Economics and Finance Program Information
(ECON)(FNCE)
P.O. Box 70686
Phone: (423) 439-4202
227 Sam Wilson Hall
Web address: http://www.etsu.edu/cbat/economics/
The mission of the Department of Economics and Finance is to provide students with the educational experience necessary to succeed in a competitive global environment. We offer both business and non-business degree programs. Students can earn a traditional Bachelor of Business Administration degree in either economics or finance or a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics. Both programs focus on developing the problem solving skills that will help enable the student to critically analyze the complex and rapidly evolving issues of business and society. The Department also offers minor programs of study in both economics and finance for those students who would like to broaden their educational experience. We also offer a general business minor that is especially valuable for non-business students who may have future aspirations to earn the Master of Business Administration degree.
The Economics Business Administration Program offers two main concentrations - each providing a different emphasis. Business Economics has a microeconomic focus built on the study of markets and the behavior of business firms. The Financial Economics concentration provides an integrated focus on macroeconomics and the financial system and includes courses in finance. A graduate of these concentrations will be well-prepared for employment at all levels of business, the financial services industry, government, and the not-for-profit sector. A third concentration in General Business is also available for those students who desire a more broad-based education in business.
Students who are interested in Finance can earn a Finance Business Administration degree with concentrations in Banking , Corporate Finance and Investments or Real Estate . Each of these concentrations offers the student a program of study that leads to a traditional career path in his or her chosen field. We are also one of 25 finance programs designated by the Tennessee Valley Authority to be a part of the TVA Investment Challenge. The Challenge gives our students the opportunity to manage an active stock portfolio in competition with the other participating colleges. As of January 2017, the student-managed portfolio was valued at more than $670,000 and has outperformed the S&P 500 in eight of the last 12 years including 2016 where students generated an 18% return. The students in the Finance Program have been very successful in actively managing a real-money portfolio provided by the Tennessee Valley Authority, while students in the banking concentration have the additional opportunity to participate in a course with an experiential focus by interacting with bankers to discuss their daily decision-making challenges. All finance students have the opportunity to work with a team of students and present a case study analysis of current challenges in finance.
East Tennessee State University, through its participation in the CFA Institute University Recognition Program, has five scholarships available annually to sit for the Level 1 CFA exam offered every June and December. The College of Business and Technology Economics and Finance program incorporates at least 70% of the CFA Program Candidate Body of Knowledge and emphasizes the Institute’s code of ethics and standards of practice.
These scholarships cover both the exam and the study materials.
Further information can be found at https://www.cfainstitute.org/programs/cfaprogram/scholarships/Pages/index.aspx
For students who prefer not to study in a traditional business program, the department offers a non-business Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree in economics . Students who aspire to an international career will particularly benefit from our concentration in international commerce . This program combines traditional economics coursework with courses in business, geo-politics, and foreign language to prepare students for a host of career possibilities in government and multinational corporations. As a complement, the department has also established close ties with cooperating universities in Europe and encourages students to participate in the university’s foreign study exchange programs.
Special Admission Requirements for (College of Business and Technology) B.B.A. Majors
Entering business students are classified as pre-business (PBUS) until the Special Admission Requirements, specified below, are met. At the beginning of the junior year (i.e., upon completion of 60 hours), each qualified pre-business student must select a specific business major within the College (e.g., accountancy, marketing) and apply for admission to that business major.
The special admission requirements for business undergraduate majors:
- Each student planning to pursue the B.B.A. degree in business must apply for admission to a business major upon completion of 60 credit hours. Students changing into the PBUS category from another major or transferring into ETSU from other institutions have until 75 hours or one calendar year from their major change/admission to complete the PBUS required courses. Application to a business major is a one-time event and occurs as part of the student’s advising session in the Business Advisement Center (room 316 Sam Wilson Hall) during the semester that the student expects to complete the pre-business coursework. The student must meet the following requirements to be accepted into a B.B.A. business major:
- The student must have attained a minimum overall grade point average of 2.5.
- The following English composition and mathematics courses of the General Education Requirements must have been successfully completed:
ENGL 1010 Critical Reading and Expository Writing
ENGL 1020 Critical Thinking and Argumentation
MATH 1530 Probability and Statistics – Noncalculus
c. The student must have completed and earned a grade of C (2.0) or better in each of the following business courses:
ACCT 2010 Principles of Accounting I
ACCT 2020 Principles of Accounting II
ECON 2070 Quantitative Methods for Business I
ECON 2080 Quantitative Methods for Business II
ECON 2210 Principles of Macroeconomics
ECON 2220 Principles of Microeconomics
A student can repeat only two of these six courses each a single time in order to achieve a minimum course grade of C (2.0). A student can repeat for a second time only one of these two courses previously repeated in order to achieve a minimum course grade of C (2.0). All PBUS B.B.A. students must have completed these six (6) business classes with a minimum grade of C (2.0) in each and must have declared their business major before enrolling in 4000-level business classes. Students who do not meet these requirements will be unable to declare a business major and/or to continue in the B.B.A. program. This policy holds for courses taken at ETSU or elsewhere once a student is admitted as or declares PBUS (pre-business) as a major at ETSU.
- The applications to become business majors (i.e., the requests to change from PBUS to a business major) will be reviewed during the week after final grades are posted, and students will be notified of their status via email. Those students who are denied acceptance into a business major will be notified of their academic deficiency and be allowed to rectify the deficiency during the subsequent regular academic term. Since the PBUS classification ends after 75 hours, a student who fails to rectify the academic deficiency during the subsequent regular academic term must pursue a major other than the B.B.A. at East Tennessee State University.
Only in special cases will an application be considered past 75 hours of completed coursework; these cases are reviewed by the B.B.A. Admissions Committee. The College encourages and welcomes transfer students from other programs. In all instances, these students will be treated as special cases and an academic schedule will be proposed to each individual student that allows matriculation through the B.B.A. program in an appropriate manner. Progression standards are subject to change. Current standards are available in the Business Advisement Center (room 316 Sam Wilson Hall).
Appeals. Students who have been denied progression into a B.B.A. major may appeal to the Undergraduate Admissions Appeal Committee. Information on the appeal procedures may be obtained in the Undergraduate Programs Office (room 213 Sam Wilson Hall).
These admission standards apply to all entering ETSU students, to ETSU students seeking to change from a nonbusiness to a business major, to students seeking to transfer from other institutions, and to students readmitted to ETSU.
Additional information regarding admissions and retention policies, as well as career opportunities in business, may be obtained in Business Advisement Center (room 316 Sam Wilson Hall).
All business B.B.A. majors are required to complete the curriculum outlined below.
All business graduates must earn a minimum 2.0 overall GPA in all business core requirements and in all major program requirements, including work at ETSU and transfer work. At least 50 percent of the B.B.A. major program requirements for the B.B.A. degree must be earned at East Tennessee State University.
Seniors must successfully complete the Senior Business Exam (SBE) prior to beginning the capstone course MGMT 4910 Strategic Management . The SBE is administered at the end of the fall and spring semesters. Failure to successfully complete the SBE will result in the student being blocked from enrolling in MGMT 4910 for one semester until the SBE is offered again.