Concentrations

The MBA with an accounting concentration paves the way for an exciting career in financial management, consulting, or your own business.

The MBA accounting concentration includes fundamental courses in ethics, leadership, and international business. Students may choose to customize their studies by focusing on select accounting concepts, procedures, and applications.

Elective Courses

Choose four of the following courses in order to complete an accounting concentration.

Courses (4)

ACCT 402: Issues in Financial Reporting
This course stresses research of selected accounting issues and uses the authoritative pronouncements to better understand financial accounting and reporting. The course structure includes lectures, class discussion, case analysis, and research of timely accounting issues. Group interaction is heavily emphasized.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate an understanding of the professional pronouncements as they relate to the recognition and measurement of selected accounting topics. Students will also be able to work as a team to research an accounting issue and professionally communicate their research findings.

ACCT 404: Financial Statement Analysis
This course evaluates the information contained in the financial statements, footnotes, and management discussion and analysis for its usefulness in making investment and credit decisions.
Outcome: Students will be able to assess the appropriateness of asset valuation, liability measurement, and equity values for judging the performance of an enterprise. Students will synthesize these assessments via a comprehensive financial statement analysis project.

ACCT 407: Tax Principles Applied to Individuals
This course provides detailed coverage of the key Federal income tax concepts and planning principles applicable to individual taxpayers.

ACCT 408: Taxation Principles Applied to Entities
This course provides detailed coverage of the key Federal income tax concepts and planning principles applicable to various business entities and an overview of Federal transfer taxes.

ACCT 409: Audit and Assurance
This course introduces the student to the environment in which Public Accounting exists as well as the standards, both AICPA and PCAOB, which firms must follow in rendering audit and assurance services. The course covers both the theoretical and practical issues involved in planning an engagement, risk assessment and the audit risk model, evidence gathering and internal control policies and procedures. The audit of major transaction cycles (i.e. the revenue cycle) and account groups (i.e. Cash) are then covered highlighting internal specific control policies, testing of controls and substantive audit procedures to gather evidence. Study of appropriate AICPA and PCAOB professional standards is an integral part of this course.

ACCT 410: Advanced Audit and Professional Ethics
This course consists of an in-depth study of specific topics related to both attest and non-attest services rendered by public accounting firms. Topics include: Professional ethics and a study of the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct; Accountants legal liability, federal securities laws and cases related to CPA malpractice; The use of technology and sampling in an audit; Securities & Exchange Commission practice, the integrated audit and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act; and Audit and other reports. Study of appropriate AICPA and PCAOB professional standards is an integral part of this course.

ACCT 412: Special Topics in Accounting (AS Needed)
Scheduled classes are offered on an ad hoc basis. Specific titles, prerequisites and content will vary.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate understanding of specialized topics not otherwise covered by department regular course offerings.

ACCT 424: Managerial Accounting
Topics include product costing and activity based costing concepts, development and analysis of information for short-run and long-run decision making, the impact of accounting information on divisional performance, cost estimation and cost-volume-profit analysis, segment analysis, transfer pricing, budgeting concepts, and behavioral issues associated with accounting information.
Outcome: Develop and use managerial accounting information for operational and strategic decision making.

ACCT 431: Tax Research
This course will provide graduate business students with the basic techniques of conducting federal tax research, and enable them to apply those techniques to a variety of research cases and communicate their research results in both written and oral formats. Includes establishing relevant facts; identifying tax issues; developing & communication conclusions and recommendations in writing and orally.

ACCT 432: State,Local, and International Tax
This course will provide graduate business students with a basic understanding and familiarity with the principles of U.S. multi-jurisdictional taxation. The first half of the course will focus on the various types of state and location taxation and their common themes and differences. The second half will address Federal income taxation of cross-border transactions, both inbound and outbound.
U Demonstrate the ability to properly allocate taxable income between different taxing jurisdictions. Understand the basic principles and policies underlying state, local, and international taxation. Develop a working knowledge of the different types of taxes.

ACCT 433: International Tax
DESCRIPTIONS AND OUTCOMES: TBA

ACCT 435: Internal Audit
This course will expose students to the fundamentals of internal auditing with an emphasis on internal controls. Topics covered will include an overview of internal auditing theory and internal audit in practice. After these overviews, an in depth review of internal controls will be examined, including internal controls best practices, risk assessment, control identification, audit design, testing of controls and audit reporting. Finally, the class may include a hands-on internal audit engagement in a real life setting.
Outcomes: Students should have a clear understanding of how internal controls are used throughout a company and how auditors help design, test and report their effectiveness.

ACCT 436: Forensic Accounting
The purpose of the course is to familiarize students to the field of Forensic Accounting and sensitize them to: the prevalence of fraud in all forms of business activity; the methods people use in initiating/perpetuating fraud scheme; ways of staying out of or getting out of a fraud conspiracy. Students are presumed to have strong accounting and auditing skills. This course will be covering ethics, accounting, auditing, misappropriation of assets, fraudulent financial reporting, electronic fraud and other fraud investigation/forensic accounting topics.
Outcomes: Students who successfully complete this course will be able to demonstrate: knowledge of the nature and magnitude of economic fraud as it affects a variety of entities; understanding of the role of the accounting profession in fraud prevention and detection; technical knowledge of forensic accounting, forensic investigations and research.

ACCT 437: Advanced Forensic Accounting
This course will focus on fraud audits of private entities. In the course of financial reviews questions arise about complex financial transactions, employee dishonesty, collusion, and breakdowns in internal controls. Normal audit procedures may discover the issue but additional steps are necessary to quantify and detect the extent of the fraud.
Outcome: Students in this course will develop basic forensic skills via analytical training.

ACCT 439: Independent Study
Independent study is in-depth research and/or reading, initiated by the student and jointly developed with a faculty member, into a specialized area of accounting not otherwise covered by department course offerings. Student is typically expected to develop a manuscript worthy of publication. The project should require the workload associated with a graduate level course. Normally, this course may be taken one time for credit.
Outcome: Student must demonstrate a detailed understanding of the selected accounting topic.

LREB 445: Entrepreneurship Law
This course provides aspiring and established business owners with an understanding of the recurring legal issues at various stages in entrepreneurship. Comprehending these principles will assist business owners in better organizing their business structures and operations.
Outcomes: The goal is to help increase a business' duration and profitability by implementing appropriate processes to reduce the potentially substantial costs and irreparable harm associated with failing to apply proper attention to foreseeable commercial risks.

The MBA with business ethics concentration emphasizes the importance of having a moral code and behaving ethically in the business environment.

Loyola's business ethics courses are designed to help you meet all challenges head-on. Our practical curriculum based on responsible leadership aims to make you accountable, ethical, and trustworthy. You will learn the business imperative for treating all stakeholders—including customers, employees, and the community—with respect and integrity.

Elective Courses

Choose three of the following courses in order to obtain a business ethics concentration.

Courses (3)

INFS  795: Ethics and Data Analytics
The rapid advancement in technology necessitates an equally rapid advance in the ethics of data analytics. We will explore ethical questions in this field through the use of business case studies. We will also look at examples of ethical codes of conduct.
Outcome: Students will evaluate following ethical considerations: how data is collected, how it is interpreted, how it is applied, and with whom it is shared.

MGMT 441: Business Ethics
This course examines the ethical aspects of individual and corporate decision making in business and provides resources for making ethical decisions within the context of managerial practice.
Outcome: Students will be acquainted with the concepts and principles of ethical reasoning that have been developed in ethical theory; be aware of the specific ethical issues that arise in management and of the ways in which these issues are commonly analyzed; and be able to make sound ethical and managerial decisions and to implement those decisions within the context of an organization in a competitive marketplace.

MGMT 443: Global Environmental Ethics
This course develops an understanding of the ethical issues and responsibilities arising from human interaction with the non-human natural environment. Perspectives from various religious traditions, Western philosophy, and the science of ecology are considered.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate ethical awareness, reflection, and application of ethical principles in decision making.

MGMT 446: International Business Ethics
This is an advanced business ethics course that addresses the ethical issues that arise in the global business environment, including the standards for the operation of multinational corporations and the ethical perspectives of managers in different countries.
Outcome: Students will understand the specific ethical problems of international business and of different ethical perspectives; develop skills for personal decision making and for developing and implementing ethical corporate policies in international business; and learn how to work toward more effective background institutions and forms of international business regulation.

MGMT 447: Special Topics in Ethics: Variable Topics

MGMT 448: Ethics in Finance
This is an advanced business ethics course that addresses the ethical challenges in finance, which includes financial markets, financial services, financial management, and finance theory. The aim of this course is to understand the ethical issues that arise in the various areas of finance and to develop an ability to resolve these issues effectively and responsibly. Topics include: fairness in financial markets, the rationale for market regulation, duties of agents, fiduciaries, and professionals, conflict of interest, insider trading, manipulation and fraud, marketing and sales, consumer privacy, abusive credit practices, financial management, financial reporting, bankruptcy, acquisitions and mergers, and building an ethical corporate culture.

MGMT 479: Independent Study in Management
-

The MBA with a derivative markets concentration prepares you for job opportunities in top financial service companies.

Elective Courses

Take the following three courses to complete the derivative markets concentration.

Courses (3)

FINC 553: Applied Portfolio Management
This is a course in investment analysis and applied portfolio management. Topics will include investment policy and objectives, performance analysis and attribution, portfolio design, fixed income analysis and portfolio management, and equity analysis and portfolio management.
Outcome: At the conclusion of this course the student should be able to:

1. Create an investment policy statement
2. Analyze and value fixed income securities
3. Analyze and value equity securities
4. Develop and manage a portfolio of debt and equity securities.

FINC 622/ECON 622: Derivative Securities
This course is an introduction to options, futures, forwards and swaps as derivative securities. After an overview of these securities, a detailed examination of the methods of valuing options will be presented. Binomial trees and a discussion of the Black-Scholes option pricing model will be emphasized, followed by insights into option contracts as useful risk management instruments. A brief introduction to stochastic calculus is also given. Stock, index, debt, commodity, foreign currency and futures options are reviewed, and option strategies are analyzed as managerial tools in financial decision-making. Skills developed in this course include analytical and decision-making, creative thinking and communication. Throughout the course the notion of risk both as potential loss and opportunity for gain and its management will be highlighted. Ethical and social dimensions of risk management and the use and abuse of derivative securities will be emphasized to help students become responsible financial managers. The recent credit crisis and its origin in subprime mortgages will be reviewed. Students are encouraged to form teams and work jointly on five sets of homework problems and to also develop trading strategies. The course integrates functional areas in finance, accounting, economics, business ethics and quantitative methods.

FINC 624: Investment Rate Risk Management
Students are introduced to a plethora of financial derivatives, including both exchange-traded and OTC products, and then learn to use these products to hedge interest rate and other risks largely through the study of cases and detailed examples emphasizing the formation and use of synthetic positions.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate an understanding of a wide variety of derivative products, as well as be able to use these products to manage interest rate and other risks.

The MBA with an entrepreneurship concentration lays the groundwork for your future as a successful business owner. Experts predict that entrepreneurial opportunities will continue to grow in virtually every field of business. A solid knowledge of entrepreneurship principals, laws, and applications will enable you to hit the ground running.

Loyola's entrepreneurship courses provide you with complete hands-on training, often in partnership with local businesses. We offer a global perspective and a practical curriculum that prepares you to exercise sound judgment in recognizing lucrative entrepreneurial opportunities.

Elective Courses

Choose three of the following courses in order to obtain an entrepreneurship concentration.

Courses (3)

MGMT 472/ HRER 431: Organizational Change
This course focuses on the manager's role as a change agent in implementing effective change management and organizational development.
Outcomes: Students will apply change theory frameworks in analyzing different types of organizational change such as mergers and restructuring and will learn how to manage resistance to change, facilitate change implementation and foster long-term acceptance of change by employees.

MGMT 480: Recognizing Entrepreneurial Opportunities*
This course will focus on the very early stages of the entrepreneurial process. We will discuss how new opportunities are discovered and how societal value is created throughout this process. In its approach, the course will be based on classic theoretical readings, the insights of economics, strategic management, organizational studies, psychology and cognitive science.
Outcomes: Apply analytical and critical thinking skills to identify untapped entrepreneurial opportunities.

*Required

MGMT 481: Entrepreneurship
This course enables the students to develop their new venture ideas. We discuss how to cultivate new business ideas, form venture teams, evaluate the opportunities, and design a firm to bring the ideas to life. At the end, each venture team produces a business plan.
Outcomes: The students learn how all major functions of a business come together in a new venture. This course will help those who might want to start their own business in the future. It will also help those who will work for existing companies by encouraging them to think more strategically and creatively about business.

MGMT 482: Entrepreneurial Marketing
This course is about the marketing challenges in an entrepreneurial firm. Entrepreneurship is the discovery, enactment and pursuit of new business opportunities. Successful execution of an entrepreneurial idea requires a sound marketing plan. In this course, we will investigate how marketing tools can enable entrepreneurs to realize the full potential of their ideas.

MGMT 483: Strategic Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management
This course will focus on the application of strategic management tools to entrepreneurial situations with an emphasis on the early stages of new venture creation. We will discuss how new opportunities are discovered, how inventions are turned into innovations, and how societal value is created throughout this process.
Outcomes: Recognize and discover entrepreneurial opportunities; Manage the creation and appropriation of the value generated by innovations; Apply analytical and critical thinking skills in an uncertain business environment; Apply your learning in a real-life project.

MGMT 485: Social Enterprise
Social enterprise seeks to create ventures that provide critical social services in innovative ways using the concepts and methods of business. This course aims to prepare students to engage in social enterprise by focusing on how to create social value by business means; how to start and sustain an entrepreneurial social venture; how to scale social innovation and grow an organization; how to obtain funding and generate earned revenue; how to adopt an appropriate legal governance structure and tax status; and how to measure, document, and communicate social impact.

LREB 445: Entrepreneurship Law
This course provides aspiring and established business owners with an understanding of the recurring legal issues at various stages in entrepreneurship. Comprehending these principles will assist business owners in better organizing their business structures and operations.
Outcomes: The goal is to help increase a business' duration and profitability by implementing appropriate processes to reduce the potentially substantial costs and irreparable harm associated with failing to apply proper attention to foreseeable commercial risks.

The MBA with a finance concentration is one of the most popular areas in business studies today. Interest is driven by professional opportunities in business, investment, and finance.

Loyola's MBA with a finance concentration is well known for its practical curriculum, hands-on application, and partnered delivery with established Chicago businesses. In addition to studying relevant trends and current issues, you will employ a global perspective and gain a solid understanding of international and emerging financial systems.

Elective Courses

Choose three of the following courses to complete the finance concentration.

Courses(3)

FINC 455: International Financial Management
This course examines the international dimensions of financial management. It introduces potential opportunities/challenges faced by multinational corporations as they expand their business overseas.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate understanding of foreign exchange markets, fundamental international parity relationships, foreign exchange risk management strategies, and capital budgeting for multinational corporations.

FINC 453: Topics in Advanced Financial Management
This is an advanced course in corporate finance where students are given a thorough grounding in firm valuation and exposed to various financial decisions including raising capital, mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, spin-offs, and carve-outs, all in the context of their impact on firm value.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate an understanding of firm valuation, as well as the impact of various corporate decisions on firm value.

FINC 452: Investment Management
This course includes the topics of asset pricing models; risk and return analysis of stocks, bonds and cash equivalents; portfolio theory; bond pricing, the term structure of interest and immunization strategies in managing fixed income securities.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate the analytical tools and finance theory necessary for making good investment decisions and for understanding the pricing of financial securities.

FINC 456: Management of Financial Institutions
The course analyzes the importance played by financial institutions. This is a survey course that analyzes the present financial institutional structure with a special focus on managing risk.
Outcome: Students will demonstrate an understanding of the following topics: the role of financial intermediaries in managing interest rate, credit, market and international banking risks. Special attention will be given to procedures for measuring and managing these risks.

FINC 556: Investment Banking
This course provides a broad overview of the activities of investment banks, including venture capital fundraising, stock and bond underwriting, mergers and acquisitions, trading, asset securitization and money management.
Outcome: Students will understand how investment banks enhance capital markets by providing financing and investment services to companies, governments and individuals.

FINC 553: Applied Portfolio Management
This is a course in investment analysis and applied portfolio management. Topics will include investment policy and objectives, performance analysis and attribution, portfolio design, fixed income analysis and portfolio management, and equity analysis and portfolio management.
Outcome: At the conclusion of this course the student should be able to:

1. Create an investment policy statement
2. Analyze and value fixed income securities
3. Analyze and value equity securities
4. Develop and manage a portfolio of debt and equity securities.

FINC 620: Financial Mathematics and Modeling I
This course focuses on how to effectively use Microsoft Excel and its built-in programming language, Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) to build financial models. It has a prerequisite of Finance 450 and presumes familiarity with basic Excel operations and functions. The course will model investment, derivative, corporate finance, and risk management problems. The course is a combination of both lecture and lab.

FINC 599: Special Topics in FINC
Scheduled classes are offered on an ad hoc basis. Specific titles, prerequisites and content will vary.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate understanding of specialized topics not otherwise covered by department regular course offerings.

FINC 621: Financial Mathematics and Modeling II
Financial mathematics and modeling II is the second in a sequence of two courses. It is a combination of lecture and lab and will focus on the core mathematical, computational and practical modeling aspects encountered in modern financial applications. The programming languages of choice will be R and Excel/VBA. This course has a prerequisite of FINC 450, FINC 452, FINC 620, and ISOM 400. No prior R programming experience is required but familiarity with Excel/VBA is a pre-requisite.

FINC 622: Derivative Securities
This course is an introduction to options, futures, forwards and swaps as derivative securities. After an overview of these securities, a detailed examination of the methods of valuing options will be presented. Binomial trees and a discussion of the Black-Scholes option pricing model will be emphasized, followed by insights into option contracts as useful risk management instruments. A brief introduction to stochastic calculus is also given. Stock, index, debt, commodity, foreign currency and futures options are reviewed, and option strategies are analyzed as managerial tools in financial decision-making. Skills developed in this course include analytical and decision-making, creative thinking and communication. Throughout the course the notion of risk both as potential loss and opportunity for gain and its management will be highlighted. Ethical and social dimensions of risk management and the use and abuse of derivative securities will be emphasized to help students become responsible financial managers. The recent credit crisis and its origin in subprime mortgages will be reviewed. Students are encouraged to form teams and work jointly on five sets of homework problems and to also develop trading strategies. The course integrates functional areas in finance, accounting, economics, business ethics and quantitative methods.

FINC 624: Interest Rate Risk Management
Students are introduced to a plethora of financial derivatives, including both exchange-traded and OTC products, and then learn to use these products to hedge interest rate and other risks largely through the study of cases and detailed examples emphasizing the formation and use of synthetic positions.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate an understanding of a wide variety of derivative products, as well as be able to use these products to manage interest rate and other risks.

FINC 625: Applied Econometrics
The purpose of this course is to help students understand feasible econometric techniques in order to mine information to understand economic and financial patterns and to forecast. A rigorous exposition of the theory behind econometric techniques will help students understand the issues raised in different published papers. Topics of econometric techniques covered in this course include panel data analysis, time-series models, discrete choice models, and methods to identify causality between variables. Practical applications will prepare students to use these methods in their own projects.

FINC 628: Valuation
This is an advanced course in valuation where students are given a thorough grounding in traditional valuation models (DCF and relative valuation) and also introduced to real option methods and ideas; a certain emphasis is placed on the valuation of start-ups and students are introduced to the venture capital markets.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate an understanding of traditional valuation models as well as real options methods and ideas.

The MBA with human resources concentration can bolster your ability to manage and motivate a company's most valuable asset—it's employees.

Loyola's professors demonstrate the application of key practices in developing, managing, recruiting, and leading staff. Our strong focus on examining and understanding current issues impacting HR from a global perspective will put you at an advantage in the marketplace.

Elective Courses

Choose three of the following courses in order to obtain a human resources concentration.

Courses(3)

HRER 413: Compensation
This course examines wage and salary policies and programs in private and public organizations. Legislative and social issues affecting pay decisions, and the alignment of pay policies with the business strategy and other human resource programs are covered.
Outcomes: Students will learn how to design and implement compensation policies and programs that will give their employers a competitive advantage; resolve compensation problems from both a human resource professional and managerial perspective; and create pay policies that are perceived as just and equitable. Students will improve their team leadership, analytical and writing skills.

HRER 418: Human Resources Law
This course will introduce students, by a combination of statutory case law analysis and readings, to the substantive case law in the area of employee-employer relations law. The statutes and case law encompass the following: National Labor Relations Act, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Civil Rights Act of 1991, Illinois Human Rights Act, and Illinois Employment Law Statutes and Regulations.
Outcomes: The primary purpose of this course is to introduce graduate students to a practical examination of the principles of "employee-employer" relations law, also called human resources law or personnel law. Students will be exposed to the principle theories, policies and literature concerning the relevant federal and state (Illinois) court case law and government regulations of the employee-employer relationship in primarily the private sector.

HRER 422: Global Human Resource Management
This course examines the critical roles of Human Resource professionals throughout the strategic globalization process, as well as the cross-cultural issues that affect organizational dynamics and behaviors central to Human Resource processes, such as staffing, training, motivation, negotiation, team-building, and communication.
Outcomes: To survey the three types of topics covered by the field of Global HRM:

1. Management of human resources in global corporations
2. Management of expatriate employees
3. Comparison of HRM practices in a variety of different countries.
4. To consider special topics at the forefront of global HR, such as effects of NAFTA and the European Union, global ethics, and critiques of globalization.

HRER 429: Human Resource Development
This course examines how organizations develop employees with the appropriate technical, interpersonal and leadership skills to be effective in their jobs.
Outcomes: Students will learn how to conduct a training needs assessment, set learning objectives, establish evaluation criteria, select the best instructional methods, and to evaluate the impact of the program on the employee and organization. In addition to conducting formal training programs, students will learn how to use career planning, job rotation and performance feedback to develop employees and themselves. Students will improve their presentation, team leadership, analytical and writing skills.

HRER 430: Organization Development
This course examines how the effectiveness and the quality of life in organizations can be increased using collaborative methods.
Outcomes: Students will learn to apply concepts from team building, employee involvement, work design, and large group interventions to organizational settings. In addition, students will increase their overall knowledge and effectiveness about leadership, organization development, training and human resource management.

HRER 433: Group Process and Facilitation
This course focuses on major concepts of group development and group dynamics. Other topics of discussion include communication patterns, authority relations, leadership, norms, stages of group behaviors, paradoxes of group life, and self-awareness within group settings.
Outcomes: Students learn the various tools and techniques of process consultation and also gain knowledge and competence for working with groups. The course combines cognitive and conceptual materials with experienced-based learning.

HRER 442: Global Overseas Seminar
-

HRER 453: Incentive Pay and Employee Benefit Programs
This course examines incentive pay and employee benefit programs in private and public organizations. Program design and the alignment of incentive pay and benefit programs with business strategy and human resource programs are covered.
Outcomes: Students will learn to design and implement incentive pay and employee benefit programs that will give their employers a competitive advantage and be perceived as equitable among employees. Students will improve their team leadership, analytical and writing skills.

HRER 462: Employment Relations
This course examines critical labor laws in the United States and the structure and function of our employment relations system.
Outcomes: Students will demonstrate understanding of basic case law in the field of labor relations and how unions, management representatives, and government dynamically interact to provide employee representation, balance group interests, and ideally avoid disruptive workplace conflict.

HRER 463: Staffing
This course provides an overview of staffing processes in organizations, with an emphasis on recruitment and selection procedures. Other topics of discussion include legal and strategic issues in staffing, and relevant statistical concepts.
Outcomes: Students will become comfortable with the entire staffing process, and be able to design and implement cutting-edge staffing systems, with an emphasis on business strategy.

HRER 490: Analytical Problem Solving
This course is designed as an introductory graduate level course in analytical problem solving, another name for research methods, and design. A basic understanding of - and general familiarity with fundamentals of statistical concepts is assumed. However, where necessary, we will revisit these concepts briefly. Of course, this is not a course in statistics.

HRER 500: Special Topics in Human Resources and Employment Relations
This course engages students in a chosen Special Topic in HRER.
Outcomes: In-depth understanding of a special topic in the area of HRER.

HRER 502: Global Employment Relations
This course introduces students to different employment relations systems in advanced industrial economies in North America, Europe, and Asia and to formats for resolving new types of labor problems that have merged in a global economy.
Outcomes: Students will be able to identify critical differentiating aspects of employment relations systems in the developed world and common pro and con arguments regarding proposed solutions to substandard working conditions in the developing world.

HRER 501: Performance Management
Designed to provide both current and future managers an in-depth understanding of performance appraisals and related issues, this course also emphasizes on goal-setting, feedback and the rating process.
Outcomes: Students will learn to apply the various techniques used to conduct effective performance appraisal processes and design comprehensive performance management systems for their organizations.

The MBA with an information systems concentration will advance your career in the arena of information technology. Every business relies on IT processes to stay competitive, improve efficiency, and enhance communication. Loyola's practical curriculum helps you develop advanced skills for improving organizational performance and consequently, profitability, allowing you to naturally progress into leadership or managerial roles.

Elective Courses

Choose three of the following courses in order to obtain an information systems concentration.

Courses (3)

INFS  485: Business Requirement Analysis
This course focuses on information systems requirements and related skills. Students learn techniques for translating between business needs and requirements for analytics systems and related processes. Students will learn how to elicit, analyze, specify, prioritize, and validate requirements for analytics that enable an organization's business goals. The course reviews primary processes, e.g., transaction processing, that collects and processes the information the business uses as inputs into analytics.

INFS 492: Database Systems
This course uses database systems as the focus for studying concepts of data modeling and data manipulation. Procedures for creating, managing, sorting, and processing data are discussed. Concepts of relational database methods are covered as well as the issues that arise in managing information in a database and using it to support business processes.
Outcome: Understanding the development and use of business database systems.

INFS 493: Strategic Use of IT
This course focuses on helping future business leaders, in increasingly competitive environments, think about the strategic use of technology in the development and management of competitive advantages. The course will use case discussions, expert presenters and real-world projects to help students understand how to leverage emerging technologies (Eg. Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, Block Chain, Cognitive Analytics) as well as an understanding of innovation processes (Eg. Design Thinking) in developing sustainable business strategies.
Outcome: Think strategically about information technology to gain a competitive advantage.

INFS 494: Data Mining
Data Mining involves the search for patterns in large quantities of data. The fundamental techniques used in data mining include, but are not limited to, clustering, decision trees, neural networks, and association analysis.
Outcome: The student will be able to build models using an industry-standard package and interpret the results.

INFS 496: System Analysis and Design
Provides a core set of skills for planning, managing and executing systems analysis and design processes in e-business and Web-based environments. Topics typically include project initiation and planning, methods used in the determination of information requirements, prototyping, techniques used in systems design, testing and implementation strategies.
Outcome: Understanding of the development and implementation of business information systems.

INFS 499: Independent Study
Independent study is in-depth research or reading, initiated by the student and jointly developed with a faculty member, into a specialized area of information systems not otherwise covered by department course offerings.

INFS 592: Data Visualization
The amount of data that our world generates is growing at a torrid pace. Sifting through & making sense of these humongous mountains of data is crucial to ensuring business growth, success and to making scientific discoveries & advancements. Data visualization plays an important role in this process.
Outcome: Students will be able to process & visualize large amounts of data in order to enable efficient & effective analysis using industry standard software.

INFS  691: Principles of Analytic Programming
This course will focus on the R language and will build on the introduction from BSAD 443.
Outcome: Students will learn to manipulate data, write functions and scripts for repeatable analysis, build models, and perform data analysis tasks

INFS  791: Programming for Business Decision Making
This course focuses on how to effectively use a computer programming language to support decision making in business.  Examples include using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) to create applications within Microsoft Excel or using Python for manipulating and analyzing data.   In addition to covering the concepts of programming using the specified language, this course covers developing user interfaces, working with external data and debugging code.  By the end of this course, the student will be able to build custom procedures and create user-defined functions in the programming language used.

INFS 796: Data Warehousing
The components and design issues related to data warehouses and business intelligence techniques for extracting meaningful information from data warehouses are emphasized. Oracle tools will be used to demonstrate design, implementation, and utilization issues.
Outcome: students will learn how data warehouses are used to help managers successfully gather, analyze, understand and act on information stored in data warehouses.

INFS  797: Applications of Visualization
Students will explore human perception and cognition, the use of best design practices, and interacting/storytelling with data.
Outcome: This course will develop a vocabulary and framework for discussing, critiquing, assessing, and designing visual displays of quantitative data.

INFS 798: Quality in Systems Development
This course will be based on current best practices in IS development and focus on the importance of quality as an activity applied throughout the entire systems development process.
The course will cover techniques for ensuring quality in systems development such as software defect prevention and removal methods. Examples of how such concepts and techniques are used in firms in different industries will be examined. The following topics will also be discussed: software metrics, quality in software requirements, Function Point Analysis & Metrics, and Quality Management Systems such as Six Sigma, ISO 9000, Capability Maturity Model and Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL).

ISSCM 495: Forecasting Methods
Techniques of forecasting and model building are introduced. Methods covered are simple and multiple regression, introduction to time series components, exponential smoothing algorithms, and AIRMA models - Box Jenkins techniques. Business cases are demonstrated and solved using the computer.
Outcome: To be able forecast business and economic variables to enhance business decisions.

The MBA with an international business concentration gives you the competitive edge in a distinctly global economy. A growing number of businesses are competing in the international market; advanced knowledge of global practices enhances your opportunities significantly at home and abroad.

Elective Courses

Choose three of the following courses in order to obtain an international business concentration.

Courses (3)

FINC 455: International Finance
This course examines the international dimensions of financial management. It introduces potential opportunities/challenges faced by multinational corporations as they expand their business overseas.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate understanding of foreign exchange markets, fundamental international parity relationships, foreign exchange risk management strategies, and capital budgeting for multinational corporations.

HRER 422: Global Human Resource Management
This course examines the critical roles of Human Resource professionals throughout the strategic globalization process, as well as the cross-cultural issues that affect organizational dynamics and behaviors central to Human Resource processes, such as staffing, training, motivation, negotiation, team-building, and communication.
Outcome: To survey the three types of topics covered by the field of Global HRM:

1. Management of human resources in global corporations
2. Management of expatriate employees
3. Comparison of HRM practices in a variety of different countries.
4. To consider special topics at the forefront of global HR, such as effects of NAFTA and the European Union, global ethics, and critiques of globalization.

HRER 502: Global Employment Relations
This course introduces students to different employment relations systems in advanced industrial economies in North America, Europe, and Asia and to formats for resolving new types of labor problems that have merged in a global economy.
Outcome: Students will be able to identify critical differentiating aspects of employment relations systems in the developed world and common pro and con arguments regarding proposed solutions to substandard working conditions in the developing world.

MARK 465: International Marketing
This course develops an understanding of marketing problems in an international context with particular attention given to how international factors impact consumers, competition, and marketing strategies.
Outcome: Students apply the principles of marketing to solve marketing problems in an international context. Students analyze cases and identify optimal solutions to international marketing problems.

MGMT 443: Global Environmental Ethics
This course develops an understanding of the ethical issues and responsibilities arising from human interaction with the non-human natural environment. Perspectives from various religious traditions, Western philosopy, and the science of ecology are considered.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate ethical awareness, reflection, and application of ethical principles in decision making.

MGMT 446: International Business Ethics
This is an advanced business ethics course that addresses the ethical issues that arise in the global business environment, including the standards for the operation of multinational corporations and the ethical perspectives of managers in different countries.
Outcome: Students will understand the specific ethical problems of international business and of different ethical perspectives; develop skills for personal decision making and for developing and implementing ethical corporate policies in international business; and learn how to work toward more effective background institutions and forms of international business regulation.

SCMG 486: Global Logistics
This course examines how business partners along the supply chain can work together to gain competitive advantage in moving products and services around the world to satisfy customers.
Outcome: Understanding best practices like vendor-managed inventory and category management, and the application of information technologies for sharing information.

Graduate Business Study Abroad
-

The MBA with a management concentration will give your career the boost needed to secure leadership, managerial, or executive positions. Our program provides you the advanced knowledge necessary for successful career advancement. A practical curriculum enhanced with a global perspective and strong business ethics foundation affords you a distinct competitive edge.

Elective Courses

Choose three of the following courses in order to obtain a management concentration.

Courses (3)

MGMT 443: Global Environmental Ethics
This course develops an understanding of the ethical issues and responsibilities arising from human interaction with the non-human natural environment. Perspectives from various religious traditions, Western philosophy, and the science of ecology are considered.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate ethical awareness, reflection, and application of ethical principles in decision making.

MGMT 446: International Business Ethics
This is an advanced business ethics course that addresses the ethical issues that arise in the global business environment, including the standards for the operation of multinational corporations and the ethical perspectives of managers in different countries.
Outcome: Students will understand the specific ethical problems of international business and of different ethical perspectives; develop skills for personal decision making and for developing and implementing ethical corporate policies in international business; and learn how to work toward more effective background institutions and forms of international business regulation.

MGMT 472/HRER 431: Organizational Change and Development
This course focuses on the manager's role as a change agent in implementing effective change management and organizational development.
Outcome: Students will apply change theory frameworks in analyzing different types of organizational change such as mergers and restructuring and will learn how to manage resistance to change, facilitate change implementation and foster long-term acceptance of change by employees.

MGMT 480: Recognizing Entrepreneurial Opportunities
This course will focus on the very early stages of the entrepreneurial process. We will discuss how new opportunities are discovered and how societal value is created throughout this process. In its approach, the course will be based on classic theoretical readings, the insights of economics, strategic management, organizational studies, psychology and cognitive science.
Outcome: Apply analytical and critical thinking skills to identify untapped entrepreneurial opportunities.

MGMT 482: Entrepreneurship Marketing
This course is about the marketing challenges in an entrepreneurial firm. Entrepreneurship is the discovery, enactment and pursuit of new business opportunities. Successful execution of an entrepreneurial idea requires a sound marketing plan. In this course, we will investigate how marketing tools can enable entrepreneurs to realize the full potential of their ideas.

MGMT 483: Strategic Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management
This course will focus on the application of strategic management tools to entrepreneurial situations with an emphasis on the early stages of new venture creation. We will discuss how new opportunities are discovered, how inventions are turned into innovations, and how societal value is created throughout this process.
At the end of this course, you will be able to: Recognize and discover entrepreneurial opportunities; Manage the creation and appropriation of the value generated by innovations; Apply analytical and critical thinking skills in an uncertain business environment; Apply your learning in a real-life project.

MGMT 485: Social Enterprise
Social enterprise seeks to create ventures that provide critical social services in innovative ways using the concepts and methods of business. This course aims to prepare students to engage in social enterprise by focusing on how to create social value by business means; how to start and sustain an entrepreneurial social venture; how to scale social innovation and grow an organization; how to obtain funding and generate earned revenue; how to adopt an appropriate legal governance structure and tax status; and how to measure, document, and communicate social impact.

MGMT 573: Business Strategy
This course analyzes the responsibilities of general management in formulating, communicating, and implementing a strategic plan. Whereas corporate strategy (MGMT 574) defines the vertical and horizontal scope of a firm, business strategy (MGMT 573) is concerned with how the firm generates and sustains competitive advantage within a particular industry or product market. Students will develop executive and general management skills through an understanding of how the various functions of an organization operate as a whole. Through case studies, students will also build their skills in conducting strategic analyses in a variety of industries and competitive situations and gain a stronger understanding of the challenges of the business environment.

The MBA with a marketing concentration equips business managers with solid marketing skills to lead and grow brands and companies naturally.

Elective Courses

Choose three of the following courses in order to obtain a marketing concentration.

Courses (3)

MARK 461: Research Methods in Marketing
Prerequisites: MARK 460 and ISSCM 491
This course develops an understanding of the marketing research process and the role of survey research in this process.
Outcome: Students formulate research problems and a design research study, including the development of a questionnaire, selection of an appropriate sample, and data analysis.

MARK 463: Sales and Strategic Leadership
Prerequisite: MARK 460
This course develops an understanding of the tools and techniques required for developing a sales force and for managing revenue generation within organizations.
Outcome: Students apply processes for hiring and managing sales professionals; tools for successful account management; and skills in solving revenue generation problems facing profit and non-profit organizations.

MARK 464: Integrated Marketing Communications
Prerequisites: MARK 460; MARK 467 is recommended
This course develops an understanding of how advertising, sales promotion, public relations, personal selling and, in some cases, packaging decisions form a coordinated marketing communications plan.
Outcomes: Students apply the elements of integrated marketing communications and develop a coordinated marketing communications plan for a project or case study.

MARK 465: Global Marketing or Study Abroad
Prerequisite: MARK 460
This course develops an understanding of marketing problems in an international context, with particular attention given to the impact of international factors on consumers, competition, and marketing strategies.
Outcome: Students apply the principles of marketing to solve marketing problems in an international context. Students analyze cases and identify optimal solutions to international marketing problems.

MARK 467: Consumer Behavior and Insights
Prerequisite: MARK 460 (and recommended prior to MARK 464)
This course develops an understanding of consumer behavior before, during, and after the consumption process by exploring both the micro-level mental processes that have an impact on consumer decision-making, as well as macro-level cultural and social influences on consumer behavior.
Outcome: Students apply course concepts and theories to develop a consumer analysis and marketing strategies for a firm or nonprofit organization.

MARK 468: Digital Marketing
Prerequisite: MARK 460
This course develops an understanding of the internet as part of an overall marketing strategy by considering the ways in which the internet has changed marketing and business. The course covers topics such as online consumer behavior, web analytics, online advertising, email, social media, mobile marketing, and search engine marketing (paid and organic). In addition to learning fundamental principles of digital channels, students will apply the learned principles in a class project such as creating a paid search campaign for a client, running a digital marketing simulation, writing a digital marketing plan, or conducting a social media audit.
Outcome: Students develop the power to act effectively by using technology in increasingly complex buying environments.

MARK 469: Independent Study in Marketing Management
Prerequisite: Graduate School of Business student.
Independent study is in-depth research or reading, initiated by the student and jointly developed with a faculty member, into a specialized area not otherwise covered by department course offerings. Variable credit. Permission of area coordinator required. Special Topics are scheduled classes; specific titles and content will vary.
Outcome: Varies with course of study selected.

MARK 475: Cross-cultural Dimensions of International Management & Marketing
Prerequisite: MARK 460
This course develops an understanding of cross-cultural management and marketing topics, both within the business organization and across the global marketplace.
Outcome: Students will be able to identify and describe how differences in national and ethnic cultures affect the behavior of employees working in organizations, managers making business decisions and consumers making product choices.

MARK 561: Comparative Consumer Behavior
Prerequisite: MARK 460
This course develops an understanding of the marketing implications of cultural differences and similarities between the people of two or more nations and considers two opposing views of marketing scholars as to whether the similarities or the differences are the more important factor.
Outcome: Students apply methods of cross-cultural analysis as well as examine frameworks for assessing multinational strategies.

MARK 562: Database Marketing Strategy
Prerequisite: Graduate School of Business student.
This course develops an understanding of the development and use of databases for marketing, retrieval of appropriate data and analysis of that data to increase marketing effectiveness.
Outcome: The student will perform database manipulation and analysis of data. Analysis includes at least univariate analysis, cross-tabulation, creation of new variables, regression analysis and recency-frequency-monetary analysis.

MARK 564: Brand Equity and Marketing Strategy
Prerequisite: MARK 460
This course develops an understanding of the way firms may increase their share of market and profits by creating, building, and managing strong, unique, and favorable brand equity for their products and services.
Outcome: Students develop a Brand Plan, evaluating the contributions of traditional brand elements, and develop a framework for creating the marketing strategies required for successfully building and managing brand equity.

MARK 566: Multi-Media Planning
Prerequisite: Graduate School of Business student.
The course provides an overall understanding of media planning: basic media concepts, buying and selling of media, development and evaluating effective media strategies and plans, and the role that media plays in an integrated marketing and communications plan. The course is recommended for students with little or no media planning experience.

MARK 567: Customer Relationship Management
Prerequisites: MARK 460; MARK 468 is recommended.
This course develops an understanding of CRM as a business philosophy that involves acquiring new customers as well as maintaining long-term and profitable relationships with existing customer. Key concepts such as customer experience, customer satisfaction, loyalty, customer lifetime value, among others, will be explored.
Outcome: Student conduct an analysis and critique of a firm's CRM strategy and provide recommendations for improving the customer-firm/customer-brand relationship.

The MBA with a risk management concentration offers you the opportunity to study in Loyola's newest discipline. Calculating and mitigating risk is top of mind for today's senior executives. This concentration focuses on the latest principles and practices for appropriately leveraging business opportunities. We offer you hands-on learning, often in partnership with recognized local businesses, as well as a global perspective on current issues.

Elective Courses

Choose three of the following courses (from at least two different disciplines) in order to obtain a risk management concentration.

Courses (3)

FINC 622: Derivative Securities
This course is an introduction to options, futures, forwards and swaps as derivative securities. After an overview of these securities, a detailed examination of the methods of valuing options will be presented. Binomial trees and a discussion of the Black-Scholes option pricing model will be emphasized, followed by insights into option contracts as useful risk management instruments. A brief introduction to stochastic calculus is also given. Stock, index, debt, commodity, foreign currency and futures options are reviewed, and option strategies are analyzed as managerial tools in financial decision-making. Skills developed in this course include analytical and decision-making, creative thinking and communication. Throughout the course the notion of risk both as potential loss and opportunity for gain and its management will be highlighted. Ethical and social dimensions of risk management and the use and abuse of derivative securities will be emphasized to help students become responsible financial managers. The recent credit crisis and its origin in subprime mortgages will be reviewed. Students are encouraged to form teams and work jointly on five sets of homework problems and to also develop trading strategies. The course integrates functional areas in finance, accounting, economics, business ethics and quantitative methods.

FINC 624: Interest Rate Risk Management
Students are introduced to a plethora of financial derivatives, including both exchange-traded and OTC products, and then learn to use these products to hedge interest rate and other risks largely through the study of cases and detailed examples emphasizing the formation and use of synthetic positions.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate an understanding of a wide variety of derivative products, as well as be able to use these products to manage interest rate and other risks.

FINC 628: Valuation
This is an advanced course in valuation where students are given a thorough grounding in traditional valuation models (DCF and relative valuation) and also introduced to real option methods and ideas; a certain emphasis is placed on the valuation of start-ups and students are introduced to the venture capital markets.
Outcome: Students will be able to demonstrate an understanding of traditional valuation models as well as real options methods and ideas.

The MBA with an supply chain management concentration teaches you advanced strategies to improve business performance and output. Our practical curriculum and hands-on approach contribute to effective and enhanced learning for you.

Elective Courses

Choose three of the following courses in order to obtain a supply chain management concentration.

Courses (3)

• SCMG 481: Performance Improvement in Business Processes
• SCMG 482: Operations Management for Competitive Advantage
• SCMG 483: Management of Service Operations
• SCMG 486: Global Logistics
• SCMG 487: Purchasing Management
• SCMG 488: Inventory Management
• SCMG 489: Supply Chain Analytics
• SCMG 589 Supply Chain Management Consulting