Freshman Direct MSBA

Accounting focuses on recording and reporting financial transactions and students in this option develop the financial and quantitative skills necessary to succeed in today’s fast-paced business environment.

Specific areas covered within the MSB accounting option include:

• Recording and reporting of financial data under generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP)   
• Understanding tax law and its effect on business decisions
• Auditing financial statements using GAAP
• The importance of accounting information systems
• Understanding the composition of consolidated financial statements
• Gathering and using cost data for planning and control decisions

Elective courses provide extensive studies in corporate and non-profit accounting, forensic accounting, and taxation.

The MSB accounting option provides a pathway to a great career in accounting with the potential for students to become Certified Public Accountants (CPA).

Milgard also offers a specialized Master of Science in Accounting degree for students looking to continue their accounting education. MSAcc students learn advanced technical and analytical skills, and take specialized courses in leadership, forensic, cost, tax and audit. 

Accounting curriculum

Once accepted into the Business School, accounting students must complete the following courses for graduation.

• 30 credits of core courses:
  • TBUS 300 Managing Organizations
  • TBUS 301 Quantitative Methods
  • TBUS 310 Effective Managerial Communication
  • TBUS 320 Introduction to Marketing Management
  • TACCT 330 Accounting Information Systems
  • TBUS 350 Business Finance
• 35 credits from Accounting:
  • TACCT 301 Intermediate Accounting I
  • TACCT 302 Intermediate Accounting II
  • TACCT 303 Intermediate Accounting III
  • TACCT 311 Cost Accounting
  • TACCT 411 Auditing Standards and Principles
  • TACCT 451 Individual Income Taxation
  • TACCT elective (5 credits)
• 5 credits business capstone TBUS 400 Business Policy and Strategic Management
• Elective credits to bring total to 180

Finance – the indispensable discipline for the future. It is impossible to participate in any discussion of financial trends for the next few decades without becoming aware of the low accumulated savings of the average individual, of the depletion of the Social Security Trust Fund, of an aging population, and other factors that will affect all of us in some way. An understanding of finance and how it, together with time, can be made to work for you and your employer is the major goal of the finance option. Whether you are managing your own money or other peoples, whether you are running your own business or involved with the financial affairs of a corporation, whether you work at a bank or the loan department of a car dealership, a comprehensive understanding of finance together with the ability to apply it in your decision making is critical to your future wellbeing.   

After taking basic and elective courses in finance you will be able to:

• Apply the concept of the time value of money in all your financial decisions;
• Understand interest rates and how they affect financial decision making;
• Value financial securities like bonds and stocks;
• Understand risk and its relationship with return;
• Estimate and compute returns;
• Learn about derivative securities and their various uses;
• Learn about the goal of a corporation and how it uses financial tools to achieve that goal;
• Learn about portfolio management;
• Use your knowledge of finance to secure your own financial future.

Finance grads are among the best compensated in business. Our finance grads work for BNY Mellon, Chase Manhattan, Infoblox, Boeing, the State of Washington, and other prominent employers. The Milgard School of Business at UWT can open the world of finance for you and, thereby, the world itself.

Finance curriculum

Once accepted into the Business School, finance students must complete the following courses for graduation.

• 30 credits of core courses:
  • TBUS 300 Managing Organizations
  • TBUS 301 Quantitative Methods
  • TBUS 310 Effective Managerial Communication
  • TBUS 320 Introduction to Marketing Management
  • TBUS 330 Introduction to Information Technology
  • TBUS 350 Business Finance
• 30 credits from 300- and 400-level T FIN and T BECON courses
• 5 credits business capstone TBUS 400 Business Policy and Strategic Management
• Elective credits to bring total to 180

Want to get a degree in business, but have flexibility to mix and match courses from a variety of business disciplines? The General Business option is for you! Combining courses from management, marketing, economics, finance, and business data analytics you have flexibility in course selection allowing you to customize your skill set.  The General Business option is designed for the student interested in a broad perspective that draws from multiple disciplines.

Upon completing this option, you will be prepared to do anything from running your own business, to leading in a large organization where your expertise will provide support for cross-functional projects and teams.

General Business graduates are prepared for employment opportunities in finance, marketing, public relations, sales, management, human resources, and more.

General Business curriculum

Once accepted into the Business School, general business students must complete the following courses for graduation.

• 30 credits of core courses:
  • TBUS 300 Managing Organizations
  • TBUS 301 Quantitative Methods
  • TBUS 310 Effective Managerial Communication
  • TBUS 320 Introduction to Marketing Management
  • TBUS 330 Introduction to Information Technology
  • TBUS 350 Business Finance
• 30 credits of upper-division Business courses (TBGEN courses, TACCT/TBUS 468, TBUS 469, and some TBUS 490 courses do not apply)
• 5 credits business capstone TBUS 400 Business Policy and Strategic Management
• Elective credits to bring total to 180

How do you manage and be managed in the 21st century? The Management option enhances your ability to get work done with and through other people in a variety of workplaces. Whether you are managing a project team, a small group of customer service representatives, a large accounting department, your own start-up, or a family-run restaurant, there is a set of skills that all managerial positions have in common. This program is designed to equip you with exactly those skills and prepare you to meet the managerial responsibilities and challenges of the 21st century more effectively. You will learn how to be a critical thinker, use the best available evidence to make your managerial decisions, and how to enact your decisions with ethical principles in mind. 

Specifically, through a variety of different courses, you will:

• Learn how to build and work effectively in teams
• Understand how to make better decisions, alone and in collaboration with others
• Learn how to motivate people towards common goals
• Sharpen your interpersonal skills and ability to communicate well with others from diverse backgrounds
• Become familiar with human resource management tools such as recruiting, hiring, performance appraisal, and reward systems
• Improve your ability to manage conflict and negotiate with others
• Learn strategies to navigate difficult conversations
• Enhance your ability to solve complex problems considering the ethical and sociocultural implications
• Bolster your critical thinking skills
• Develop tools to initiate and motivate change in organizations

The Management option prepares you for entry-level management positions and management training programs, as well as administrative, planning, project team and coordinating roles. MSB management majors end up working in a variety of different organizations in the private and public sectors, for for-profit and not-for-profit organizations, small and large firms, start-ups and well-established corporations, in the local Tacoma area, Puget Sound region and beyond. 

Recent MSB management majors have been hired for positions in operations and supply chain management, property management, project management, human resource management, recruiting, program coordination, administrative assistance and coordination, office management and contract management. They work for organizations such as Multicare, Boeing, Pepsico, Gensco, Amazon, Target, State Farm, Puget Sound Energy, Redfin, the Port of Seattle, the State of Washington and the Federal Government, and many more. 

Equipped with the MSB undergraduate degree and a few years of work experience, our management graduates pursue advanced degrees such as a Masters in Business Administration, Masters in Business Analytics, Masters in Cyber Security and Leadership, Masters in Public Policy, or Masters in Public Health or Health Leadership. The sky is the limit!

Management curriculum

Once accepted into the Business School, management students must complete the following courses for graduation.

• 30 credits of core courses:
  • TBUS 300 Managing Organizations
  • TBUS 301 Quantitative Methods
  • TBUS 310 Effective Managerial Communication
  • TBUS 320 Introduction to Marketing Management
  • TBUS 330 Introduction to Information Technology
  • TBUS 350 Business Finance
• 30 credits of Management courses
• 5 credits business capstone TBUS 400 Business Policy and Strategic Management
• Elective credits to bring total to 180

Marketing is about fulfilling customer needs. The Marketing option examines the dynamic world of consumer and organizational buyer behavior, and the impact of economic, technological, legal, and social changes on buyer behavior.

The courses in the marketing option cover topics such as:

• Consumer behavior
• Channels of distribution
• Marketing research
• Marketing strategy
• Advertising
• Product development
• Promotion
• Services marketing
• Business-to-business marketing
• Sales administration

The marketing option prepares students for responsibilities in both publicly and privately held business firms, as well as governmental agencies, and multinational organizations. Marketing careers include product or brand management, retailing, advertising, wholesaling, marketing research and sales.

Marketing curriculum

Once accepted into the Business School, marketing students must complete the following courses for graduation.

• 30 credits of core courses:
  • TBUS 300 Managing Organizations
  • TBUS 301 Quantitative Methods
  • TBUS 310 Effective Managerial Communication
  • TBUS 320 Introduction to Marketing Management
  • TBUS 330 Introduction to Information Technology
  • TBUS 350 Business Finance
• 30 credits from Marketing to include:
  • TMKTG 450 Consumer Marketing
  • TMKTG 460 Research Methods
  • TMKTG 475 Marketing Strategy
• 5 credits business capstone TBUS 400 Business Policy and Strategic Management
• Elective credits to bring total to 180

Review Milgard School of Business course descriptions.

Admission to the Milgard School of Business is capacity-constrained and there is a formal application process. Applicants are evaluated based on:

1. ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

• Completion of at least 60 quarter college level credits with a minimum 2.75 cumulative GPA
• Completion of an English Composition course with a minimum 2.0 grade
• A minimum 2.75 cumulative GPA* in the business prerequisite courses
  
  Financial Accounting I
  
  Financial Accounting II
  
  Managerial Accounting
  
  Statistics
  
  Macroeconomics
  
  Microeconomics
  
  Business Law
  
  *The minimum acceptable grade in each prerequisite course and English composition is 2.0 grade . Business prerequisites may not be taken P/F or S/NS. Applicants to the Accounting option must earn a minimum 2.5 in each accounting course and a cumulative 3.0 across all accounting courses. Contact us for questions related to use of S/NS during quarters deemed extraordinary [affected by COVID-19] by the University of Washington and/or transfer institutions.

2. A WELL-WRITTEN PERSONAL STATEMENT

IMPORTANT UPDATE Writing Skills Assessment: 

Effective Autumn 2022 the Milgard School of Business will no longer require the Writing Skills Assessment.  

This applies to the UW Tacoma Milgard School of Business applicants only. Please check the website for UW Bothell and UW Seattle admission requirements.

1. Transfer students apply to UW Tacoma*

2. Apply to the Milgard School of Business

*Transfer applicants should not wait for their UWT admission decision before submitting a business school application.

Applications are accepted for autumn quarter and winter quarter only.

At the time of application, you must have a minimum of five prerequisites (English composition and 4 business prerequisites) complete with final grades on your transcripts. All business prerequisites must be completed prior to the start of the quarter of admission. Refer to the course list in this table to determine if you have the necessary coursework to submit an application.

Transfer students: refer to the Transfer Course Guides for approved transfer courses.