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Texas BPP Minor

McCombs School of Business McCombs School of Business

Overview

The University of Texas at Austin Business & Public Policy (BPP) Minor and Certificate provide undergraduate students from across campus with the opportunity to study business and public policy.

Students pursuing the BPP Minor and Certificate will understand the impact of the political process on business, and firms’ need to manage relationships with their numerous stakeholders.  Students complete an intense curriculum of political science, business, law, economics, international business, and public relations.

Students with the BPP Minor and Certificate have Global Readiness and are better prepared to enter a career in law, governmental and non-governmental organizations, nonprofit organizations, and many others.

Who Should Apply

Prerequisites

The BPP Minor and Certificate are both open to all UT undergraduates—business and non-business.  Applicants must be degree-seeking undergraduates with upper-division standing and 24 hours taken in residence, and planning to graduate under the 2020-2022 and later catalog. 

Consideration

Admission to both the minor and the certificate is based on a student’s overall academic record.  For priority admission consideration, apply by April 1st for the following fall semester and October 1st for the following spring semester.  Late applications will be considered, but will not have priority over the current admission class.

To Apply for the Business and Public Policy Minor:

Step 1: Submit an application via the Registrar Document Submission page for minors.

Step 2: Enter your EID.  From the Field of Study pull down menu, choose Business Government and Society.  From the Type pull down menu, choose Business and Public Policy. Confirm your choice and submit the application.

Students enrolled in the 2020 - 2022 and later UT Academic Catalog are eligible to earn the Business and Public Policy Minor.  

 

LEARN MORE! Attend one of our Info Sessions!

Wednesday, September 22: 6:00pm - 7:00pm - GSB 5.154
Wednesday, September 29: 6:00pm - 7:00pm - GSB 5.154

 

Business & Public Policy (BPP) Minor Application

 

The Business & Public Policy (BPP) Minor is offered by the Business, Government & Society (BGS) Department of the McCombs School of Business.  However, the minor is available to students of all majors—business and non-business--on the UT Campus and we encourage all to apply.

As per university policy, the Business & Public Policy Certificate, which was launched in 2014, remains available to students who intend to graduate under the 2018-2020 course catalog.  The BPP minor’s effective date is September 1, 2020.

To be eligible to apply for the minor, students must:

  • Be degree-seeking undergraduate students
  • Have upper-division standing with 24 hours in-residence prior to application, and
  • Have elected to be under the 2020-2022 course catalog

Once admitted, you must contact your academic advisor to have the minor to your degree profile. This is an important step in the process. The credential cannot be awarded to you when you graduate from UT - Austin if it has not been added to your degree profile.


Curriculum

Course Selection

The BPP minor requires five (5) distinct courses totaling 15 semester hours, usually requiring at least two long semesters to complete due to course availability and sequencing.


Required Courses: Students must take four (4) or five (5) required courses (12 - 15 semester hours).

Elective Courses: Students must take zero (0) or one (1) elective courses (0-3 semester hours).

Required Courses (12-15 hours)

Required Courses (12-15 hours)

 

Mandatory

  • GOV 312L   Issues and policies in American Government (may include the Washington Campus section of this course). Any course approved to satisfy the Texas Legislative requirement for government may be used here, e.g. GOV 3US or GOV 3TX). 

Select at least three (3) of the following five (5) BGS courses

  • BGS 371   Corporate Political Strategy
  • BGS 372   Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility
  • BGS 373   Strategic Corporate Communication
  • BGS 374   Global Political Economy
  • BGS 375   Business and Policy in the Age of Inequality (Previously BGS 370)

 

Elective Courses (0-3 hours)

Elective Courses (0-3 hours)

If needed to complete the fifteen-hour BPP Minor requirement, student may select one of the following courses (or other courses, as approved by the BGS Department):

Select at least zero (0) to three (3) of the following available elective courses

  • ADV 353/PR353   Advertising & Public Relations Law & Ethics
  • AMS 310 Introduction to American Studies
  • BGS 325   Social and Ethical Responsibilities of Business
  • BGS 370.1   Energy Technology & Policy
  • BGS 370.2   Ethics, CSR, and Service Learning
  • BGS 370.X Topics in Business, Government & Society
  • CLD 371 Capstone Course in Communication and Leadership
  • CMS 306M Professional Communication Skills
  • CMS 342K   Political Communication
  • CMS 345 Media Effects and Politics
  • ECO 321   Public Economics
  • ECO 333K   Development Economics
  • ECO 334K   Urban Economics
  • ECO 339K   International Trade and Investment
  • ECO 348.2 International Trade
  • ECO 348K Advanced Topics in Econometrics
  • FIN 372.1   Environmental, Social & Governance Investing
  • GOV 325   Political Parties
  • GOV 358   Introduction to Public Policy
  • GOV 360F  Global Governance
  • GOV 366F   Issues in Third World Development
  • GOV 370R   Money in U.S. Politics
  • IB 320F    Foundations of International Business
  • IB 350 International Trade
  • IB 362 Global Regulatory Strategy
  • LEB 320F   Foundations of the Legal and Ethical Environment of Business or
  • LEB 323/323H   Legal and Ethical Environment of Business
  • LEB 363    Real Estate Law
  • LEB 370.13  Contracts and Real Property
  • LEB 370.14  Oil & Gas Law
  • PHL 325L   Business, Ethics & Public Policy
  • PR 305   Fundamentals of Public Relations
  • PR 352   Strategies in Public Relations
  • PR 367   Integrated Communications Management

 

Note:

Other elective courses may be considered for substitution, as approved by the BGS Department.

All classes must be taken on a letter-grade basis.  The student must earn a combined grade point average of at least 2.00 in these courses.

If students have taken GOV 312L and only nine hours from BGS 371, 372, 373, 374, and 375, then they should choose one course from the list of electives to satisfy the 15-hour requirement.  If students have taken GOV 312L and 12 hours from BGS 371, 372, 373, 374, and 375, then they need not take any of the electives to satisfy the 15-hour requirement.