Business Administration-Entrepreneurship, B.S.

What Is a Business Administration in Entrepreneurship Degree?

An entrepreneurship degree is a valuable commodity for today’s competitive marketplace. Large or small, public, private, or nonprofit, students who earn an entrepreneurship degree develop a strong business foundation in accounting, marketing, finance, economics, human resources, information systems, and management.

The Nathan M. Bisk College of Business values innovation, diversity, ethics, and leadership as the cornerstones of a 21st century business education. Combined with hands-on experience and faculty mentorship, students gain expert knowledge, leadership skills, and an ability to identify needs in the marketplace and create solutions to meet them.

Gain Practical Experience, Right from the Start

As first year students, all entrepreneurship degree students get immediate new business development experience by launching a startup venture. Students first learn the theoretical concepts and foundations of entrepreneurship, followed in the second term by development of their concept into a living, breathing business. Students learn by doing (under the direction of faculty who are entrepreneurs themselves) in the Florida Tech Student Business Incubator, where students benefit from collaborative opportunities with professors and peers. The experience combines facilities, expertise, and a Lean LaunchPad curriculum that immerses students in the development process.

Upon completion of your entrepreneurship degree, students have several career options, including pursuing independent business ownership—or, having an intimate view of how companies are structured and operated, securing a management position in an established company.

Collaborative Learning and Mentorship

Professors at Florida Tech understand the challenges in raising capital, hiring employees, commercializing new technologies, and providing services. They aren’t just teaching entrepreneurship—they are running businesses, and have the experience to share with students planning their own future companies.

The entrepreneurship program makes sure students develop excellent organizational and communication skills, as well as up-to-date knowledge in the fields of accounting, business development, finance, and marketing. Students work in teams to conceptualize, develop, design, market, and run a revenue-generating business, freely sharing marketing ideas, channel-building strategies, and professional networks. This makes for a unique and exciting place for students to launch their businesses.

A Culture of Creativity and Innovation

The entrepreneurship program culture supports individual creativity, leadership and team-building, ethical decision-making, and diversity. Students at Florida Tech not only develop a business plan for a new business, but also:

• Integrate academics with business practices through the business practicum program
• Learn about business and management practices from a global perspective
• Hone skills during business hack-a-thons that allow cross-disciplinary collaboration among students as they solve real corporate problems in education, healthcare, military, and communications; Shark Tank-style “hot seat fundraising” pitch sessions; sponsored business plan competitions; and an annual Startup Weekend in which students work with each other and members of the greater Florida business community to launch a business in 48 hours
• Gain monthly insight into the new business landscape through the Visiting Entrepreneur Series
• Study with a diverse international student body
• Discuss business issues with successful entrepreneurs and managers

The Student Business Incubator Practicum Jumpstarts Business Leadership

Entrepreneurship program students explore business startup as their practicum experience in Florida Tech’s Student Business Incubator (SBI)—the on-campus center for new venture creation. The incubator combines curriculum, facilities, and expertise during a semester-long Lean LaunchPad program—a business-launching “boot camp” that pushes students to speak to customers, vendors, and strategic partners as they gather resources, develop business models, and launch their businesses. Paired with highly skilled executive entrepreneurs, students get first-hand knowledge in such activities as developing prototypes, raising venture capital, and managing the launch of a company.

Emphasis on Ethics, Leadership, and Corporate Social Responsibility

The Nathan M. Bisk College of Business is dedicated to educating leaders to make thoughtful decisions, set high standards, and promote corporate accountability. Undergraduate students tackle ethical challenges from both practical and professional perspectives in an annual competition, and can participate in a conference that encourages students to learn from business, community, and government leaders.

Students learn about corporate social responsibility through hands-on class projects, and individual service with the perspective of making an impact.

Located in the Heart of Florida’s High-tech Corridor

Florida Tech is the perfect place for a Business Administration degree in Entrepreneurship. The 130-acre campus is located on the Space Coast (so named because of the presence of NASA and the Kennedy Space Center on Cape Canaveral just north of us), minutes away from the Indian River Lagoon, the most diverse estuary in North America.

The area has the fifth largest high-tech workforce in the country, with more than 5,000 high-tech corporations and government and military organizations located nearby. This workforce also provides an abundance of internship and employment opportunities.

Florida Tech is just over the causeway from the Atlantic Ocean with its 72 miles of beautiful beaches, and a short trip to the Florida Keys or the Orlando theme parks. We also have a rich campus life that includes a wide range of intramural and collegiate sports, clubs, and social activities.

Build Lasting Professional Relationships through Campus Organizations

Beyond the classroom, accounting majors build leadership experience through exciting internships and participation in academic organizations like our International Business Club, the Society for Advancement of Management, student government, and over 100 other student organizations.

Our chapter of Delta Mu Delta, a national business honor society, recognizes academic excellence in business students. This organization also focuses on networking and connecting students from around the world to forge the connections that can eventually lead to accounting internships and successful careers in the field.

The Florida Tech Investment Club invites students from every discipline to come together to be creative, share ideas, and explore business opportunities and invest in the stock market with seed real money from the club. Guest speakers are invited to share their experiences and to help members make better business and investment decisions.

Every undergraduate student studying business at Florida Tech gets real world experience. One way we accomplish this is through the business practicum, a signature component of all undergraduate business degree programs.

At Florida Tech, there’s no better way to gain entrepreneurship skills and learn what it means to be a business owner than to get involved in running a business—and this program gets you started from day one.

Make Contacts and Grow Your Network

Business administration and entrepreneurship students at Florida Tech can participate in a wide variety of projects and studies. Many of these efforts are later entered into national competitions! Some competitions our students have recently participated in are:

• Honda CRZ Social Marketing Challenge
• Cadillac Case Competition
• Florida National Guard Promotion Campaign
• Management Case Competition
• Chevrolet Ad Campaign

These student projects and competitions allow Florida Tech students to showcase their entrepreneurship skills, excel outside the classroom, or make connections with potential future employers.

A graduate of Florida Tech with an entrepreneurship program degree in Business Administration is ideally suited for a variety of business administration careers. The graduate is also prepared to develop and run their own business, or use their expertise to help different prospective business owners get started. For some students, being a serial entrepreneur is an exciting role where they are involved in the development of ideas and set up of the organization, but prefer to give responsibility of day-to-day operations to an experienced management team.

Career Outlook

Graduates of Florida Tech’s business administration program are prepared for any number of careers in executive management, finance, economics, marketing, information systems and other key management roles in a company. Graduates are also prepared for such careers as city and county administrators, university presidents, hospital administrators, nonprofit organization administrators, sports management, event management and other key administrative roles such as these. Additionally, a serial entrepreneur is poised to collaborate with other business people to launch their idea.

Business administration careers are so varied that they exist with private businesses, not-for-profit organizations, governmental and regulatory agencies, and sports organizations. Often a serial entrepreneur focuses on businesses in the same industry that are related to each other. Employment of administrative services managers is expected to grow 15% from 2010 to 2020.

A serial entrepreneur will be excited to know that according to Forbes Magazine (April, 2013), the Kauffman Foundation reported an overall favorable view of entrepreneurship at their Fourth Annual State of Entrepreneurship Address in Washington, DC, citing that “new firms and young businesses account for about 70% of gross job creation.” The Kauffman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity is a leading indicator of new business creation in the US with data collected since 1996.

For additional information on the outlook of particular executive jobs, the Occupational Outlook Handbook, published by the US Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), provides detailed information about hundreds of occupations, including entry-level education, overall working environment, and employment prospects.

Business Administration Careers

Business administration careers include the following:

• Agent
• Business manager
• Buyer and purchasing agent
• Budget analyst
• Market research analysts and marketing specialist
• Compensation, benefits, and job analysis specialist
• Accountant or auditor (with additional education)
• Business operation specialist
• Financial specialist
• Economist
• Entrepreneur
• Serial entrepreneur

Graduate and Doctoral Programs

After graduation, Nathan M. Bisk College of Business students are prepared to successfully enter business administration careers or go to graduate school at Florida Tech to pursue their MBA. Students in the entrepreneurship program are eligible for entrance into Florida Tech’s FastTrack MBA program. For business administration students or those interested in being a serial entrepreneur, Florida Tech provides a solid educational foundation.