Considering rapid developments in current national and international markets, the three new concentrations offered in Boston University’s Questrom School of Business aim to build career-ready business professionals upon graduation, Questrom’s Associate Dean of Academic Programs Steven Davidson said.
Strategy and Innovation, Health and Life Sciences Sector and Real Estate make up the recently added functional concentration and two cross-functional concentrations, respectively, to the Questrom curriculum. The three concentrations, announced to Questrom undergraduate students through an email sent by Questrom Dean Kenneth Freeman on Oct. 19, went into effect this semester in response to “the interest of students, employers,” the email stated.
Davidson said previous surveys concluded that the three newly offered disciplines received the highest regard among students looking to expand their engagement in more specific areas.
“Upon graduation, having that additional credential on your transcript that recognizes your work in a specific area can help with employers and can help with future career growth,” Davidson said. “We are increasingly engaging companies and industries in these areas and I think as more alumni graduate with these concentrations, the recognition of the quality of the program will only continue to grow.”
Following the announcement, there has already been positive feedback from students, Davidson said.
“We’ve seen students that are already coming down to the undergraduate office to express an interest in declaring one of the concentrations and pursuing them,” he added.
Ned Rimer, concentration liaison for Health and Life Sciences Sector, said the cross-functional nature of the concentration allows students to mix Questrom courses with courses from other schools such as the College of Arts and Sciences.
“It helps people see the interplay between some of the functional disciplines that you often can concentrate in and the workplace,” said Rimer, who is also the executive director of the health sector management program. “The health sector in this country is more than 18 percent of the entire GDP of this country, so a lot of Questrom students are likely interested in health and life sciences, and they ought to because there are a lot of jobs in that field.”
John Kirks, concentration liaison of Strategy and Innovation, said students who graduated in the past noted the limited course choice in strategy within the Questrom curriculum.
“[Strategy and Innovation] was the concentration that was the number one most requested by students taking the survey in the spring of 2014,” said Kirks, a lecturer in the strategy and innovation department. “Historically we have had the one core [strategy] class for students, which is SI 422. Students will [now] take four additional courses beyond the strategy class.”
Real Estate Concentration Liaison Keith Munsell said the Real Estate concentration caters to the individual needs of students. Academic requirements for students include two courses within Questrom and two more courses outside of Questrom, Munsell said.
“We have BU people all over the United States and the world who are very successful in real estate,” Munsell said. “It’s available for underclassmen and maybe for juniors. As a senior the good news is we now have a concentration. The bad news is you probably will not be able to fulfill these requirements but your alma mater will have this from now on.”
Several students in Questrom said the concentrations provide more opportunities for them to deepen their studies in the area of business.
Brianna Shorte, a sophomore studying business administration, said the new concentrations help to diversify the business curriculum.
“I especially like the Real Estate one because I feel like it offers a new set of courses and skills that the others can’t,” Shorte said.
Kate Flaherty, a junior with a double concentration in finance and information systems, said she wished the new concentrations had been added sooner.
“I might’ve dual concentrated in finance and real estate if I had had the option sooner,” Flaherty said. “I don’t think I’ll take one because I’m already set into my concentrations, but if I’m able to take a class for an elective credit I totally will.”
Kevin Chen, a junior studying business administration with a marketing concentration, said the new concentrations provide many benefits in preparing students for future careers.
“The Health and Life Sciences Sector and the Real Estate concentrations are solid, especially in the current economy,” Chen said. “Strategy & Innovation [concentration], not so much. I feel like it’s a combination of all of the major ones. The previous two are completely different concentrations than what is [currently] offered.”
