MSU to offer evening business program tailored for OTC students

Missouri State University’s College of Business Administration (COBA) will offer a new two-year, two-night-per-week evening general business program designed especially for Ozarks Technical Community College (OTC) students. The program will begin in fall 2012.

Seats in required business courses will be reserved for OTC transfer students until one month prior to the semester to ensure availability. The program provides maximum flexibility – all required courses may be completed through a combination of courses that meet a total of two evenings per week each semester, some online courses, and some “blended” courses that combine on-campus evening class meetings with some online instruction.

Students also have the ability to take additional online courses and traditional daytime courses as part of their program if they wish, subject to availability. The courses are sequenced so that OTC students who enter the program (either in fall or spring) with an A.A. degree and appropriate business foundation coursework can graduate with a Bachelor of Science in General Business degree within two years.

“The cooperative relationship Missouri State and OTC have developed over the years is regularly held up as the statewide model all institutions should emulate,” said Missouri State Interim President Clifton M. Smart III.  “Ultimately, and most importantly, this relationship benefits students.  The business completion program is yet another example of both institutions’ commitment to better serving students.”

“We are thrilled to be able to partner with Missouri State University in offering this new opportunity for our students,” said Dr. Hal Higdon, chancellor of Ozarks Technical Community College. “This program is designed to make the transition from OTC to MSU smooth, not only in terms of credit transfer and degree planning, but also in that it allows students to continue scheduling their classes around their lives and their jobs. The flexibility of this program at MSU will likely be a deciding factor for many OTC students.”

Classes will be held in Glass Hall on the Missouri State campus. Glass Hall features ample parking adjacent to the building, numerous computer labs and a highly trained staff of business advisors within the dedicated Business Advisement Center on the first floor. A dedicated career services office within Glass Hall assists students with internships, interviewing skills and job placement.

The Missouri State University College of Business Administration is one of the largest business programs in the Midwest.  The college includes four departments: computer information systems, finance and general business, management, marketing and the School of Accountancy in the business unit, as well as two separately-accredited departments: fashion and interior design, and technology and construction management.  COBA, along with the School of Accountancy, hold the prestigious full accreditation by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.