Business

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Steven Smith Ph.D., Chair

The Business Department offers a Bachelor of Arts degree with majors in: accounting; accounting with CPA track; business administration with concentrations in finance, general business, management, or marketing; business analysis in insurance; financial planning; information technology management; and insurance and risk management. Minors in business administration, and insurance claims investigation are also available. The business department offers courses in economics to complement its degree offerings. The business department also offers a certificate program in Insurance and Risk Management.

Business Administration majors and minors are designed to combine a strong liberal arts education with courses and activities related to the nature and operation of for-profit and not-for-profit organizations. Coursework emphasizes analytical and critical thinking, and the application of material to case studies and simulations, rather than memorization alone. Courses emphasize a strategic management approach to decision-making and problem solving. Students develop strong analytical and group project skills by working with case studies of contemporary businesses with an emphasis on ethical business standards and a commitment to diversity in the workplace. Students will be prepared to contribute immediately in their career or in a graduate school environment.

The Business Department houses the Insurance and Risk Management Program at The University of Olivet. This program was created by faculty in conjunction with representatives from the insurance industry in 1980 and is considered one of the top risk management and insurance education programs in the United States based on curriculum, faculty, student activities and industry involvement.

Course materials are developed by faculty to reflect the risk management and insurance industry and are widely recognized and continuously updated. They also assist students in preparing for national exams leading to the AINS, ARM, AIS, AAI, AU, AIC, ASLI, ARE, CPCU, CIC, and CRM professional designations. The success of the IRM program continues through close collaboration with an advisory board of professionals representing a cross-section of the risk management and insurance industry.

Insurance and risk management student success is enhanced through the award-winning activities of the Alpha Alpha chapter of Gamma Iota Sigma, the international insurance and actuarial sciences collegiate coeducational fraternity. Students develop management and leadership skills, prepare for internship and employment interviews and network with insurance and risk management professionals where they work.

The Business Department offers a combined bachelor’s and master’s option which allows exceptional, well-prepared undergraduate students at The University of Olivet to apply for early admission to the university’s MBA program. Students undertaking the combined degree program option complete graduate-level coursework as undergraduate students, thus enabling courses to be applied toward both degree programs. See Combined Bachelor of Arts and Master of Business Administration Program  for more information.

Olivet undergraduate students who are interested in a career in K-12 teaching may qualify for an innovative approach to enter into this career. See Teaching Pathway  for more information.

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