Major issues in collegiate education for business

The purposes of this study were (1) to identify significant issues in collegiate education for business, (2) to determine opinions of American Association of Collegiate School of Business deans regarding these issues, and (3) to analyze statistically the deans' opinions. The study was limited to (1) a review of the professional literature since 1959 to identify issues in collegiate education for business and (2) a questionnaire survey of American Association of Collegiate Schools of Business deans to determine their opinions regarding the issues. Of the 131 questionnaires mailed, 75 (57.2 per cent) were returned and usable. The responses of the deans to the issues are summarized on the basis of the percentage of responses. Group A consists of those issues on which 80 to 100 per cent of the deans agreed. Group B consists of those issues on which 60 to 80 per cent of the deans agreed. Group C consists of those issues on which less than 60 per cent of the deans agreed. Group A is composed of the following issues. 1. Accounting, Marketing, and Finance are appropriate BBA specialization fields. 2. Secretarial Administration, Advertising, Real Estate, Office Management, and Business Communications are not appropriate BBA specialization fields. 3. Business Education, Insurance, Real Estate, Business Communications, and Secretarial Administration are not appropriate MBA specialization fields. 4. Accounting, Finance, Business Statistics, and Marketing should be included in the core course requirements for the BBA degree. 5. Introduction to Business should not be included in the core course requirements for the BBA degree. 6. The MBA degree program should be more professional than liberal. 7. Collegiate education for business should be offered at both the graduate and the undergraduate levels. 8. The following credentials are appropriate for teaching in collegiate schools of business: Ph.D. in business, Ph.D. in economics, and D.B.A. 9. The following credentials are not appropriate for teaching in collegiate schools of business: Ph.D. in English and Ph.D. in philosophy. Group B is composed of the following issues. 1. The main interest of graduate business students is not specialization. 2. From 13 to 24 semester hours of a 120-semester-hour degree program should be devoted to specialization. 3. Economics, Business Management, Business Statistics, and Quantitative Management Science are appropriate BBA specialization fields. 4. Public Administration and Business Education are not appropriate BBA specialization fields. 5. Accounting, Finance, and Marketing are appropriate MBA specialization fields. 6. Behavioral Management, Computer Science, Industrial Management, Business Economics, Personnel Administration, General Business, Economics, and Business Statistics are not appropriate MBA specialization fields. 7. The MBA degree program should be more undifferentiated than specialized. 8. Calculus for Business, Business Law, Computer Science, and Management should be included in the core course requirements. 9. Business Communications and Operations Research should not be included in the core course requirements. 10. From 43 to 60 semester hours of a 120-semester-hour BBA degree program should be devoted to liberal arts courses. 11. A balance should be provided between a broad liberal arts background and specific business knowledges and skills for the students at the undergraduate level. 12. At the graduate level, collegiate education for business should provide students with specific business knowledges and skills rather than a broad liberal arts background. 13. The BBA degree program should be more professional than liberal. 14. From 7 to 24 semester hours of a 120-semester-hour BBA degree program should be designated as business electives. 15. Graduate collegiate education for business should stress primarily theory rather than applications. 16. Graduate collegiate education for business should prepare students for managerial- rather than operational-1evel positions. 17. Collegiate schools of business should educate primarily for organizational administration not necessarily restricted to business rather than for business administration only. 18. Admission requirements for undergraduate collegiate schools of business should be the same or slightly higher than those of the university. 19. Admission requirements for graduate collegiate schools of business should be greater than those of the university. 20. The following credentials are appropriate for teaching in collegiate schools of business: J.D. or Ll.B. and Ph.D. in psychology. 21. The following credentials are not appropriate for teaching in collegiate schools of business: Ed.D. in business education, C.P.A., and Ph.D. in psychology. Grouo C is composed of the following issues. 1. Is the main interest of most undergraduate business students preparation in an area of specialization? 2. Are Computer Science, Operations Research, Personnel Administration, Production and Logistics Management, Industrial Management, General Business, Insurance, and International Business appropriate BBA specialization fields? 3. Should the BBA degree program be undifferentiated or specialized? 4. How many semester hours of a 120-semester-hour BBA degree program should be represented by the core course requirements? 5. Should Management, Computer Science, Business Law, Calculus for Business, and Behavioral Management Science be included in the core course requirements? 6. Should collegiate education for business at the undergraduate level stress primarily theory or applications? 7. Should undergraduate collegiate education for business prepare students primarily for operational- or managerial-level positions? 8. Should some schools educate primarily for higher management and other schools primarily for middle management? 9. Are the following credentials appropriate for teaching in collegiate schools of business: Ph.D. in sociology, Ph.D. in mathematics, and Ph.D. in engineering? While the deans' responses to the questionnaire items did form 7 distinct clusters, the distribution of the items in the clusters evidenced no definable pattern.Education, College o