My junior son thinks he would like to major in “business” but I’m finding many schools will not consider him for business majors unless he has already taken calculus in high school (and most don’t post that on their Web site). Since he is not 100% sure he wants to major in business, I would prefer a school that has a variety of majors as well as a business school. (FYI - senior year, he will be taking C1 Pre-Calc, AP Stats and AP Econ)
Currently, he has a 3.3 UWGPA, 1220 on 12/19 SAT (taking again in May and ACT in April), member of Student Council, Spanish National Honor Society, varsity soccer (captain) and varsity track, club soccer and community service group.
Any suggestions of schools that would fit his profile that he could apply directly to the business program or allow him to apply to another major and move into the business program after he takes college calculus? Thank you!
What colleges have an unstated calculus in high school requirement for business majors and are realistic for an applicant with a 3.3 HSGPA and 1220 SAT?
At lots of colleges, business majors only need to take an easier version of calculus for business majors, so there is not the expectation of them being the strongest in math students.
There are many colleges with fine UG Business schools that don’t let you select major up front (everyone is admitted to the general college and then students apply for B school in sophomore yr). In these schools, students would take calc in college (although very helpful to have previously taken but not required.)
I think I agree with ucbalumnus, that the type of colleges that require or prefer calculus for freshman entry are generally not realistic options for a 1220 SAT (or even a bit bumped above that on a retake) anyway.
Do you have budget constraints? What is your home state?
Miami University’s Farmer School of Business (Oxford, OH) They really like community engaged students.
Depending on the weighted gpa, he might even be able to get into their 2020 Summer Scholars program which has Business Academy which would give him a chance to preview the school and business in general.
Thank you for your feedback! It’s difficult to understand the process at some schools. My older son is at a school in which you don’t apply to the business school until the end of sophomore year. However, when applied to the college, he had to select a major and chose finance. He had taken all honors and AP so he had taken calculus in high school.
My second son is in the unique position of being a strong math student but unable to take calculus due to the math track he was placed in his freshman year. Despite strong math grades, he was not allowed to move up to honors and, as a result, not able to take calculus prior to graduation. The school district has addressed this problem but my son’s class is the last graduating class to deal with it. There are only about 30 kids in the grade who can take calculus (based on their ability to succeed in honors geometry at age 14). Our guidance counselor has offered to explain this issue in her recommendation. His current math teacher had no hesitation recommending for AP Stats next year.
We were told in a panel discussion of college admission counselors at our high school that some schools will not consider students who haven’t taken calculus for business majors - even if they are just applying to the college, not the business school. They said that the Finance and Accounting majors use calculus at the beginning of the the year. They suggested he major in Economics in the school of arts & sciences, take calculus and then try to move to the business school. For the money we would be paying, I don’t like the gamble. I also have no idea if he will like economics but we will find out when he takes it in his senior year.
Have you found examples of non-top schools that have a high school calc requirement for business majors? The panel at your school might have been thinking of the practices of higher ranked programs.
My DS20 took pre-Calc jr year then AP Comp Sci as his senior year math course, so no calculus. He was accepted to the business schools at Rutgers, URI, College of Charleston, and UConn (spring admit).
At best, students will be at a disadvantage vs. the general applicant pool at the very elite schools without Calc. It will never be “will not consider”.
Finance and Account absolutely don’t assume Calculus knowledge for first semester freshman classes.
Were these counselors from specific colleges, or were they part of high school staff, or were they independent counselors? Which colleges did they name?
It was a representative from Providence College, and, when I asked her again, she confirmed what I said above. The panel which also included Northeastern, Boston College, Hobart William & Smith and a couple of state colleges. At an info session, Fairfield said that you don’t have to have calculus but you need to show advanced math (AP Stat). We are looking for schools outside of New England. (We are not looking at BC and Nova but I know from the process with my older son that you need calculus for direct entry to their business schools.) We are not looking for that type of school for my younger son. That’s why I reached out to the group hoping to find someone whose student was accepted to a business program that may be appropriate for my son. I’m looking for recommendations of schools that offer many majors and also have a business school that is not direct entry and doesn’t require calculus.
Two of the most often cited reach undergrad business schools are Wharton and Stern. Wharton says it “would like to see” calculus. Stern says “ Applicants should have Calculus or, at the very least, Precalculus on their transcript.”
The implication of both (and remember we are talking about schools with a 7-8% admit rate here and median SATs around 1500) is that it will be difficult to get in without calculus, but that is not the same as “will not consider”.
Please refer to my original post. I am not looking at Wharton or Stern. Am I posting my question in the wrong place? This is my first post but I’ve been reading a lot of them and thought I was in the right place.
Thank you for the suggestion. We had thought of that but he is a unable to take it this summer due to family trip to Europe, job and soccer team commitments. Also, he hasn’t taken pre-Calc yet. That will be senior year.
Pretty sure that every CSU in California with a business major admits frosh business majors who do not have calculus in high school. The minimum math is algebra 2 and geometry or integrated math 3; one gives bonus points for precalculus and calculus. Admission is a non holistic point system (GPA and SAT/ACT formula, with the one campus having bonus points for other things).
If your non flagship state universities are similar, consider them. (In some states, 3.3 HSGPA and 1220 SAT admits to the state flagship, so consider that if the business major is not much more competitive.)
You are in the right place and I second all the schools recommended so far.
You haven’t given us much in the way of direction…your home state, or preferred size of school, geography, setting, etc. Obviously, budget is important too.
We can make better recs the more info we have.
For now, I would add: Elon, Butler, DePaul, Michigan State, Marist, Bentley, Ohio Wesleyan, Susquehanna, Quinnipiac, U Mass Amherst, Ohio University. That’s a wide range of schools…take a look and see what appeals, or not, to each.