What Will You Learn in a Business Administration Program

Careers in business and finance are expected to see above average job growth through 2029.¹ But even entry-level positions usually require a degree. If you’re researching Business Administration programs, you probably want to know just what you’ll learn. Universities often offer specializations such as Accounting, Finance, Economics, and Law and those courses make up the foundation of what you will learn generally, but there is much more. These are the 10 areas that will be covered in any good Business Administration Program:

Accounting

No company survives without understanding and reporting on its financial health. That’s why financial and managerial accounting are critical components to your program. You’ll learn how to analyze and interpret the basic financial statements found in annual reports. You’ll also learn how to use accounting data to make sound financial decisions.

Finance

If Accounting provides you with the reports, Finance teaches you how to use the information to plan and make financial decisions. A Finance course will introduce you to financial management for businesses and corporations. You will learn how to access capital and fund operating budgets and how to analyze and optimize profitability.

Economics

You’ll need to understand the big picture of macroeconomics and how the overall economy might impact an individual business or industry. Microeconomics will help you understand principles like supply and demand, opportunity costs, comparative advantage, and market structure. Together the courses will help you see where an individual organization might successfully fit into a capitalistic economy.

Law

Regardless of its type, your business will need to adhere to federal, state, and local ordinances. Among the topics you’ll learn in your program will be business organization, sales, contracts, liability, intellectual property, tax regulations, HR requirements, and ethics.

Ethics

Adhering to sound business ethics is required by law, but the policy should go well beyond what you’re required to do. To do well, you also need to do right. A good business program will use case studies to highlight the benefits of strong ethical principles and the consequences of not following them.

Global Business

It doesn’t matter if you and your business acumen remain forever in the community where you grew up, you need to think globally. What happens on distant shores can reach you at the speed of the internet and global economics can trickle and flood right up to your doorstep.

Technology

No successful company today runs without some form of technology. You’ll need to learn the basics of how computers work and the software that will be critical to your organization’s efficiencies. There will be programs for accounting, document creation, communication, and presentations. And your exposure to them will prepare you for any industry-specific software you might need to learn on the job.

Marketing

Whatever product or service you might provide some future customer or client needs to be promoted. A good business program will teach you about target marketing, promotional tactics, advertising, social media, and how to measure the success of what you do.

Communication

There are acceptable protocols to effective business communication that can help you excel and succeed in your career. You can learn the basics in a good Business Administration program but you’ll want to improve your communication skills throughout your life. 

Soft Skills

In addition to the fundamental lessons you need for a business career, there are skills you may already possess that you can hone during your program and beyond. Communication, leadership, initiative, work ethic, attention to detail, and follow-through are just a few of the soft skills that can be true differentiators to your academic success and your future career.