Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration
Why choose the National Labor College (NLC) for your degree in business administration?
The NLC’s degree is based upon:
- the ethical treatment of all workers and members of society;
- sustainable business practices;
- and the idea that all organizations should contribute to the health of the community.
Courses that explore the labor movement’s contributions to American society and economic prosperity make this program unique.
Who should choose a business administration NLC degree?
- Union members interested in acquiring business knowledge that emphasizes sustainable and ethical business practices.
- Union members interested in starting or improving the performance of their own small businesses.
- This program is particularly effective for union business managers and other union staff or elected officials interested in improving their ability to manage and administer unions and other organizations.
Students will learn:
- That successful businesses must consider three “bottom lines:” people, the planet and economic prosperity.
- Ethical management principles that value the contribution of all workers.
- Clean and green business practices.
- Critical thinking and problem solving skills that can be applied to 21st century business challenges.
- How to analyze and interpret financial statements.
- How to effectively market your business or organization.
- Effective organizing, planning, and leadership of different types of organizations.
- How to identify applicable legal principles.
Online Format
Classes are taught in an accelerated, interactive, online, 7-week format. Weekly assignments allow students to structure their course time around busy working family schedules.
Cost
The NLC offers affordable tuition rates:
The NLC offers affordable tuition rates:
- $270.00 per credit hour for AFL-CIO affiliated union members, their family, and members of Working America, the AFL-CIO’s community affiliate.
- $325.00 per credit hour for non AFL-CIO affiliated union members and their family.
Business Administration Major
Requires students to complete 36 credits – 12 required courses offered sequentially over two years.
Prerequisite course requirements, credit load, and/or course availability may affect a student’s individual progress. Consult an NLC Admissions Counselor at 888-427-8100 for individual program planning.
Admissions Criteria
- College and/or apprenticeship credits
Required Core Courses (3 credits each)
Recommended Electives (if necessary)
- Bibliography and Research
- History of Labor and the Law
- Labor and the American Political System
- Labor and the Economy
- Leadership Theory
- Union Structure and Governance
- Ethics in Decision Making
Core Course Descriptions (3 credits each)
Management and Labor in 21st Century
Students will analyze the principles and practices of leadership, management and labor relations in the context of 21st century businesses and other organizations. In this course students will consider the fundamental question of how to lead organizations and manage people in ways that make good business sense and also benefit their employees and society as a whole.
Business Ethics and Sustainability
Using a values-based curriculum, students will grapple with a series of case studies, drawn from a variety of work contexts, which challenge them to operate and manage a business in an ethical and sustainable manner.
Digital Learning for the 21st Century
Technological development has resulted in widespread change in the way information is acquired, manipulated, and analyzed. Every college and university in the world now relies on digital systems to meet the needs of their students and other stakeholders. Against this background, this course answers some of the fundamental questions about the nature of online education and covers critical competencies that constitute successful learning, including research and writing skills. This course also provides useful information about the National Labor College and its organizational resources.
Financial and Accounting Controls
Students will develop the skills and knowledge necessary to understand and manage the financial and accounting functions critical to the successful operation of a business. Particular attention will be paid to key concepts and practices related to finance, and an understanding of critical accounting practices, such as the interrelationship between cash flow, income statements, and balance sheets.
Labor and Work in the United States
This class is designed to provide students with an understanding of issues related to the evolution of work, worker organizations, and labor management relations in the United States. The course will also examine practical aspects of collective bargaining and contract administration in a unionized workplace and related legal and policy debates.
The Legal Environment of Business
This course provides an overview of a set of laws that impact on the organization of a business, including the functions of agency, partnership and key elements of corporation law. In addition, it provides an introduction to legal areas related to the day-to-day management of an organization, including the basics of business contracts, and employment and labor relations law.
Managing Human Resources in a Dynamic Environment
The course will examine the key components of human resource management. Among the skills that will be acquired include: recruitment and selection, training and development, performance review, compensation management, and labor and employee relations. This course will illustrate how HR managers can become employee advocates.
Marketing and New Media
The course will begin with a brief overview of the traditional approaches to marketing and creating value. Students will then move to an analysis of marketing and communications in the 21st century, including an examination of the challenges and opportunities presented by new media, social networking tools and shifting political and economic environments.
Entrepreneurship
Students will examine a variety of materials, including case studies, which explore the challenges of starting and managing a new venture or revitalizing an existing operation. These challenges include the analysis of risks and rewards, the issue of financing and consideration of the skills and resources required to run a successful, values-based business or organization.
Capstone Project in Business Administration
Students will complete an integrative project that applies the knowledge and skills they have gained in their major to an actual case or situation. The scope and nature of the project will be worked out with individual faculty.
Labor and Work in the Global Economy
The aim of this course is to offer students an overview of comparative industrial relations systems and practices within the context of a globalized economy. In addition to looking at broader debates surrounding globalization and change, we will also be exploring the employment relationship from a comparative perspective. The countries we will be looking at in this course include: the U.S.A., Great Britain, Germany, France, and China.
Research Methods
The purpose of this methodological course is to introduce students to the fundamentals of social science research methods, particularly as they apply to the study of business administration. Students will learn about qualitative and quantitative research methods. These skills will be useful not only in terms of conducting academic research, but also for purposes of empirically-informed management decision-making.
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