Jake Jabs College of Business & Entrepreneurship
Brian Gillespie, Ph.D., Dean
Brenda Truman, MPA, Assistant Dean of Student Services & Retention
General Information
- Bachelor of Science in Business
- Minors & Certificates
- Master of Professional Accountancy (MPAc)
- Master of Science in Innovation & Management (MSIM)
Academic Policies (Undergraduate)
The mission of the Jake Jabs College of Business & Entrepreneurship is to educate our future leaders by creating inspiring, innovative, and engaging experiences that prepare our graduates to serve the evolving needs of business and society. This is achieved through a culture of trust and mutual respect, free expression and inquiry, and a commitment to truth, excellence, and the entrepreneurial spirit.
An extraordinary faculty offers transformational learning experiences that help students develop the initiative, skills, and creativity to be effective innovators in many different organizational contexts, including entrepreneurial ventures and large corporations. Distinguishing features of the program include exceptional faculty in every classroom (no graduate student instructors), rigorous coursework, an interactive, personalized learning environment, an emphasis on professional skills, and high-performing students.
The College is fully accredited by AACSB International—the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, the premier accrediting association for business programs. AACSB has awarded its mark of distinction to only six percent of all business programs worldwide. Not only does this accreditation certify that Jabs meets AACSB's rigorous standards for business education, but it also signals to local, regional, and national employers that the College's graduates are well-prepared for careers in business.
To learn more about Jabs, please visit our website: https://www.montana.edu/business/index.html
Learning Objectives
Throughout the business curriculum, students receive significant exposure to each of the College’s learning goals:
- Knowledge of Business: Students will have strong working knowledge of fundamental concepts in accounting, finance, management, marketing, information technology, strategy, and law.
- Critical Thinking: Students will learn to effectively and persuasively assimilate and evaluate information to solve business problems.
- Quantitative Reasoning: Students will be able to interpret, represent, and evaluate quantitative information and integrate such information into business decisions and recommendations.
- Effective Written Communication: Students will be able to develop and organize ideas, adopt an appropriate tone, employ correct grammar, sentence structure and mechanics, use appropriate vocabulary, and correctly cite sources for facts, quotations and ideas.
- Effective Oral Communication: Students will be able to develop and organize ideas, successfully employ technology in support of a message, speak extemporaneously with minimal hesitations and fillers, adopt an appropriate tone, use appropriate vocabulary, employ correct grammar and sentence structure, and manage presentation pacing and timing effectively.
Degree Programs
The Jake Jabs College of Business & Entrepreneurship grants three degrees: a Bachelor of Science in Business, with options in Accounting, Finance, Management and Marketing; a Master of Professional Accountancy (MPAc) and a Master of Science in Innovation & Management (MSIM), five minors in Accounting, Business Administration, Entrepreneurship & Small Business Management, Finance and International Business, and two certificates in Business and Entrepreneurship.
The Jabs Master of Professional Accountancy (MPAc) degree is a demanding and highly reputed program that should be considered by students who are interested in pursuing CPA certification or advanced financial positions. Information about this program can be found in the College of Business section of MSU's Graduate Catalog.
The Jabs Master of Science in Innovation & Management (MSIM) degree.The MSIM is a 30-credit, non-thesis one-year graduate program is open to all degree backgrounds, and especially helpful for recent STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) graduates. The goal of the program is to provide early-stage professionals with a set of skills that will enable them to be more effective leaders, innovators, and team members in their respective careers along with a sense of professionalism and the ability to apply knowledge across a broad context. Information about this program can be found in the College of Business section of MSU's Graduate Catalog.
The Jabs undergraduate curriculum is made up four blocks: foundation business courses, common body of knowledge (CBK) courses, option (marketing, management, finance and accounting) courses, and non-business/non-economics electives.
Foundation Business Courses:
| BGEN 104US | Business & Entrepreneurship Fundamentals Seminar | 3 |
| BGEN 204 | Business Fundamentals | 3 |
| BMGT 205 | Prof Business Communication | 3 |
| BMIS 211 | Data Analytics I | 3 |
| ACTG 201 | Principles of Financial Accounting | 3 |
| ACTG 202 | Principles of Managerial Accounting * | 3 |
| or ACTG 223 | Principles of Financial Accounting II | |
| M 161Q | Survey of Calculus | 4 |
| ECNS 101IS | Economic Way of Thinking | 3 |
| ECNS 202 | Principles of Macroeconomics | 3 |
| ECNS 204IS | Microeconomics | 3 |
| STAT 216Q | Introduction to Statistics | 3 |
| BMGT 240IS | Business Analytics | 3 |
*Accounting students take ACTG 201, 202 & 223; Finance students take ACTG 201 & 223; Management & Marketing students take ACTG 201 & 202. ACTG 223 can substitute for ACTG 202, but ACTG 202 is preferred.
Common Body of Knowledge (CBK) Courses:
| BMGT 335 | Management and Organization | 3 |
| BMGT 322 | Operations Management | 3 |
| BMIS 312 | Data Analytics II | 3 |
| BMKT 325 | Principles of Marketing | 3 |
| BFIN 322 | Business Finance | 3 |
| BGEN 361 | Principles of Business Law | 3 |
| BGEN 499 | Senior Thesis/Capstone: Strategy Seminar | 4 |
Option Courses:
The option courses, most of which are 400-level courses designed for seniors, enhance the depth of understanding in one area of business: Accounting, Finance, Management or Marketing.
Non-Business/Non-Economics Electives:
All business students are required to complete 48 credits of non-business/non-economics electives (although ECNS 101IS, ECNS 202, ECNS 204IS, BMGT 240IS may be included in this category).
Jabs Student Resources
The Jabs Office of Student Services (OSS) coordinates new and transfer student orientation, advises first and second year business students and coordinates continuing student course registration. Each Jabs student works with their assigned professional advisor in the Office of Student Services for their first two years, then transitions to a faculty advisor to consult on their career-related goals and objectives.
The Gary K. Bracken Center for Excellence in Undergraduate Business Education
The Bracken Center is located within the Jake Jabs College of Business & Entrepreneurship in Jabs Hall, where it offers students access to internship and career information, employer interviews, state-of-the-art conference rooms for student use, and the Bracken Business Communication Clinic (BBCC). The BBCC is staffed by business communication professionals who coach students on oral presentations and written assignments, including basic grammar, punctuation, sentence structure and tenses, and business themes, content, and organization of material. The Bracken Center also provides assistance to faculty members to support their teaching and professional development activities. For more information: http://www.montana.edu/business/bracken/index.html
In addition, MSU’s Blackstone LaunchPad, a collaboration of the Blackstone Charitable Foundation, Montana State University, the University of Montana, and Headwaters RC&D, provides guidance, resources, and mentoring to students from all majors as they develop their ideas into entrepreneurial opportunities. For more information: http://www.montana.edu/launchpad/
Academic Policies
Course pre-requisites
Course pre-requisites are listed for each course in the catalog. Where there are specific pre-requisites for business students, please note that students pursuing a business major, minor, or certificate are considered business students and will be expected to meet those pre-requisites.
Minimum Grades
The Montana Board of Regents has established a common policy on minimum course grades across all campuses in the Montana University System. According to the policy, a grade of C- or better is required to satisfy requirements for prerequisite and required courses in majors, minors, and certificate programs and for all university core requirements. Further, a grade of C- or better is required in all courses that will be counted toward the 42 upper-division credits required in all degrees. Courses with a passing grade of D-, D, or D+ may only be counted toward the overall 120 credit requirement. To graduate with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business, a student must earn a C- or better in all prerequisites, university core, required and elective courses, and non-business/non-economics courses.
Acceptance of Transfer Credits and Residency Requirements
Residency Requirements
All students must comply with the Jabs and the Montana State University residency requirements to be awarded a degree from Montana State University. The Montana State University residency requirement can be found at http://catalog.montana.edu/curriculum-enrollment-graduation/#Credits_for_Degree_Completion.
The Jabs residency requirement is that of the upper-division credits required for business students, at least 18 credits and BGEN 499 (4 credits) must be taken in residence at the Jabs.
Transferring to Jabs
University undergraduate programs in business normally concentrate on professional business courses in the last two years of a four-year program. The objective is to allow students the opportunity to build a foundation of work in the arts, sciences, and humanities prior to beginning professional course work. Students taking their first two years of work at another institution should take only those business courses offered at the freshman or sophomore level at Montana State University. Lower-division business courses may not be used to satisfy upper-division Jabs course requirements. If at all possible, students should complete courses which will transfer to Montana State University as the equivalent to the business foundation courses.
For additional guidance on transferring to Montana State University, see the Admissions section of this catalog, explore the Admissions website at: http://www.montana.edu/admissions, and/or contact the Jabs Office of Student Services at business@montana.edu.
Graduate Programs
The Jake Jabs College of Business & Entrepreneurship (Jabs) offers two masters degrees: Masters of Professional Accountancy (MPAc) and Masters of Science in Innovation Management (MSIM). See our page in the Graduate Catalog for details:https://catalog.montana.edu/graduate/business/