Cover Sheet for CSU Monterey Bay Academic Program Proposals Program Master of Business Administration Department COB College College of Business Proposal Title MBA Program Revisions Name of Proposal Author (please print) Murray R. Millson Proposal Type (check one) Authorization to Plan Full Proposal X Program Revision Program Type (check one) X Major Minor Concentration Certificate Credential Program Level (check one) Undergraduate X Graduate Program Offering (check all that apply) X On-Line Face-to-Face Cal State OnLine State-Support X Self-Support Type of Change(s) Requested (check all that apply for Program Revision Proposals) X Outcomes X Required Courses Name Sunset Modality Other (Specify): Requested Implementation Fall---2016 Use the text box below to include an executive summary of the proposal. The MBA program needs to modify its MLOs to be compliant with the recommendations received from the external reviewers of our recently completed MBA Program review and to align them with the College of Business MLOs to have as similar a set of MLOs as possible as the College of Business approaches AACSB accreditation. Based also on the external reviewers recommendations, the MBA Program has modified three courses and added three courses. BELOW THIS LINE IS FOR USE BY OFFICE OF THE PROVOST ONLY APPROVE DENY Effective Provost Signature
Program Proposal Title MBA Program Revisions Sponsoring College Chair [By signing above, I provide my support for the concept of the curricular change(s) and ensure the accuracy and quality of the proposal.] Other Department Chair for shared resources/courses [By signing above, I provide my support for the concept of the curricular change(s), and am aware of the resource and FTE implications that are required for implementation.] College Curriculum Committee Chair [By signing above, I provide my support for the curricular change(s), and ensure the curricular coherence and integrity of the change(s) proposed.] Library Director [By signing above, I support the concept of the program and confirm that library resources are accurately reflected in the proposal.] Chief Information Officer [By signing above, I support the concept of the program and confirm that IT resources are accurately reflected in the proposal.] Extended Education Dean (if applicable) Please check one: I provide my support for the concept of the program, and recognize that there are no additional resources required for implementation and administration of the program through the College of Extended Education. I provide my support for the concept of the program, and I recommend that the necessary resources be allocated for implementation and administration of the program through the College of Extended Education. Sponsoring College Dean/Appropriate Administrator Please check one: By signing above, I provide my support for the concept of the curricular change(s), and recognize that there are no additional resources or FTE required for implementation. By signing above, I provide my support for the concept of the curricular change(s), and I recommend that the necessary resources & FTE be allocated for implementation. Chair of Academic Affairs Council Subgroup [By signing above, the AAC Subgroup indicates that it approves the proposed academic program in regards to university academic planning priorities.] Senate Curriculum Committee Council Chair [By signing above, the Senate Curriculum Committee Council indicates that it approves the curricular change(s) identified in the proposal.]
2. Description: What is the catalyst for the program change(s)? (e.g., assessment results, program review, etc.) The MBA program requires a re-structure of its Major Learning Outcomes (MLOs), the modification of three courses, and the addition of three courses. These modifications are triggered by: 1) a program review completed in the Fall of 2014 and 2) the need to align its MLOs with the College of Business MLOs. During the Program Review, we learned that there is a significant degree of confusion between the current MLOs and the noted 7 MBA Program competencies. One of the objectives cited in our Program Improve Plan was to discontinue the MBA Program s use of its existing stated program competencies. As the College of Business approaches AACSB accreditation, the MBA Program needs to align its MLOs with the College of Business MLOs so that the MBA Program and the Undergraduate Business Programs have similar sets of MLOs. The MBA Program will have the same number of MLOs as the Undergraduate Business Programs and the basic content of each of the five MLO areas will be consistent. However, the MBA Program MLOs will have a higher level of rigor and expectations on student learning commensurate with graduate level learning standards. In addition the MBA External Program Reviewers recommended several course structure changes. This proposal, therefore, includes the following curriculum changes. 1) An inclusion of an MBA statistically oriented course [Research Methods-605]. This course is necessary to increase program rigor and to support the AACSB accreditation process. To implement the addition of the research methods course, the current MBA Fundamentals course [601] requires modification. The MBA Fundamentals course will be modified and renamed Communication Fundamentals [601]. 2) Splitting two current MBA courses. The MBA Program External Reviewers noted that the Accounting and Finance course and the Macro-Micro Economics course each need to be split into two separate courses. These courses will be named (1) Accounting [681], (2) Finance [652], (3) Macro Economics [603], and (4) Micro Economics [ 604]. These necessary changes will increase the number of distinct MBA courses from 8 to 11 while keeping the entire program within the 24 month completion time frame. In addition, as recommended by the external reviewers of the MBA Program, we need to change the course name for 661 from Innovation and Technology Leadership to Innovation and Technology Management which refers to the managing technology rather than being a leader in the development of technology. How will the proposed change(s) improve the quality and rigor of the program? The MBA Program has simplified the proposed outcomes by deleting its stated seven program competencies and changing its stated MLOs to focus on more observable and measurable outcomes; these changes are designed to set standards that will increase both the quality and rigor of the CSUMB MBA Program. The new MLOs are: 1) structured to not only improve rigor but to also enhance effective assessment; 2) reduced in number from eight to five; and 3) aligned to the College MLO standards. The proposed MBA MLOs are as follows. CSUMB MBA graduates will: MLO 1: employ business knowledge to make effective business decisions.
MLO 2: develop mechanically sound, focused, organized, supported, and overall professionally written, business documents. MLO3: develop and deliver mechanically sound, focused, organized, supported, and overall professionally produced oral business presentations. MLO 4: make responsible business choices by identifying and analyzing challenges and then developing and evaluating alternative business solutions. MLO 5: employ quantitative skills and knowledge to make effective business decisions. The revised MLOs have been improved so that the seven prior competencies are no longer needed and the new MLOs replace the prior MLOs in a more parsimonious and succinct manner. As noted by the external MBA Program reviewers, the current MLOs were perceived as the following: Each area of MLOs are comprised of a number of outcomes, such that the MLO statements are to a large extent restatements of the course descriptions, reworded to include outcome verbs such as understand and apply, with multiple outcomes included in each MLO area. Moreover, the reviewers stated that the addition of a research methods (including statistics and quantitative decision making) course and separate accounting, finance, macroeconomics, and micro-economics courses will provide students with a more rigorous program as well as a clearer, cohort-structured educational path. Table 1 associates the new set of eleven MBA course with the five, new MLOs. This table depicts where in the MBA Program MLOs are supported by content and assignments. Table 1---New MBA Major Learning Outcomes vs. ALL MBA Courses [Alignment of New MBA Major Learning Outcomes across ALL MBA Courses (new and existing)] 601* 605* 632 681* 652* 603* 604* 661 626 631 691 MLO-1 X X X X X X X X X X X MLO-2 X X X X X X X X X X X MLO-3 X X MLO-4 X X X X MLO-5 X X X X X X * To be created, developed, and presented at a later date in the consent calendar How will the proposed change(s) contribute to student success? The major MBA Program goals for graduating MBA students is for those students to (1) Have business knowledge and skills; (2) Be effective written communicators; (3) Be effective oral communicators; (4) Be critical thinkers; and (5) Be competent in quantitative reasoning and analysis. The new MBA MLOs have been developed to align with these program goals and so that student achievement of the new MLOs will be more observable and measureable for students and program faculty. Keeping MLOs aligned with AACSB requirements and WASC core competencies will facilitate the Program s ability to demonstrate that it is meeting these standards. Enabling students to graduate from an accredited program will aid students seeking employment. Additionally, the proposed changes to the MBA program MLOs and courses will contribute to MBA student success by focusing the MBA program on the five most important knowledge areas of the MBA program which include: (1) business knowledge, (2) written communication, (3) oral communication, (4) critical thinking, and (5) quantitative decision-making knowledge.
The addition of a research methods (statistics) course and separate accounting, finance, macro economics, and micro economics courses will provide courses with specific foci such that students can consider each of the newly constructed sets of course materials separately from others before attempting to integrate these disciplinary knowledge areas in later MBA courses. Include any additional anticipated implications of the program change(s). (e.g., any impact on other programs) The MBA program is a stand-alone graduate program at CSUMB. After careful study, we do not foresee any negative implications of the MBA program MLOs and/or course changes. 3. Resources: Are any new resources necessary to implement the proposed change(s) (e.g., new courses or new course sections; new or additional space; new or increased library or technology resources; other)? It is not anticipated that the described changes to the MBA program will create a need for new or additional resources. 4. Assessment: What criteria have been established to help the department to gauge whether the program change(s) has successfully achieved the outcomes depicted in Table 2? Chart 1 illustrates the alignment of the College of Business (COB) Master of Business Administration (MBA) Program Major Learning Outcomes (MLOs) with the CSUMB Institutional Learning Outcomes (ILOs). All will be assessed at or near the point of graduation for both WASC and AACSB accreditation purposes. In addition, all MLOs will be assessed at the areas noted to determine student achievement of learning outcomes entering the major and for planning interventions to close the loop in the assessment process. The COB has approved five MLOs that all MBA students are expected to achieve by the time of graduation. Chart 1---ILO---MLO Alignment Alignment of ILOs and MBA MLOs Critical Thinking MBA MLO 4 Information Literacy MBA MLO 2 & 4 Intellectual Skills MBA MLOs 2, 3, 4, & 5 Quantitative Literacy MBA MLO 5e Written Communications MBA MLO 2 Oral Communications MBA MLO 3 Personal, Professional, and Social Responsibility* Integrative Knowledge* GE Themes FYS Majors Specialized Knowledge MBA MLO 1 * While there is no current MBA MLO aligned with this ILO, the curriculum does include areas of focus and points of assessment to support student achievement of this ILO for all MBA graduates.
The criteria that have been established to help the COB gauge whether the MBA program MLO changes will successfully lead to the MBA program s objectives are to measure students achievement on assignments that demonstrate the improvement in student outcomes (MBA MLOs) over the duration of the 2-year MBA program. To assess each MLO, two MBA courses were selected. One of these courses will be situated near the beginning of the MBA Program and one course will be located near the end of the MBA Program so that potential improvement in outcomes can be detected. The selected courses from which these assessments will be made are depicted in Table 2. Table 2---Major Learning Outcomes vs. Assessment and Courses MBA MLOs Assessments and Courses MLO-1-employ business knowledge to make Initial Program Measurement-Exam: BUSeffective business decisions. 605 (Research Methods) Final Program Measurement-Exam: MLO-2-develop mechanically sound, focused, organized, supported, and overall professionally written, business documents. MLO-3-develop and deliver mechanically sound, focused, organized, supported, and overall professionally produced oral business presentations. MLO-4-make responsible business choices by identifying and analyzing challenges and then developing and evaluating alternative business solutions. MLO-5-employ quantitative skills and knowledge to make effective business decisions. 691 (Business Strategy) Initial Program Measurement-Paper: 632 (Organization and Leadership) Final Program Measurement-Paper: 626 (Marketing and Entrepreneurship) Initial Program Measurement-Online Presentation: 632 (Organization and Leadership) Final Program Measurement-Online Presentation: 631 (Global Business) Initial Program Measurement-Paper: 632 (Organization and Leadership) Final Program Measurement-Paper: 626 (Marketing and Entrepreneurship) Initial Program Measurement-Paper: 605 (Research Methods) Final Program Measurement-Paper: 626 (Marketing and Entrepreneurship)
What are the plans and the timeframe for these assessments? The MBA Assessment plan is to assess one of the 5 MLOs per year over the 5 years following the approval and implementation of these MLOs beginning Fall 2016. MBA PROGRAM MAJOR LEARNING OUTCOMES ASSESSMENT TASKS CYCLE ONE 2016-2021 Task 1. PLAN: Develop MLO area of focus a. Develop research question b. Research and develop rubric/exam c. Test rubric/exam in Activity Lead MLO1 Knowledge in the Discipline MLO2 Written Com MLO3 Oral Com MLO4 Critical Thinking MLO5 Quant Literacy MLO Lead 16-17 17-18 18-19 15-16 19-20 MLO Lead 16-17 17-18 18-19 15-16 19-20 MBA Faculty 16-17 17-18 18-19 15-16 19-20 classroom settings d. Adapt rubric/exam MBA Faculty 16-17 17-18 18-19 15-16 19-20 4. MEASURE #1: Collect and evaluate evidence of learning (student work) a. Determine courses MLO Lead 16-17 17-18 18-19 15-16 19-20 b. Determine assignments MLO Lead 16-17 17-18 18-19 15-16 19-20 c. Assign and grade MBA Faculty 16-17 17-18 18-19 15-16 19-20 d. Submit evidence for MBA Faculty 16-17 17-18 18-19 15-16 19-20 evaluation 5. EVALUATE/REPORT #1 a. Norm use of rubric MBA Faculty 16-17 17-18 18-19 15-16 19-20 b. Independently evaluate MLO Lead/ 16-17 17-18 18-19 15-16 19-20 evidence Director c. Report findings to MLO Lead/ 16-17 17-18 18-19 15-16 19-20 faculty Director 6. INTERVENE a. Plan and implement faculty development MBA Faculty 17-18 18-19 19-20 16-17 20-21 b. Plan and implement teaching interventions 7. CLOSE THE LOOP: Collect and evaluate evidence of learning a. Measure #2 (go back to steps 4a-d) b. Evaluate #2 (go back to step 5a) c. Report #2 (go back to step 5b) MBA Faculty 17-18 18-19 19-20 16-17 20-21 MBA Faculty 17-18 18-19 19-20 16-17 20-21 MBA Faculty 17-18 18-19 19-20 16-17 20-21 MLO Lead/ Director 17-18 18-19 19-20 16-17 20-21
5. Catalog Changes: Copy and paste from relevant areas of the current CSUMB Web Catalog, and use Track Changes (in MS Word) to illustrate how the requested changes will be appear in future catalogs. Table 3 portrays the Current and New MBA MLOs. Table 3---MBA MLO Changes MLO-1- employ business knowledge to make effective business decisions. MBA Fundamentals-Attain a working level of proficiency with basic statistics and introductory accounting, as well as team building and ethical philosophies to apply in the remainder of the MBA program, in addition to the business world. Understand and apply team building and ethical concepts to be able to participate and facilitate team/group interactions and projects in face-to-face and online environments MLO-2- develop mechanically sound, focused, organized, supported, and overall professionally written, business documents. Leadership, Management, and Human Relations-Understand and apply leadership models in business organizations. Understand and apply leadership concepts and theory in business organizations. MLO-3- develop and deliver mechanically sound, focused, organized, supported, and overall professionally produced oral business presentations. Accounting and Finance-Understand and apply accounting principles and processes in business organizations. Understand and apply financial principles and knowledge of financial statements to business problems and decisions. MLO-4- make responsible business choices by identifying and analyzing challenges and then developing and evaluating alternative business solutions. Micro/Macro Economics-Understand and apply macroeconomic concepts and theory to business operations. Understand and apply microeconomic concepts and theory to business decision making processes. MLO-5- employ quantitative skills and knowledge to make effective business decisions. Innovation and Technology Leadership-Understand and apply concepts and principles of technological management and leadership to specific domestic and/or global business problems and issues. Understand and apply information technologies to domestic and international enterprises. Marketing and Entrepreneurship-Understand and apply marketing and entrepreneurial principles and models in operating businesses. Understand and apply innovation theory and models in business organizations. Global Business-Understand and apply concepts and theory associated with global business to the leadership of both domestic and international enterprises. Understand and apply international business concepts and theory to better address issues such as diversity and sustainability in a global environment. Business Strategy-Understand business planning strategies and techniques that are based on sound organizational structures and strategy concepts as well as become grounded in theory that lead to success in dynamic business markets. Understand business planning strategies and techniques based on sound financial, technological and human resource theory and practice that takes into account human and market diversity as well as the capability to be sustainable and socially responsible.
6. Pathways: Include a sample pathway that illustrates recommended course sequencing. The prior and new MBA. Cohort pathways are depicted below. Since the MBA Program is an online cohort program, there is only a single pathway. Table 4 below portrays the Current and New MBA pathways. Table 4---Prior and Current MBA Pathways Prior MBA Pathway MBA Fundamentals---601 Organization and Leadership---632 Accounting and Finance---687 Macro-Micro Economics---602 Innovation and Technology Management--- 661 Marketing and Entrepreneurship---626 Global Business---631 Business Strategy---691 New MBA Pathway Communication Fundamentals---601 Research Methods---605 Organization and Leadership---632 Accounting---681 MBA Finance---652 MBA Macro Economics---603 MBA Micro Economics---604 Innovation and Technology Management--- 661 Marketing and Entrepreneurship---626 Global Business---631 Business Strategy---691