Working towards an MBA program (Economics Major)

<p>Hi,</p>

<p>I just recently got provisionally accepted in CSULB as a Business Econ Major. I will be transferring with a 3.56 GPA if I get a 4.0 this semester (Which I am on track for). </p>

<p>I was originally looking at Graduate school for Economics but did some research and saw the extensive Math requirements. I transferred into this program from my local CC with Math 178 (Business Calc) as the higest completed math, and I have yet to take Pre Calculus which puts me well behind the curve. So I have decided to pursue a MBA program after getting a bachelors instead. </p>

<p>So what is the difference between 300 and 400 clases at CSULB? At CSU-LB, would it be wiser if I took the higher 400 classes as the electives (485 Econometrics) instead of a low 300s class (320 Money and Banking)? Are there certain electives that MBA programs approve of? I plan on minoring in Finance. Will this minor hurt or hinder my chances of getting into a MBA program?</p>

<p>I understand GPA is important so I will be shooting for a 4.0 @ CSULB. I will also be attempting to land an internship while in school, and working on the tests that are required for an MBA program. What I am most concerned with at this time is choosing the correct undergraduate workload that will prepare me for the MBA courses.</p>

<p>Any insight on this issue would be greatly appreciated.</p>

<p>If you want to pursue an MBA I really really recommend you at least consider taking the Calculus sequence (I, II, III) and a course in Probability (very useful in business). MBA schools love to see that on applicant’s transcripts, not to mention, your GRE scores would be much higher in the math portion. More importantly however, many courses in MBA program are highly quantitive so you have to be strong in math.</p>

<p>There are not really any great differences between 300 and 400 classes. However, some 400 classes might have 300 classes as prerequisites. They are all upper division classes though. I’m not sure which math classes are required for the degree you are pursuing so you should look it up to see if you even have any choice because you may have to take SPECIFIC certain math classes. If you do have a choice, I’d pick the math classes that are supposedly the easiest (ask around, check RMP, and etc) regardless if they are listed as a 300 or 400 class.</p>

<p>Does it look more impressive if I take 485 and 486 (Econometrics) over 320 (Money and Banking) and 330 for my electives?</p>

<p>I think I may try to take a class at Long Beach College (that is the commuity college right?) during my time at LBSU and complete the calculus track at that school.</p>

<p>Well, I’m not admission’s officer so I can’t say with certainty if a 400 class looks more “impressive” than a 300 class, but the general rule of thumb is to take the class you’ll most likely get an A in, since a high GPA is very important when applying to graduate schools.</p>

<p>Yes, you can take classes at LBCC over the summer. You should apply to it ASAP since some summer classes may be hard to get into. While you’re at it, you may want to also apply to other SoCal CCs near Long Beach just so you have more possible options. Good luck.</p>