UNIBusiness | MBA Home Town | Curriculum | University of Northern Iowa College of Business Administration

The value in an MBA degree begins with substantive, demanding classroom experiences.

The UNI MBA requires 30 units of course work covering the core business disciplines. This is a curriculum designed for technical or business specialists ready to gain a broadly strategic understanding of issues facing managers in today's turbulent economic environment.

Required Core Classes (27 credits)

Cross-Functional Operations: Analysis and design of business operational decisions in complex production and service environments.	Marketing Management: Integrated and applied approach utilizing modern marketing theory and practice by developing a framework for decision making and implementing a marketing program.
Financial Management & Markets: In-depth examination of tools, concepts, theories, and analysis of managerial finance integrated with case applications. Students expected to apply concepts from managerial finance in analyzing, presenting, and discussing cases at an advanced level.	Research & Analysis for Management Decisions: Study of the tools and techniques for business research and data analysis. Emphasis on applying the tools and techniques to determine, define, and solve complex business problems and improve managerial decision making.
Management Information Systems Concepts: Provides students with knowledge of the role of information systems within an organization; systems, information and decision theory; information systems applications including decision support; and systems evaluation and selection.	Strategic Management of Human Resources: Principles of organizational behavior applied to managerial practices; strategic management of human resources to accomplish work and maximize organizational effectiveness.
Managerial Accounting: Use of accounting data in managerial decision-making process and in the analysis and control of business operations	Strategic Planning and Organizational Analysis: Analysis of business organization, its environment, and the strategic planning function. Should be taken in first semester of study.
Managerial Economics: Application of economic theory and methods to business and administrative decision making.

Business Elective (3 credits)

Three elective units provide an opportunity for advanced work in a business specialty or industry issue. At least three 1-credit short courses are offered on campus each year, typically taught by international faculty or business consultants, that focus on cutting edge trends or challenging business issues. Students may also select a study abroad opportunity or transfer units from another accredited MBA program.

Business Capstone Experience (1 credit)

In your last semester as a UNI MBA student, you'll apply the business principles and analytical methods you learned throughout the program by working as a consultant for a business or nonprofit organization in the region. Working in a team with a faculty mentor, you will develop strategies to improve organizational performance. You'll gain hands-on experience analyzing business situations, identifying alternative solutions to problems and providing recommendations for performance improvement.

Preparation for Success

Success in an MBA program requires academic preparation for the advanced business curriculum as well as a collection of critical thinking, communication and relationship skills that we describe as a managerial mind set.

Academic prerequisites can be met with undergraduate business courses, online review courses or professional work experience. We work with each student individually to ensure your readiness.
Taking a leadership role involves thinking strategically, maintaining a global perspective, building talent and making sustainable changes in key processes. New students participate in two Saturday workshops to learn the frameworks, then take advantage of online resources, reflection prompts and self-assessment exercises to solidify their critical thinking, problem solving, team management and communication skills.

For more information, complete our form.

UNI Biz 2020 magazine kicks off our 40th year

As I write this, past mid-term, face-to-face classes continue. Will we make it through the semester? Regardless, our 40th year moves forward, pandemic or not! I am the last dean of this college to have worked for all previous deans. I look forward to celebrating with my colleagues, probably post-vaccine, to recognize where we have been and where we are today.

2 months 2 weeks ago

The complete guide to choosing a college major

College is an exciting time in your life, but don’t spend all four years merely enjoying it – you should take advantage of this time to determine exactly what you want to do with your life. This article will help you decide how to choose your college major that fits your long-term goals.

3 months 6 days ago

Five iOS Apps for people learning to 'adult'

The anxiety young people have about maturing in their twenties has lead to the word "adulting" becoming quite popular. It's a useful, albeit somewhat glib, catch-all term for taking care of yourself. Doing your laundry? Adulting. Scrambling an egg? Adulting. In truth, the real sign of adulthood is living a life that's within your control, and for that, there are several iOS apps to help. With these five apps, anyone can "adult" -- or at least fake it when they need to.

4 months 2 weeks ago

5 highly effective Gmail tools you should be using but probably aren't

Do you use Gmail for your business or personal email correspondence? Do you want to improve your email experience, rather than rely on Google's standard email interface? Thanks to developers within the email productivity space, there are a growing number of productivity apps available for Gmail users. Following are five powerful Gmail productivity tools to consider adding to your email routine:

4 months 3 weeks ago

UNI releases new COVID-19 dashboard

The University of Northern Iowa today begins its release of COVID-19 test results. This routinely updated aggregate data, shared in a way that protects individuals’ privacy, is available here. The dashboard will be updated each Friday and Monday. “Timely, accurate information is a powerful tool for fighting COVID-19, and we believe everyone in the community deserves to have access to it as we work together to stop this virus,” said President Mark A. Nook.