New majors open doors for students
By Kim Puckett
Staff Writer
UIndy students who are unsure of their career path now have more choices, as five new majors and four new concentrations are added to the curriculum.
The creation of actuarial studies, experiential studies, global leadership, operations and supply chain management, and finance opens doors for current and prospective students. The minors of organ and church music, child and youth programs, community organizing, and a physics concentration by design also add to the academic curriculum.
These academic additions were researched and created by their respective departments based on the factors of interest of students, availability of faculty, and needs of businesses.
“Academic units stay abreast of new trends within their discipline and the employment market for graduates as well as unit capacity and interest.” said Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Deborah Balogh. “In the case of organ and church music, we have a concentration of faculty within this specialty, so we have high capacity.”
UIndy students have been showing interest in the new majors. According to Balogh, the first day the finance major was offered, 35 students declared it as their major.
Matt Will, associate dean of the School of Business and graduate business programs, said finance is already the second largest major in the Business Department after business administration.
After research of local competitive schools and top ranked programs in the nation, Rachel Smith, assistant professor of finance and director of undergraduate curriculum for finance, created the new finance major and minor at UIndy. Though the degree already existed in the form of finance/economics, the two are now divided, giving students a more focused curriculum.
“The finance degree is very diverse,” Smith said. “Even if students want to be an entrepreneur or manager of a corporation, finance is a common language in the corporate world.”
For those interested in the finance major, the Business Department will also be offering a Finance Club. Students will network with professionals in the field, listen to guest speakers involved in finance and visit sites pertaining to financial purposes, according to Smith.
Global leadership, another new major in the School of Business, was developed by Associate Professor Katherine Bohley with the help of a grant from The Institute of Emerging Careers sponsored by the Eli Lilly Company. A year’s worth of research into the needs of businesses gained Bohley the knowledge to create this interdisciplinary major.
“This major works with the School of Business and International relations,” Bohley said. “I can think of no viable comparison to this program, locally or internationally,”
An emphasis on culture, politics, economics, and history of other countries makes global leadership different than other internationally focused programs. According to Bohley, though language is an important aspect of international relations, this new major adds a better understanding of business through other aspects of foreign cultures. Students also have the opportunity to take advantage of the international relations master’s degree program. With a four year degree from the School of Business, students can gain their Master’s in just one year at UIndy.
Operations and supply chain management was also created with the funds through the Eli Lilly grant. According to Will, this undergraduate major was created on the heels of the MBA program that already existed in supply chain management.
Courses in quality, production, operations, and purchasing grant students the skills they will use to successfully manage the supplies a company needs.
“Supply chain management is the largest industry in Indiana, but it is also the least known.” Will said. “Think of it this way, the same product can be made in the US, Mexico, Taiwan, and then China, but the consumer is always the same. No matter where the product is made, quality must be monitored.”
More additions to the Business Department are likely in the future. Will said that growth and change is important in small school such as UIndy.
“We just opened Sports Marketing last year. We are constantly looking for new majors to add,” Will said. “If you look at some of the bigger schools, they have the same majors they were offering 20 years ago. Students come here to learn, and also to plan for a career.”
In the College of Arts and sciences are the actuarial studies and experiential studies majors. An actuarial studies major requires quantitative skills for such courses as economics, finance, physics, and calculus. Experiential studies majors can concentrate in applied history, applied theatre, or outreach archeology.
