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The Bachelor of Science in Marketing degree is a 120-credit program. The number of credits you may need to complete will vary according to the courses you may have previously completed and transfer into the degree program. Once you are admitted into the degree program, an assigned academic adviser will help you outline your requirements and an academic plan.

Courses cover a wide range of marketing topics, including:

• business-to-business marketing
• consumer behavior
• global marketing
• marketing techniques for electronic commerce
• advertising and sales promotion
• services marketing
• marketing research
 

Course List - Bachelor of Science in Marketing 

Requirements for the Major

Prescribed Courses (46 credits)
Title Abbreviation Description Credits
Financial and Managerial Accounting for Decision Making ACCTG 211 Introduction to the role of accounting numbers in the process of managing a business and in investor decision making.

Prerequisite: MATH 021 or 1.5 units of high school algebra		 4 credits
International Business and Society BA 364Y Business organizations and the sociocultural environment; current issues; corporate responsibility; international and multinational business environments.

Prerequisite: ENGL 202D, MGMT 301		 3 credits
Business Strategy BA 462 Interpretation of business concept in the analysis of problems related to the successful management of a company, institution, or organization.

Prerequisite: FIN 301, MGMT 301, MKTG 301W		 3 credits
Introductory Microeconomic Analysis and Policy ECON 102 Methods of economic analysis and their use; price determination; theory of the firm; distribution. 3 credits
Introductory Macroeconomic Analysis and Policy ECON 104 GS National income measurement; aggregate economic models; money and income; policy problems.  3 credits
Effective Writing: Business Writing ENGL 202D Writing reports and other common forms of business communication. (A student may take only one course for credit from ENGL 202A, 202B, 202C, and 202D.)

Prerequisite: ENGL 015 or ENGL 030		 3 credits
Corporation Finance FIN 301 Nature of finance function; risk and return concepts; working capital; dividend policies; mergers; security markets; acquisition and management of corporate capital; analysis of operations, forecasting capital requirements; raising capital; and planning profits. Available to baccalaureate students only. Not available to students who have taken B A 301.

Prerequisite: ENGL 015 or ENGL 030; ACCTG 211; ECON 102 or ECON 104; SCM 200 or STAT 200  		 3 credits
Basic Management Concepts MGMT 301 Study of fundamental principles and processes available to the understanding of management. Not available to students who have taken B A 304.

Prerequisite: ENGL 015 or ENGL 030; ECON 102 or ECON 104; MATH 021 or higher or satisfactory score on the mathematics placement examination. 		 3 credits
Introduction to Business Information Systems MIS 204 Introduction to the use of information systems in business organizations. 3 credits
Information Systems Management and Applications MIS 390

Specification, design and implementation of information systems directed at aiding decision making in organizations.

Pre-requisite: MIS 204

 3 credits
Principles of Marketing* MKTG 301W Focuses on customer behavior, product, channels of distribution, promotion, and pricing with emphasis on a culturally diverse environment. Not available to students who have taken B A 303.

Prerequisite: ENGL 015 or ENGL 030; ECON 102 or ECON 104; MATH 021 or higher or satisfactory score on the mathematics placement examination 		 3 credits
Consumer Behavior* MKTG 330 Application of behavioral science concepts to the understanding of buyer behavior as a basis for marketing management decision making. 3 credits
Marketing Research* MKTG 342 Research approaches, methods, and applications studied as a formal approach to problem solving for marketing decisions.

Prerequisite: B A 303 or MKTG 301W; SCM 200 or STAT 200		 3 credits
Marketing Strategy* MKTG 450W Market-oriented problems of the firm; identification and selection of market opportunities; formulation of competitive strategies; marketing policies and programs.

Prerequisite: MKTG 330, MKTG 342 		 3 credits
Supply Chain Management SCM 301 Supply chain management concepts, principles, and methodologies.

Prerequisite: ACCTG 211, ECON 102, SCM 200 or STAT 200; limited to students in baccalaureate status		 3 credits
Additional Courses (12 credits)
Title Abbreviation Description Credits
Social, Legal, and Ethical Environment of Business BA 243 Explores the ethical, political, social, legal and regulatory, technological, and demographic diversity environment of business. A student may not receive credit toward graduation for both B LAW 243 and BA 243. 4 credits
Techniques of Calculus I

OR

Calculus with Analytic Geometry I†		 MATH 110 GQ

OR

MATH 140 GQ		 Functions, graphs, derivatives, integrals, techniques of differentiation and integration, exponentials, improper integrals, applications. Students may take only one course for credit from MATH 110, 140, 140A, and 140B.

Prerequisite: MATH 022 or satisfactory performance on the mathematics placement examination

OR

Functions, limits; analytic geometry; derivatives, differentials, applications; integrals, applications. Students may only take one course for credit from MATH 110, 140, 140A, 140B, and 140H.

Prerequisite: MATH 022, MATH 026; or MATH 040 or MATH 041 or satisfactory performance on the mathematics placement examination		 4 credits
Introduction to Statistics for Business†

OR

Elementary Statistics		 SCM 200 GQ

OR

STAT 200 GQ		 Topics include descriptive statistics, probability distributions, statistical inference, regression and correlation, and forecasting.

Prerequisite: MATH 021 or higher or satisfactory score on the mathematics placement examination

OR

Descriptive statistics, frequency distributions, probability, binomial and normal distributions, statistical inference, linear regression, and correlation.

Prerequisite: Placement into MATH 021 or higher		 4 credits
Additional Marketing Major Courses (select 9 credits)
Title Abbreviation Description Credits
Retailing* MKTG 327 Management of marketing institutions in distribution channels from producers to consumers. Emphasis on retail institutions: location, personnel, merchandising, control, promotion.

Prerequisite: BA 303 or MKTG 301W		 3 credits
Advertising and Sales Promotion Management* MKTG 422 Perspectives and models of the key decisions involved in managing advertising and sales promotion campaigns.

Prerequisite: MKTG 330 or MKTG 342		 3 credits
Global Marketing* MKTG 445 Role of international marketing in the global environment; political, economic, geographic, historical, cultural conditions; developing and implementing international marketing strategies.

Prerequisite: BA 303 or MKTG 301W		 3 credits
Sales Management* MKTG 476 Application of modern management principles to field sales force planning, organization, and administration; selection, training, and compensation plans.

Prerequisite: MKTG 301W and MGMT 301		 3 credits
Services Marketing Management* MKTG 478 Conceptual understanding of services and the analytical tools that are used in solving strategic services marketing problems.

Prerequisite: MKTG 301W		 3 credits

Supporting Courses and Related Areas (12 credits)

Select 12 credits of 200- to 400-level business courses from: ACCTG, BA, ECON, FIN, MGMT, MIS, MKTG, or SCM in consultation with an academic adviser and in support of the student's interests. 

General Education (45 credits**)
Description Credits
Arts – GA 6 credits
Humanities – GH 6 credits
Health and Wellness – GHW 3 credits
Natural Sciences – GN 9 credits
Social and Behavioral Sciences – GS 6 credits
Writing and Speaking – GWS* 9 credits
Quantification – GQ* 6 credits
Integrative Studies (6 credits)***

*A student enrolled in this course must receive a grade of C or better.

**12 credits are included in the requirements for the major.

***This requirement only applies to students starting in summer 2018 or later. Learn more about the Integrative Studies options and consult your academic adviser when choosing courses to fulfill these requirements. 

† These courses are not offered online through Penn State World Campus, but may be accepted toward the major if you have already taken them.

Please note: Among the above degree requirements, students should incorporate at least 3 credits in US cultures, 3 credits in international (IL) cultures, and 3 credits in writing across the curriculum courses. The above course list includes only courses offered by World Campus. An official degree audit or the recommended academic plan for this program may include additional course options and detailed requirements. All students are expected to complete at least 36 Penn State credits to earn this degree. Please consult an academic adviser for details.

Course Availability

If you're ready to see when your courses will be offered, visit our public LionPATH course search (opens in new window) to start planning ahead.