Bachelor of Business Administration

Program Description

Make your mark with the industry-recognized Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree. You can stand out in the job market with a wealth of business knowledge and skills - and a more in-depth level of relevant business coursework than graduates from other business degrees.

With your Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) laptop, you engage in small classes with active, collaborative coursework - learning from faculty with real business experience. You work in teams to deliver projects, present strategies and meet business goals. The BBA ensures you develop the business acumen, technical knowledge, and soft skills employers are looking for - leadership, teamwork, critical thinking, decision-making, problem-solving and communication.

You start with a common first year to build core business skills. In year two, you choose from six majors: Accounting, Financial Services, Human Resource (HR) Management, Management, Marketing or Supply Chain Management. You can enhance your industry literacy with an optional minor in Construction Project Management or Energy, Oil and Gas. Our close industry partnerships ensure that your learning is directly linked to the business community and real-world experiences.

Your final course is an Integrated Work Experience.  You will have the opportunity to apply learned knowledge and skills to real-world business situations, while further developing critical thinking, creativity, collaboration and communication capabilities.

Majors

• Accounting: Understand the strategic role of accounting in measuring financial performance. In SAIT’s Accounting major, you gain advanced knowledge in core accounting topics and quantitative skills. You graduate with all the courses you need to directly enter the Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) program and earn your designation.
• Financial Services: Study for a career in financial advising, banking, investing, or insurance for personal or corporate clients. The unique Financial Services major lets you complete exams for key industry certifications (IFIC, CSC). You can graduate with in-demand financial credentials already in hand.
• Human Resource Management: Graduate ready to add strategic value to organizations in recruitment, compensation, employee training and development, change management or navigating diversity. In this Human Resources Institute of Alberta (HRIA)-accredited program, you are exempt from writing the national exam for your Certified Professional in Human Resources (CPHR) designation.
• Management: Open the door to a diverse career with effective skills in managing people, processes and projects. In Management, you learn about projects, operations, change and conflict through practical classes. Specialize your electives and learn the language of industry with a minor in energy or construction.
• Marketing: Learn to create and innovate to grow a business, launch new products and build brands - sometimes for actual clients. In Marketing, you master the marketing mix, embrace the latest trends and blend theory with real-world scenarios. Graduate with a professional portfolio and prepared for exciting careers.
• Supply Chain Management: Learn to effectively manage supply chains using examples from real companies. You delve deeply into procurement, logistics, transportation, inventory and warehouse management, supplier relations, contracts and performance analytics. You graduate ready to excel with unique skills from the only Supply Chain Management degree major in southern Alberta.

Program Overview

Progression

The progression requirement for students taking credit courses is a Term GPA and Total Institutional GPA of 2.0, with the exception of English Language Foundations and Academic Upgrading programs.

Admission Requirements

Applicants must meet one of the following (or equivalent), as well as the English Proficiency requirement*:

1. An overall minimum average of 65% where:

• English 30-1 has to be at least 60%,
• Math 30-1 has to be at least 60%, or Math 30-2 has to be at least 70%.

The average will be calculated using English 30-1, and Math 30-1 or Math 30-2, and two courses from Group A and one course from either Group A or B.

2. A SAIT Business Administration diploma or a Bachelor of Applied Business Administration or their equivalent from an accredited post-secondary institution, with a minimum 2.3 cumulative GPA, (67% or C+).

3. A two-year diploma or a bachelor’s degree from an accredited post-secondary institution, with a minimum 2.3 cumulative GPA, (67% or C+) and completion of English 30-1 and Math 30-1 or Math 30-2 or equivalents**.

* All applicants must demonstrate English Language Proficiency prior to admission, including students educated in Canada.

** Admission is determined based on an applicant’s complete academic history, including both high school and post-secondary courses. Post-secondary level courses of similar learning outcomes may be considered for use in meeting admission requirements.

SAIT accepts high school course equivalents for admission. If applicants do not meet the requisrements, they may consider Academic Upgrading.

Early Admission Criteria

Early admission will be offered to qualified applicants based on the following criteria.

1. An overall minimum average of 75% where English 30-1 and Math 30-1 have to be at least 60%. The average will be calculated using English 30-1, and Math 30-1, and two courses from Group A, and one course from either Group A or B, OR,
2. Applicants who have achieved, or will achieve, a minimum GPA of 2.7 in the SAIT Business Administration diploma or equivalent. 

Applicants who have achieved, or will achieve, a minimum GPA of 2.7 in the post-secondary admission requirement. Early admission will be offered until December 15 or until the program is full. Applicants will be ranked and seats offered in order of the ranked list until the program is full. Once the program is full applicants will be placed on the waitlist in ranked order.  

In the selection process, applicants will be assessed on the following criteria and seats will be offered accordingly.

Selection Criteria

• Applicants who do not qualify for early admission, or who qualify after the early admission deadline has passed, will be placed in selection and academically ranked according to the admission requirements.
• Career investigation and/or interviews may also be required as part of the selection process.
• Selection will begin on December 18 and be done on a continuous basis until the program has been filled.
• Applicants will then be offered a seat or waitlisted, based on ranking and seat availability.

Program Outline

The Bachelor of Business Administration requires 120 credits (39 courses) for completion, including at least 72 credits at the senior level. All courses are 3 credits, except for the 6-credit Integrative Experience.

The program consists of:

• Business Core Courses - 45 credits (14 courses)
• Complementary Core Courses - 18 credits (6 courses)
• Complementary Elective Courses - 12 credits (4 courses)
• Major Courses - 45 credits (15 courses)
• Optional Minor - 12 credits (4 courses)

Students in the Accounting, Financial Services, Human Resource Management, Marketing, and Supply Chain Management wishing to earn an optional minor require 132 credits (43 courses) for completion.

Note:  Not all courses will run every year or every semester.

Students take common first year courses, then move into open-registration for year two. The first semester is common for all majors: Accounting, Financial Services, Human Resource Management, Management, Marketing, and Supply Chain Management. Students declare a major second semester, subject to a competitive screening process.

Contact an academic advisor to discuss your individual learning plan: business.advising@sait.ca or 403.284.8485.

First Year Suggested Program Structure

Graduate Outcomes (SGO)

A. Safety - Awareness of safety standards relevant to the workplace

• Safety awareness

B. Responsible Leadership - Personal, ethical and respectful behaviour within the workplace and global community

• Teamwork and multi-disciplinary collaboration
• Self-Initiative
• Ethical reasoning and action
• Global awareness
• Sustainability

C. Communication - The exchange of information in a professional and effective manner

• Language skills
• Interpersonal skills

D. Information Literacy - The strategies used to become informed from recognizing an information need, to accessing and evaluating information and using it effectively and ethically

• Problem solving and/or Critical thinking
• Quantitative literacy
• Technological literacy

E. Technical Knowledge, Skills and Abilities - Technical competence specific to the discipline or industry

• Specialized, technical skill set

Degree Outcomes

A. Depth

• Demonstrate a critical understanding of the business discipline and field of practice.

B. Breadth

• Apply knowledge and skills from one or more areas from outside the discipline.

C. Research

• Demonstrate the capacity to engage in independent research and practice in a supervised context.

D. Methodologies

• Critically evaluate qualitative and quantitative information and, where appropriate, use this knowledge in scholarly and creative endeavours.

E. Application of Knowledge

• Apply methods of inquiry to solve a problem, create a new work or comment on scholarship.

F. Communication

• Communicate information, arguments, and analysis accurately and reliably, orally and in writing, to specialists and non-specialist audiences.

G. Limits of Knowledge

• Demonstrate an appreciation for the limits and ambiguity of knowledge.

H. Professional Capacity/autonomy

• Operate within the boundaries of professional bodies and/or applicable regulatory requirements.