Sykes College of Business

Business education for the future relies on innovation and adaptation of curriculum programs to ensure that students are ready for a competitive world. A business school faculty must disseminate applicable research knowledge to students and the community to enable them to face the challenges of ever-changing technology and global business practices. The faculty must enable students to develop the necessary skills and knowledge to become effective, visionary leaders and decision-makers with a strong ethical foundation, a global perspective and outstanding communication skills. The College’s mission is promoted through educational programs, scholarship and community engagement.

Vision

To be recognized as the leading business school in the Southeast for preparing future world business leaders.

Mission

Preparing students to succeed in the global marketplace through educational excellence.

Values and Goals

• People First: We recognize that success depends upon our ability to attract, develop and support talented students, faculty and staff.
• Teaching Excellence: We focus on teaching excellence and high quality student-centered learning.
• Dynamic Programs: We offer academically challenging graduate and undergraduate programs that prepare students for the dynamic local, regional and global workplace.
• Scholarship: We enhance faculty teaching effectiveness and advance business knowledge through intellectual contributions and scholarship.
• Partnership: We form strong partnerships and alliances with universities, communities and businesses on a local and global basis.

Program Description

In support of its mission, the Sykes College of Business (COB) has developed a curriculum with three interconnected parts, stressing a strong liberal arts foundation, a broad business program base and functional specialization.

The first two years of the program focus on a broad liberal arts and sciences background. Students develop an understanding of the cultural, social, political, economic, international, scientific and technological environments in which individuals and organizations exist.

The second part of the curriculum consists of the business core. These courses provide students with a solid foundation for careers as managers or business-related professionals. This part of the curriculum also provides students with an understanding of the dynamics of the firm and the economy, introducing them to the various functions generic to any organization, as well as to the basic behavioral, managerial and organizational concepts necessary to function successfully in an organization. Students see the interaction between the firm and its environment, gaining an overall view of policy-making within an organization and its function within a global marketplace.

The third component of the curriculum provides students with an opportunity to specialize in a functional area to develop business expertise and a greater mastery of business tools and technology. The curriculum is further enriched by numerous business-community interaction opportunities, e.g., guest presentations from area executives, field trips, internships and class projects focused on real business problems with area companies. It is enhanced by the special activities of the Center for Ethics, the TECO Energy Center for Leadership, the Entrepreneurship Center, Florida Directors’ Institute and the Naimoli Institute for Business Strategy.

Students also learn the basic tools required for effective communication. The purpose of this aspect of the curriculum is to build a broad foundation for assuming greater leadership responsibilities over time. The sum total of this three-part curriculum prepares students for competitive careers in business and future roles as leaders in a dynamic global marketplace.

The graduate and undergraduate programs in the Sykes College of Business are accredited by AACSB International — the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. This premier business-accrediting agency emphasizes quality and continuous improvement in curriculum, faculty resources, admissions, degree requirements, library and computer facilities, financial resources and intellectual climate as they relate to the College’s vision and mission.

The bachelor's degree in Management Information Systems is further accredited by ABET — the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology.

Declaration of College of Business Major

The Sykes College of Business seeks to effectively advise, track and communicate with its students. To do this, students who intend to graduate with a major in accounting, business economics, entrepreneurship, finance, financial enterprise systems, international business, management, management information systems or marketing should declare a major in one or more of these areas before completing 62 credit hours. A major may be declared in the Academic Advising Office.

Advisers

Every Sykes College of Business student is assigned a business faculty adviser as soon as possible after declaring the major. Students who have not yet declared their majors but are interested in business should request College of Business faculty advisers through the Academic Advising Office. Students will be exposed to each functional area of business in BUS 101, Introduction to Global Business. In addition, students who have not decided on their majors are encouraged to explore career options through the Baccalaureate Office, the Office of Career Services and through discussions with College of Business faculty.

Prerequisites

Prerequisites are imposed to ensure that students have obtained the background information necessary to receive maximum value from each class. Prerequisites for a class must be successfully completed before students may enroll in the class. Failure to meet prerequisites will result in the student being dropped from the class.

COB Residency Requirements

A student earning a degree with a major in economics, entrepreneurship, finance, international business, management or marketing must complete at least 26 credit hours within the Sykes College of Business. At least 15 of these hours must be in the student’s major (those courses beyond the business core).

A student earning a degree with a major in accounting, financial enterprise systems or management information systems must complete at least 30 credit hours within the Sykes College of Business. At least 15 of these hours must be in the student’s major (those courses beyond the business core).

Maximum Sykes College of Business Credits

To ensure that all business students have the broad-based education necessary to succeed in the business world, they need to have a balanced exposure to both liberal arts and business concepts. To meet these needs, at least 62 credit hours must be taken outside the College of Business. ECO 204, ECO 205, QMB 210 and QMB 380 are counted in the non-business group.

Recommended Computing Standards for UT Students

See the Student Life and Services section of this catalog.

Center for Ethics

The Center for Ethics provides high quality resources in applied ethics for students, educators and the business and community leaders of Florida, with a special focus on business and organizational ethics. Education in applied ethics is aimed at helping to significantly improve the integrity, credibility and effectiveness of present and future leaders.

The center’s resources are available to UT students and members of the community, as well as to ethics programs in business, the professions and government. Center staff members assist organizations in developing and implementing ethics programs, offer lectures and in-house seminars, sponsor symposia for educators and conduct applied research. The center’s primary message is that maintaining good ethics is good business and enhances organizational performance.

Each year, the center participates with the office of leadership and student engagement in recognizing students who "go the extra mile" in service and community involvement.  In addition, the Center for Ethics annually recognizes a member of the community with the Tampa Bay Ethics Award.

The Center for Ethics co-sponsors the annual Tampa Bay Sustainability Awards that recognizes area firms practicing sustainability in their businesses involving human, economic and environmental dimensions of business performance.

TECO Energy Center for Leadership

The TECO Energy Center for Leadership provides internal and external leadership education activities. Students can take advantage of the Center for Leadership through learning experiences in both undergraduate- and graduate-level leadership classes and the Distinguished Speaker Series. CFL also provides a variety of workshops and seminars designed to assess and develop leadership potential and skills. The undergraduate leadership minor and the leadership practicum for the Sykes College of Business graduate programs are coordinated by the CFL. The Center also delivers executive education courses for businesses throughout the Tampa Bay region. Finally, the Center conducts applied leadership research on a variety of topics and coordinates research grants and conference attendance for faculty members.

Florida Directors’ Institute

The Florida Directors’ Institute is the collaborative result of work between The University of Tampa and national and local professional associations and service providers to improve corporate governance practices in Florida. The Florida Directors’ Institute delivers short programs for public and large private company boards of directors and officers, supports applied research by faculty and engages UT students in an annual essay competition on corporate governance topics.

The Naimoli Institute for Business Strategy

The Naimoli Institute administers the Strategic Analysis Program, which is designed as a partnership in learning between UT and the business community. The program is an innovative part of the capstone courses (MGT 431 and MGT 615) for Sykes College of Business undergraduate and MBA students. Each student in the program is assigned to a team that writes a strategic analysis of a local organization. Students get firsthand experience addressing strategic problems in real organizations, and the client organizations get rigorous analysis and recommendations aimed at improving their performance. The analysis reflects the students’ efforts to integrate all the areas of business that they have studied in their coursework in the Sykes College of Business. At the end of the semester, each student team presents its analysis and plan to the organization’s leaders. See the Naimoli Institute website at www.ut.edu/naimoli.

Entrepreneurship Center

The Entrepreneurship Center in the Sykes College of Business is a nationally recognized center for the study of entrepreneurship. Programs provided through the center engage the Florida business community in the learning experience and are available to any graduate or undergraduate student at The University of Tampa, regardless of major. The center supports the entrepreneurship curriculum through extracurricular programs and events that provide students with the chance to gain skills that will help them plan successful careers and viable businesses based on their unique talents. Students learn through experiential education and exposure to entrepreneurs. Example programs include the UT Entrepreneurs club, the Spartan Accelerator, UT Alumni group, business plan competitions, speaker series programs, internships, a mentoring program and many more.

Student Organizations

The Sykes College of Business has numerous student organizations. These organizations provide students with the opportunity to meet people, gain leadership skills, network with business professionals and interact with faculty.

The Accounting Club is an organization that provides social fellowship and opportunities to learn more about career options for accounting majors.

The Adam Smith Society is a College of Business honor society for students of both economics and economic policy. Student members are selected based on both an interest and general competence in the economic way of thinking. The charge of this faculty-mentored student organization is to expose the student members to what economists do in the real world, to introduce them to the different points of view from leagues of professional economists in the marketplace and to encourage enriched interaction between students, faculty and community leaders, all of whom share an interest in real-world economics.

Alpha Iota Mu is the honor society for outstanding students of information systems. The purpose of AIM is to foster academic excellence, to promote high ethical standards among information systems professionals and to encourage the growth of the profession. AIM is affiliated with the Association for Information Systems, and recognizes outstanding management information systems and financial enterprise systems juniors and seniors who have earned a GPA of 3.5 or higher and faculty recommendation.

The American Marketing Association collegiate chapter promotes student interaction with marketing professionals, both nationally and through the Tampa Bay Chapter. Through active participation and involvement, members gain practical marketing, advertising, management, promotion and financial experience. This award-winning chapter has excelled in community fundraising and marketing efforts and offers to students real-world local projects, important marketing connections and interviewing opportunities.

The University of Tampa Technology Club, which is also our Student Chapter of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) is a member of the largest educational and scientific computing society. Its goal is to advance computing as a science and a profession by exposing students to opportunities in computing and information technology through educational seminars, meetings with industry professionals and tours of local businesses and organizations. The chapter is open to all students. Through close association with the Tampa Bay Technology Leadership Association, students have the opportunity to participate in professional activities with information technology executives from a number of industries.

Beta Alpha Psi is an international scholastic and professional accounting and financial information organization that recognizes academic excellence, and complements members’ formal education by providing interaction among students, faculty and professionals to foster lifelong growth, service and ethical conduct.

Beta Gamma Sigma is the international honor society for collegiate business programs at AACSB-accredited institutions. Members must be business majors in the upper 10 percent of the junior or senior class or the upper 20 percent of the graduate business class, be nominated by a BGS faculty member and be invited to join.

The Dean’s Student Advisory Group is composed of student leaders and students who have been recommended by the faculty to advise the dean on the vision, mission and direction of the Sykes College of Business. The group also provides a forum for students to provide comments and requests to the administration of the College. These student representatives are from each of the undergraduate and graduate programs in the Sykes College of Business. Meetings are generally held two times per semester.

Delta Sigma Pi is a professional fraternity organized to encourage the study of business among students. Members sponsor many professional and community service events each semester.

The Student Chapter of the Financial Management Association is an organization that provides relevant information on the latest developments and opportunities in the area of finance.

Omicron Delta Epsilon is an international honor society in economics that recognizes superior academic achievement by both graduate and undergraduate students who have demonstrated an interest and aptitude in economics. Membership provides students an opportunity to attend and participate in ODE student sessions at regional, national and international economics conferences. Research papers from promising students may also be submitted for publication in ODE’s journal, The American Economist.

Phi Kappa Phi is the nation’s oldest, most selective, most prestigious, all discipline honor society. Top students are invited in their junior or senior year. 

UT Entrepreneurs is a premier student-led organization dedicated to promoting the entrepreneurial spirit and endeavors of all UT students by reaching out to both graduate and undergraduate students from majors across the University. Through a variety of projects, students work together to develop the knowledge and skills necessary to manage a new venture and to develop the networks necessary to succeed as business leaders at the executive level or as entrepreneurs at any level. The organization is part of a network of student entrepreneurship chapters across the world, called the Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization. Besides bi-weekly meetings and various outside events throughout the year, UT Entrepreneurs makes an annual trip to Chicago for the National CEO Conference in the fall and hosts the Southeast Entrepreneurship Conference in the spring. 

Independent Study and Special Studies Courses

An independent study course is designed by the professor and student and is not to be identical to any other course offerings that term. A special studies course is designed to be a substitute for an existing course that a student is unable to take for an approved reason. Independent and special studies courses should be offered on a limited basis and only in cases of hardship on the part of the student (e.g., graduating senior with schedule conflicts) or for special projects for outstanding students. In either case, the sponsoring professor, the department chair and the associate dean must approve the registration. Graduate students must also receive the approval of the academic coordinator for their degree. The appropriate form describing the course must be completed and submitted to the associate dean’s office before permission will be granted. An undergraduate student wishing to enroll in an independent study must have a GPA of 3.0 or higher; a graduate student must have a GPA of 3.5 or higher. An undergraduate student wishing to enroll in a special studies course must have a GPA of 2.0 or higher; a graduate student must have a GPA of 3.0 or higher. See the course descriptions to determine if an independent study may count toward the requirements of the major. No special studies courses are allowed for courses in the Sykes College of Business core.

Internships

Internships, except for those in accounting, are coordinated by a COB internship coordinator. An accounting internship coordinator coordinates accounting internships. In order to qualify for an internship, a student must have junior or senior standing and be considered "in good standing." Additional requirements may apply to internships in each of the COB majors. To register for an internship, the student must submit a permission form to the internship coordinator, along with a job description from the employer. The internship coordinator must approve all internships. Forms are available in the associate dean’s office.