Like many working adults, Renata Falls-Jefferson hit a wall when she turned 45. She found herself unemployed and her skills — honed over 17 years as a project manager — outdated. To secure her future, she followed a career counselor’s advice and returned to college, earning her Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration at the University of Arizona Global Campus in 2018.
“It helped my critical thinking skills and strategic planning ability,” Renata says, adding that it also improved her ability to research and understand the workings of the global economy.
Her story is not uncommon. Business Administration remains one of the country’s top college majors, due in part to the career flexibility and versatility it offers, in addition to being financially rewarding.
“Business Administration is a very broad-based program,” explains Dr. Ronald Beach, the program chair for the University of Arizona Global Campus Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration, adding that he sees a large population of working adults — including many parents — returning to school to earn the degree.
“They are people like myself who have worked a career, and now they’re finding they need a degree to get in the door,” he says.
Here, we take a closer look at what makes a Business Administration degree so popular, and what jobs you can get with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Business Administration.
What Will I Learn in the Business Administration Program?
A BA in Business Administration will increase your project management, critical thinking, and leadership skills. This range of experience will allow you to prepare for a wide variety of career options, allowing you to choose a business or management career specific to your interests.
Business Administration education touches on several areas that are essential to successfully running a business — including finance, marketing, operations management, entrepreneurship, human resources management, information systems, project management, and logistics management.
UArizona Global Campus' Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration immerses you in five core areas: Accounting, Business, Economics, Information Systems, and Management; with courses that include:
- BUS 201 Principles of Management
- BUS 308 Statistics for Managers
- MGT 330 Management for Organizations
- BUS 340 Business Communications
- BUS 402 Strategic Management & Business Policy
Graduates, Beach explains, will emerge from the program with a solid foundation of leadership and business knowledge, including first-hand experience creating business plans and marketing plans.
Why Business Administration Appeals to Adult Learners
The versatility of the program makes Business Administration very attractive to adult learners who may have begun their careers with no formal business training, and are now finding out that they need to master the fundamentals in order to remain competitive in today’s job market.
The University of Arizona Global Campus Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration, Beach adds, will appeal to adult learners for three reasons:
1. Mastery of the fundamentals
“There is an emphasis on theory, practice management, business law, and the awareness of your leadership style — all basic ideas that help you understand what goes on in the workplace,” he says.
2. A path to a sustainable career
“Whether you are someone who wants to start your own business or move up the ladder in your current profession, Business Administration goes across all industries,” Beach explains.
3. Career growth without leaving home
A 2019 Ladders survey found that older Americans are far less likely to relocate to a new city for a new job. A Business Administration degree, Beach says, gives graduates the opportunity to stay and work in the communities in which they live.
In other words, you don’t have to move where the jobs are because the fundamentals of business can be applied to nearly every employer in every city and every industry, not just those that project images of office towers, briefcases, and shareholder reports.
“I grew up in the bar business. My father owned bars,” he says. “That was his business, and that’s exactly what business is, even though it wasn’t his interpretation. To him, the sign of success was the guy who worked at the bank and wore a suit and tie. But take where I live, in Colorado. You only wear a suit and tie here if you’re going for a job interview.”
Careers for Business Administration Graduates
Some of the most popular careers for Business Administration graduates include investment banking and small business management. Yet Beach also sees entrepreneurship as a common thread among many of his students. Whether graduates desire to start their own businesses or apply their innovative ideas to an existing one, Beach says they are finishing school with the hands-on training and the equally important soft skills that make them extremely marketable.
“As a hiring manager, you’re looking for that tenacity; you’re looking for someone who’s willing to put in long hours,” he says. “I can train anybody, but personal drive is what matters most.
“You can’t train someone to be motivated or have a positive attitude.”
With the business and financial sectors experiencing positive job growth — 591,800 new business jobs are expected to come online by 2028, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — and employers placing a premium on business education, college graduates should feel confident exploring the job market.
If you’re looking to build a solid foundation of business knowledge and launch your career on your terms, contact a University of Arizona Global Campus advisor about your Business Administration degree.