Business Education majors will be prepared by our well-qualified faculty members to teach in grades 9-12, private business colleges and training and development programs for business and industry.

Many teaching positions are available for students who major in Business Education. Graduates must, however, be willing to move
to geographic areas where teaching positions are available. For beginning secondary teaching positions in Missouri requiring a bachelor’s degree, historic salaries have ranged from $27,000 to about $36,000. Specific teaching salaries vary considerably over the country depending upon one’s academic preparation, the classification of the school, the location of the school and other factors.

With further education and experience, Business Education graduates may become qualified for such positions as business education department chairperson, supervisor of business education, teacher or director or assistant director of career and technical education, business manager, principal, school superintendent, junior college teacher and senior college or university teacher. Business Education graduates are also qualified to work in many business, government and office positions.

To prepare for a major in Business Education, a high school student should follow the college preparation track. We recommend taking four years of English, three or four years of math (with special emphasis on algebra), two or more years of social studies, two or more years of science and at least one year of microcomputer applications.

General business, economics, sociology, psychology, accounting, technology and business law are valuable courses to take. A student who plans to begin work at a community or junior college and later transfer to Missouri State should take only freshman and sophomore level courses. Junior and senior courses listed below should not be completed at a two-year college for transfer credit in the College of Business core or the Department of Computer Information Systems major program area. The Business Education major is a comprehensive program that does not require a minor to be completed.

The following is a representative listing of requirements for the Bachelor of Science in Education degree in Business Education. Please consult the Missouri State catalog online at www.missouristate.edu/catalog for specific course descriptions.

General Education 

English composition, math, public speaking, physical well-being, American studies, humanities, natural and social sciences

College of Business Core

Computer information systems, accounting principles, legal environment/law, business statistics, business communication, organizational behavior and management, marketing principles, operations management, financial management, information systems in business, strategic management and policy.

Education and Psychology

Clinical and field experience, introduction to teaching, supervised teaching, educational alternatives for the exceptional child, educational psychology and special methods courses

Major Requirements

The following courses are required:

• CIS 195: Introduction to Desktop Publishing
• CIS 205: Website Design and Development or CIS 260: Application Development I
• BSE 503: Teaching of Business
• BSE 524: Implementing Vocational Business Education Programs
• BSE 540: Curriculum Development

The Department of Computer Information Systems is one of five departments within the College of Business. The College received accreditation by the American Assemblies of Collegiate Schools of Business International (AACSB). In the spring of 1988, COB moved into the David D. Glass Hall. The four-story, 165,000 square-foot structure houses computer facilities and telecommunications equipment providing students with the finest possible learning environment. Glass Hall maintains a 90-station computer laboratory available to students 15 hours each week day and eight hours each weekend. In addition, the CIS department maintains four microcomputer classrooms with a total of 160 networked stations.

Cooperative Education and Internships

The Cooperative Education program at Missouri State is the largest of its type in Missouri. Internship and cooperative education courses provide students with opportunities to take what they have learned in the classroom and apply it in the work world. By taking these courses, students can receive university credit for supervised work experience with cooperating employers. In addition, credit can be earned through problems and reading courses, which permit students to intensify their study of computer information systems on an individualized level.

Recognizing the financial needs of many students, Missouri State has developed a program of financial assistance consisting of scholarships, awards, loans, grants and work-study programs. Furthermore, some assistance may be provided in helping students find part-time on- or off-campus employment. A formal network of job placement services also is offered by Missouri State Career Services.