Agricultural Business (B.S.)

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Program Coordinator/Contact

Nicole Klein, Assistant Department Head
Department of Economics
Harding Hall
605-688-4141

Program Information

The major in Agricultural Business prepares students to excel in the challenging environment of the modern agricultural industry. Graduates are creative, adaptable, and well educated in economics and management. The program combines education in management and economics with a strong technical knowledge in production agriculture and skills in problem solving. The curriculum emphasizes economic theory, agricultural business management, quantitative methods, and agricultural and biological science electives. Students interested in pursuing a graduate degree in economics , business, or related fields are well prepared by this degree program.

Student Learning Outcomes

Agricultural Business graduates will be able to:

Demonstrate the knowledge and understanding of concepts of economics and management that underlie the food and agribusiness sectors in the global economy and commerce;
Demonstrate the application of quantitative and qualitative analytical methods from economics and management to decision-making;
Demonstrate the ability to incorporate business research and analysis in oral and written communication to diverse audiences; and
Demonstrate the capacity to evaluate ethical matters within the context of the discipline.

Academic Requirements

Students must earn a grade of “C” or better in FIN 310 Business Finance, MGMT 360 Organization and Management, HRM 460 Human Resource Management, and CSC/MGMT 325 Management Information Systems.

Course Delivery Format

The program offers courses on campus, with limited online coursework, usually during the summer.

Requirements for Agricultural Business Major: 120 Credits

Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences

System General Education Requirements

Goal #1 Written Communication: ENGL 101 and ENGL 201 Credits: 6
Goal #2 Oral Communication: SPCM 101 Credits: 3
Goal #3 Social Sciences/Diversity : Credits: 6
Goal #4 Arts and Humanities/Diversity : Credits: 6
Goal #5 Mathematics: MATH 121 or MATH 123 Credits: 4
Goal #6 Natural Sciences : Credits: 6

College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences Requirements

Bachelor of Science Requirements: 11

Students who wish to complete a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences must complete a minimum of 11 credits from the approved list of Group 1 courses. Some departments require specific courses from the list, whereas others leave the selection entirely to the student and the advisor.

System General Education Requirements and/or major coursework may satisfy some or all of the above requirements. Please review major requirements and the Group 1 list to determine if additional courses are required.

AGEC 354 - Agricultural Marketing and Prices Credits: 3 (Major Requirement)

Major Requirements

ACCT 210 - Principles of Accounting I (COM) Credits: 3
ACCT 211 - Principles of Accounting II (COM) Credits: 3
AGEC 354 - Agricultural Marketing and Prices Credits: 3
AGEC 371 - Agricultural Business Management Credits: 3
AGEC 421-521 - Farming and Food Systems Economics Credits: 3
AGEC 479 - Agricultural Policy Credits: 3
AGEC Elective Credits: 6
BADM 101 - Survey of Business (COM) Credits: 3
BADM 360 - Organization and Management (COM) Credits: 3
BLAW 350 - Legal Environment of Business (COM) Credits: 3
DSCI 424 - Operations Research (COM) Credits: 3
or ECON 423 - Introduction to Econometrics (COM) Credits: 3
ECON 119 - First Year Seminar Credits: 1
ECON 201 - Principles of Microeconomics (COM) [SGR #3] Credits: 3
ECON 202 - Principles of Macroeconomics (COM) [SGR #3] Credits: 3
ECON 301 - Intermediate Microeconomics (COM) Credits: 3
or ECON 431-531 - Managerial Economics Credits: 3
ECON 302 - Intermediate Macroeconomics (COM) Credits: 3
or ECON 330 - Money and Banking (COM) Credits: 3
ECON 319 - Seminar with Industry Leaders Credits: 1
ENGL 379 - Technical Communication (COM) Credits: 3
FIN 310 - Business Finance (COM) Credits: 3
HRM 460 - Human Resource Management (COM) Credits: 3
MGMT / CSC 325 - Management Information Systems (COM) Credits: 3
MKTG 370 - Marketing (COM) Credits: 3
STAT 281 - Introduction to Statistics (COM) [SGR #5] Credits: 3

Electives

Taken as needed to complete any additional degree requirements.

Total Required Credits: 120

Summary of Program Requirements

Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences
System General Education Requirements	31-32 Credit Hours
College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences Requirements*	11 Credit Hours
Major Requirements	68 Credit Hours
Electives**	12-13 Credit Hours

*System General Education Requirements, Major Requirements, and Supporting Coursework may satisfy some or all of the above requirements.
**Taken as needed to complete any additional degree requirements.

Academic Advising Guide Sheet

The goal of the academic advising guide sheets and sample plans of study is to promote undergraduate student success by guiding all students to timely completion of an undergraduate degree. Students are not limited to the course sequence provided for their academic program. Instead, the sample plan of study is one possible path to completing your degree and is meant to be used as a guide for planning purposes in consultation with an academic advisor. The plans also help students prepare for meetings with their academic advisor and track their progress in their selected academic program.