 1; Maymester trip; internship from July 1 to May graduation
• Recommendation from a College of Business faculty member
• Completion of designation prerequisite courses prior to program date

To remain enrollment in the program, students must:

• Maintain a 3.25 average GPA
• Earn a minimum grade of “C” in all program courses.
• Earn satisfactory performance evaluations from an employer

Undergraduate Experience

Undergraduate Certificate in Business Leadership  

The Undergraduate Certificate in Business Leadership is designed to prepare undergraduate business majors to build and reinforce the interpersonal skills that are essential to the management role. Leadership has always been recognized as a desirable trait in many domains and critical to advancement in the business community. Adding a foundation of leadership skills will enhance prospects and abilities in any business-focused discipline. Students will take 12 credit hours related to leadership and participate in designated Leadership forums and events, and practice leadership in co-curricular activities. Upon successful completion of all certificate and graduation requirements, a student will receive an Undergraduate Certificate in Business Leadership in addition to the B.B.A. degree. Please see Advisor for details.

Approved options for 12 leadership credit hours:

Global Business, Culture, and Travel to (insert destination) XX 4803
Internship XX 4803
Servant Leadership LUEG 3033 
Organizational Behavior: Global Perspectives MG 4403
Applied Workplace Skills Assessment and Development  CORE 3404
Career Planning and Competencies OGLD 363V
CORE competencies at the 3000 level or above CORE XXX4

Policies

• Effective in the Fall, 2018 term, students pursuing a degree outside the College of Business may not apply more than 31 hours in the areas of accounting, business administration, economics, finance, management, or marketing toward their degree requirements.
• The College of Business will not accept transfer credit from two-year institutions for upper division business courses (3000 or 4000 level) unless we have a specific articulation agreement with the two-year institution. 
• At least 12 hours in a student’s major department and which apply to the major requirements must be taken at Lipscomb.
• At least 9 hours in a student’s minor department and which apply to the minor requirements must be taken at Lipscomb.
• At least 24 hours in a student’s business core courses and which apply to the degree requirements must be taken at Lipscomb.
• A business major whose minor is also in business must have at least 12 hours in the minor that are different from hours satisfying the major requirements.