Requirements For IB Major
The International Business (IB) degree contains the core business
and non-business requirements that are common to all BBA degrees in
the McCombs School of Business, ensuring a strong basic understanding
of all key business functions. In addition, the IB Major is designed
to provide knowledge of business operations specific to global business.
Along with specialized courses in global business, IB majors select
one region of the world where they will pursue more in-depth study.
This geographic focus is obtained through courses which focus on the
chosen region, often from UT’s outstanding Area Studies Centers courses,
along with associated language courses and a study abroad in that area
of the world. (NOTE that each student’s plan regarding all components
of regional study must be approved by the International Business Faculty
advisor.)
The IB degree has the following specific requirements:
International Business Courses
IB 350: International Trade
IB Electives: six hours of coursework related to international business. Typical IB electives include the following courses, but the other business courses with specific Global/International focus may be used as IB electives with Faculty Advisor approval.
- IB 372: Global Entrepreneurship
IB 372: Global Social Responsibility
IB 372: Doing Business in France
MKT 372: Global Marketing
FIN 376: International Finance
Note: Any IB 372, special topics course, including business language courses such as Business French, Business German, and Business Spanish may be used as IB electives.
IB 378: International Business Operations (should be taken Spring Semester of in final year)
Area Studies Sequence
Nine hours of upper-division coursework (courses numbered 320 and above) to be taken from one field of area studies. The University offers extensive course selections associated with several areas of the world, including Latin American Studies, Asian Studies, Middle Eastern Studies, Russian and East European Studies, and European Studies. Other courses may be substituted with consent of the IB Faculty Advisor.
Language Studies
IB majors are required to take six hours of upper-division language study in one modern language. At UT this will mean a total of six semesters of language study (four lower-division courses and two upper-division). The language studied for this requirement must be one spoken in the chosen region of the world for the student's Study Abroad program and Area Studies Sequence (see below).
Study Abroad
The IB major requires one semester of study in a qualified foreign exchange program*. Ideally, the student will study in a country that is a part of his or her area of interest. Most study abroad programs will provide students credit towards their degree, so that graduation can occur within four years of entry to the University.
*Study Abroad Requirement Details:
The program must provide the student with at least 6 hours of academic credit. International Business majors are encouraged to do their study abroad program in the context of semester-long immersion programs, however some summer programs or shorter semester programs may be acceptable with advisor approval, so long as the program is of at least six weeks duration and results in 6 hours of credit acceptable to UT.
Foreign students who have graduated from a native-speaking high school in their home country will be exempted from the Study Abroad requirement. Students born abroad who graduated from a US high school, or US students who have lived abroad but graduated from a US or "American" school will still be required to study abroad.
