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  1. Home
  2. Academics
  3. Bachelor's Degrees
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Business

Why major in business?

Penn State Altoona’s bachelor of science degree in Business is a professionally oriented business program for students seeking a broad education and solid grounding in the common body of business knowledge. The program’s interdisciplinary perspective provides you with a versatile base for mobility into all business areas and prepares you for the business world of today and tomorrow.

Request Information About the Business Major

The business program combines the theoretical underpinnings of core business disciplines, notably management, marketing, finance, and logistics, with applied study in a practical setting, especially in small business climates.

Choose an Option

By choosing an eighteen-credit option, you will develop a specialty related to a key business sector. You also will develop written and oral communication skills throughout the program, acquire contemporary computer skills, and engage in active and collaborative learning. In addition, you will become familiar with the unique business environments of your local community, a design that sets this degree apart from other business degrees offered within the University.

Accounting Option

The accounting option emphasizes the areas of financial and managerial accounting, systems and controls, auditing, and taxation. Students begin with an introductory accounting course in financial and managerial accounting, then take core accounting courses in intermediate financial accounting, advanced managerial accounting, federal income taxation, accounting information systems, and auditing.

Accounting Option with Information Systems Auditing Certificate

The accounting option with the information systems auditing certificate prepares information technology and accounting professionals to maintain and audit digital information systems by integrating critical areas of knowledge of information technology and accounting professionals. Students who complete the certificate program will develop skills useful in obtaining other professional credentials, such as Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) or Certified Information Technology Professional (CITP) credentials.

Business Analytics Option

The business analytics option prepares students to pursue careers in applying business analytics techniques to implement appropriate decision-making outcomes using data for companies.

Entrepreneurship Option

The entrepreneurship option provides skills essential to succeed in any business setting, including problem-solving, teamwork, and communication. The program and its faculty develop and inspire future entrepreneurs to generate concepts to patent, turn unique ideas into opportunities, launch a successful business, purchase an existing company or franchise, and become great leaders, managers, and innovators.

Management and Marketing Option

The management and marketing option emphasizes the skills and knowledge necessary to make strategic decisions for various types of profit and non-profit organizations. Students are prepared for a career in retail management, small business management, communications, marketing, advertising, and promotion. This option’s dual emphasis allows students to select courses in both disciplines as a foundation for leading small businesses or units of large organizations. Courses include social media marketing, international management, retailing, global marketing, market research, communications, and ethics.

Careers in Business

In today's difficult economic environment, Penn State Altoona's bachelor of science in Business allows companies to hire individuals with broad knowledge of all aspects of business. This broad knowledge allows students to be effective within many different types of organizations. Some examples include the following:

  • Accounting option: Students gain an advantage as financial professionals in the business world and are working in the areas of financial and managerial accounting, systems and controls, taxation, and auditing.
  • Entrepreneurship option: students can be found starting their own business or working for several years with other entrepreneurs before venturing out on their own.
  • Marketing and Management option: An emphasis on the skills and knowledge necessary for the business professional to function in the community and regional centers of commerce.

An integral part of the Business degree is a six-credit internship completed during the senior year. This experience has proven beneficial for both the students and employers. Organizations hosting Penn State Altoona Business interns over the past year include the following:

  • Allegheny Mountain Convention & Visitors' Bureau
  • Altoona Blair County Development Corp.
  • Altoona Curve
  • Altoona Hospital
  • American Cancer Society
  • Blair County Chamber of Commerce
  • Forever Broadcasting
  • The Hancock Group, Inc.
  • HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital
  • Lake Raystown Resort Lodge
  • Lazerpro Digital Media Group
  • PennDOT
  • Sheetz, Inc.
  • UPMC Bedford Memorial Hospital
  • Wal-mart
  • W.S. Lee & Son, Inc.
  • WTAJ- TV

Fast Track MBA Program

The business program at Penn State Altoona has a fast track program that allows qualified undergraduate students to earn a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in five calendar years of full-time academic study. Students will complete essential undergraduate degree requirements that will also count towards their MBA degree. The MBA is offered through Penn State Great Valley.

Learn More about the Fast Track MBA Program

Accelerated Bachelor’s/JD Program

The Accelerated Bachelor’s/J.D. program offers outstanding Penn State undergraduates the opportunity to earn both a bachelor’s degree in business and a J.D. in a compressed time frame, accelerating their path to a legal career. The business program at Penn State Altoona allows students to begin the J.D. program at Penn State Law prior to the completion of their B.S. in Business degree.

Learn More about Accelerated Bachelor’s/JD Program

Business Program Contacts

Contact Deb Hommer, the Business Degree Program Coordinator, or reach out to any of our Business faculty and staff.

Request Admissions Information

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Business

  • Business Degree Information
  • A Guide for Students Interested in Business
  • Business Graduate Profiles
  • Business Alumni Testimonials
  • Business Program Objectives and Outcomes
  • Business Faculty and Staff

Suggested Academic Plan

Suggested Academic Plans (SAPs) are sample semester-by-semester guides you can use to meet degree requirements.

Business SAP for Prospective Students

View the SAP for the B.S. in Business (Accounting, Business Analytics, Entrepreneurship, and Management & Marketing options).

Business SAP for Current Students

To access previous years' suggested academic plans, please visit the archive to view the appropriate Undergraduate Bulletin edition.

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Student Success Center

Located in room 125 on the lower level of the Eiche Library, the Student Success Center supports two main functions:

  • To GET HELP for those students who need academic and non-academic assistance, and
  • To GET AHEAD for those students ready to take the next steps in their education.
Learn more about the Student Success Center

Out-of-Class Learning

Out-of-classroom academic experiences that complement in-class learning, including:

  • Study Away Programs
  • Academic Internships
  • Undergraduate Research and Creative Inquiry
Learn more about Out-of-class Learning

See Also

  • Sheetz Center for Entrepreneurial Excellence
  • Downtown Campus
  • Associate Degree in Business Administration
  • Entrepreneurship Minor
  • Sheetz Fellows Program
Pennsylvania map showing Penn State's campuses with Penn State Altoona highlighted

Penn State Altoona

A full-service, four-year, residential campus located less than 45 miles from the research campus at University Park. Offering 21 four-year degrees and the first two years of over 275 Penn State majors.
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Give Visit Apply
  • This is Penn State Altoona
    • Welcome from the Chancellor
    • Penn State Altoona At a Glance
    • Mission, Vision, and Values
    • College Leadership
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  • Tuition & Financial Aid
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