Earn a Business Degree Online
(This article appeared in the July/August 2012 issue of The American Postal Worker magazine.)
Joyce B. Robinson, Research & Education Department Director
Union members who are interested in starting a business, improving the performance of an existing business, or who are simply interested in acquiring business knowledge can do so by earning an online Bachelor of Arts Degree in Business Administration from the National Labor College.
The program teaches students that successful businesses must consider three “bottom lines” — people, the planet, and economic prosperity. The courses explore ethical management principles, green business practices, critical thinking and problem solving. They teach interpretation of financial statements, marketing, organizing, planning, applicable legal principles, and leadership structure.
Classes are taught in an accelerated, interactive, online, seven week format. Weekly assignments allow students to structure their courses around their work schedules and family commitments. The cost is $235 per credit hour for AFL-CIO affiliated union members and $415 per credit hour for non-union members. Students must complete 36 credits including 12 required courses (listed below) offered over a two-year period, with three credits awarded for each completed course. Students can also earn credit toward their degree through work experience and apprenticeships.
Digital Learning for the 21st Century – Addresses the nature of online education and covers critical components for successful learning, including research and writing skills.
Management and Labor in the 21st Century – Analyzes how to lead and manage people in ways that make good business sense and benefit employees.
Business Ethics and Sustainability – Examines case studies that challenge students to operate and manage a business in an ethical and sustainable manner.
Financial and Accounting Controls – Helps students understand accounting functions, finance and the relationship between cash flow, income statements, and balance sheets.
Marketing and New Media – Explores approaches to marketing and creating value. Provides an analysis of marketing and communications in the 21st century, the challenges and opportunities presented by new media, social networking tools, and shifting political and economic environments.
Research Methods – Covers social science research methods, particularly as they apply to the study of business administration. Students will learn about qualitative and quantitative research methods, useful for purposes of informed management decision-making.
Labor and Work in the United States – Provides an understanding of issues related to the evolution of work, worker organizations, and labor-management relations in the USA.
The Legal Environment of Business – Offers an overview of business partnerships, key elements of corporation law, day-to-day management of a business, the basics of business contracts, and employment and labor relations law.
Entrepreneurship – Examines case studies and the challenges of starting and managing a new business or revitalizing an existing one, risks and rewards, financing and the skills and resources required to run a business.
Managing Human Resources in a Dynamic Environment – Explores human resource management, recruitment and selection, training and development, performance review, compensation management, and labor and employee relations.
Labor and Work in the Global Economy – Offers an overview of comparative industrial relations systems and practices within the context of a globalized economy and explores the employment relationship from a comparative perspective with the U.S.A., Great Britain, Germany, France, and China.
Capstone Project in Business Administration – Requires students to complete an integrative project that applies the knowledge and skills they have gained in their major to an actual case or situation.
For additional information, consult an NLC Admissions Counselor at (301) 431-5440 or visit the NLC Web site.