The major in marketing gives students a broad working knowledge of contemporary marketing philosophy and practice. The general marketing concentration provides students an understanding of the processes of creating and communicating value for customers, clients and society at large. Judicious selection of courses will also allow students to tailor their program of study to their individual backgrounds, interests and career aspirations. The courses in the major provide a mix of educational approaches, including lecture and discussion, case problems, and in-field experience. Graduates of this program will find career opportunities in marketing management, advertising, sales, marketing research, public relations, retailing and other areas of business.
This degree program can be completed either on campus or fully online. Students interested in the online format should contact a School of Business recruitment counselor at ugbrecruit@vcu.edu for more information.
Learning goals
The B.S. in Marketing program:
- Provides students with a broad knowledge of marketing concepts and practices needed in the increasingly diverse domestic and global marketplace
- Prepares students to apply analytical tools to creatively solve marketing problems
Student learning outcomes
Upon completing this program, students will know how to do the following:
Understand and apply fundamental marketing concepts and strategies in the international marketplace
General marketing concentration-specific outcome
Know and apply consumer behavior concepts and the factors that affect consumer decision-making
Special requirements
The admission requirements for the School of Business detail the deadlines and other requirements for students to be admitted to one of these major programs of study. The following courses must be completed before the student may declare a specific business major: ACCT 203, ACCT 204, BUSN 201 or BUSN 205, BUSN 212 or MATH 200, BUSN 225, ECON 210, ECON 211, UNIV 111, UNIV 112, and UNIV 200.
The School of Business has special academic policies, including policies on transfer credits, that apply to all undergraduate degrees.
All baccalaureate degree programs in the School of Business require successful completion of the business knowledge exam as administered in BUSN 499.
Students may need to take additional mathematics courses as prerequisites to BUSN 212 or MATH 200. These credits will count as open electives in the degree program.
No more than six credits from the BUSN 16x Digital Literacy courses may be applied to the degree.
INTL 493 may not be counted toward a business degree.
Credit for SPCH 121 or SPCH 321 will substitute for BUSN 225, and no more than three credits of these courses may be applied toward a business degree. Students who earned a minimum grade of B in either ECON 203 or ECON 205 at VCU may substitute that credit for ECON 210.
The pass/fail grading policy may not be used for many course requirements. Please check with your academic adviser before taking the pass/fail grading option.
Degree requirements for Marketing, Bachelor of Science (B.S.) with a concentration in general marketing
| Course | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| General education | ||
| Select 30 credits of general education courses in consultation with an adviser. | 30 | |
| Major requirements | ||
| • Major core requirements | ||
| MKTG 302 | Marketing and Brand Strategy | 3 |
| MKTG 315 | Buyer Behavior | 3 |
| MKTG/INTL 320 | International Marketing | 3 |
| • Additional major requirements | ||
| MKTG 310 | Marketing Research | 3 |
| • Major electives | ||
| Marketing electives (select from list below) | 18 | |
| Ancillary requirements | ||
| • Ancillary core requirements | ||
| ACCT 203 & ACCT 204 | Introduction to Accounting I and Introduction to Accounting II | 6 |
| BUSN 225 | Winning Presentations | 3 |
| BUSN 301 | Career and Professional Development | 1 |
| BUSN 499 | Business Knowledge Exam | 0 |
| ECON 210 | Principles of Microeconomics (satisfies general education BOK for social/behavioral sciences and/or AOI for global perspectives) | 3 |
| ECON 211 | Principles of Macroeconomics | 3 |
| FIRE 311 | Financial Management | 3 |
| MGMT 303 | Creativity and Ideation | 3 |
| MGMT 310 | Managing People in Organizations | 3 |
| MGMT 434 | Strategic Management | 3 |
| MKTG 301 | Marketing Principles | 3 |
| SCMA 301 | Business Statistics I | 3 |
| SCMA 320 | Production/Operations Management | 3 |
| • Additional ancillary requirements | ||
| BUSN 201 | Foundations of Business 1 | 3 |
| or BUSN 205 | Introduction to the World of Business | |
| BUSN 212 | Business Problem Solving and Analysis (either satisfies general education quantitative foundations) | 4 |
| or MATH 200 | Calculus with Analytic Geometry I | |
| BUSN 323 | Legal Environment of Business | 3 |
| or FIRE 325 | Real Estate Law | |
| or FIRE 459 | Insurance Law | |
| INFO 360 | Business Information Systems | 3 |
| or ACCT 307 | Accounting Systems | |
| Open electives | ||
| Select any course. 2 | 16 | |
| Total Hours | 120 | |
BUSN 205 satisfies general education AOI for global perspectives.
Students may choose electives to reach the minimum total of 120 credits.
The minimum number of credit hours required for this degree is 120.
Marketing electives
| Course | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| MKTG 325 | Business-to-business Marketing | 3 |
| MKTG 330 | Integrated Marketing Communications | 3 |
| MKTG 335 | Professional Selling I: The Art of Persuasion | 3 |
| MKTG 336 | Content Marketing | 3 |
| MKTG 340 | Retail Management | 3 |
| MKTG 345 | Personal Branding and Becoming a Digital Influencer | 3 |
| MKTG 350 | Customer and Marketing Analytics | 3 |
| MKTG 360 | Social Media Research | 3 |
| MKTG 430 | Experiential Marketing | 3 |
| MKTG 435 | Professional Selling II: Advanced Sales Techniques | 3 |
| MKTG 436 | Sales Enablement and Analytics | 3 |
| MKTG 440 | Contemporary Pricing | 3 |
| MKTG 442 | Services Marketing | 3 |
| MKTG 445 | Nonprofit Marketing | 3 |
| MKTG 448 | Digital Marketing | 3 |
| MKTG 450 | Product Development and Management | 3 |
| MKTG 470 | Field Project in Marketing | 3 |
| MKTG 475 | Honors Seminar in Marketing | 3 |
| MKTG 485 | Professional Sales Internship | 3 |
| MKTG 491 | Topics in Marketing (variable; no more than six credits) | 1-3 |
| MKTG 492 | Independent Study in Marketing | 1-3 |
| MKTG 493 | Internship in Marketing | 3 |
| Students may select up to six credits from the following (each course should be worth three credits): 1 | 6 | |
| Intermediate Accounting I | ||
| Introduction to Intercultural Communication | ||
| Principles of Consulting | ||
| International Consulting Practicum | ||
| Microeconomic Theory | ||
| Managerial Economics | ||
| Money and Banking | ||
| E-commerce and Markets for Information Goods | ||
| Merchandise Planning and Control | ||
| Retail Buying Simulation | ||
| Fashion Forecasting | ||
| Fashion Branding | ||
| Principles of Real Estate | ||
| Risk Management and Insurance | ||
| Real Property Management | ||
| Systems Analysis and Design | ||
| Database Systems | ||
| Product Innovation: da Vinci Project | ||
| Leadership | ||
| Survey of Entrepreneurship | ||
| Managerial Skills Development | ||
| Negotiation, Influence and Conflict Management | ||
| International Management | ||
| Doing Business in Europe | ||
| Topics in Management | ||
| Business Statistics II | ||
| Business Analytics | ||
| Introduction to Project Management | ||
| Global Supply Chain Management | ||
| Sport and Fitness Marketing | ||
Students must complete prerequisites for these courses as specified in the course description.
What follows is a sample plan that meets the prescribed requirements within a four-year course of study at VCU. Please contact your adviser before beginning course work toward a degree.
| Freshman year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall semester | Hours | |
UNIV 111  Play course video for Focused Inquiry I | Focused Inquiry I (satisfies general education UNIV foundations) | 3 |
| General education course | 3 | |
| General education course | 3 | |
| General education course | 3 | |
| Open elective (prerequisite to BUSN 212 suggested) | 3 | |
| Term Hours: | 15 | |
| Spring semester | ||
| BUSN 212 | Business Problem Solving and Analysis (satisfies general education quantitative foundations) | 4 |
| BUSN 225 | Winning Presentations | 3 |
| UNIV 112 Play course video for Focused Inquiry II | Focused Inquiry II (satisfies general education UNIV foundations) | 3 |
| General education course | 3 | |
| Open elective | 3 | |
| Term Hours: | 16 | |
| Sophomore year | ||
| Fall semester | ||
| ACCT 203 | Introduction to Accounting I | 3 |
| BUSN 201 or BUSN 205 | Foundations of Business or Introduction to the World of Business | 3 |
| ECON 210 | Principles of Microeconomics (satisfies general education BOK for social/behavioral sciences and/or AOI for global perspectives) | 3 |
| UNIV 200 | Advanced Focused Inquiry: Literacies, Research and Communication (satisfies general education UNIV foundations) | 3 |
| General education course | 3 | |
| Term Hours: | 15 | |
| Spring semester | ||
| ACCT 204 | Introduction to Accounting II | 3 |
| BUSN 301 | Career and Professional Development | 1 |
| ECON 211 | Principles of Macroeconomics | 3 |
| MKTG 301 | Marketing Principles | 3 |
| SCMA 301 | Business Statistics I | 3 |
| Open elective | 1 | |
| Term Hours: | 14 | |
| Junior year | ||
| Fall semester | ||
| INFO 360 | Business Information Systems | 3 |
| MGMT 310 | Managing People in Organizations | 3 |
| MKTG 302 | Marketing and Brand Strategy | 3 |
| MKTG 310 | Marketing Research | 3 |
| Marketing elective | 3 | |
| Term Hours: | 15 | |
| Spring semester | ||
| FIRE 311 | Financial Management | 3 |
| MGMT 303 | Creativity and Ideation | 3 |
| MKTG 315 | Buyer Behavior | 3 |
| Marketing electives | 6 | |
| Term Hours: | 15 | |
| Senior year | ||
| Fall semester | ||
| BUSN 323 | Legal Environment of Business or Real Estate Law or Insurance Law | 3 |
| BUSN 499 | Business Knowledge Exam | 0 |
| MKTG/INTL 320 | International Marketing | 3 |
| SCMA 320 | Production/Operations Management | 3 |
| Marketing elective | 3 | |
| Open elective | 3 | |
| Term Hours: | 15 | |
| Spring semester | ||
| MGMT 434 | Strategic Management | 3 |
| Marketing electives | 6 | |
| Open electives | 6 | |
| Term Hours: | 15 | |
| Total Hours: | 120 | |
The minimum number of credit hours required for this degree is 120.