Consistent with its mission and guiding principles, Florida Gulf Coast University is committed to academic excellence and continuous quality improvement, as supported by a sound teaching-learning process. Within this process, students and instructors share responsibility for learning that is a movement from the simple to the complex, the concrete to the abstract, and the dependent to the independent. The Academic Learning Compact (ALC) initiative supports the teaching-learning process by clearly identifying expected core student learning outcomes in the areas of content/discipline knowledge and skills, communication skills, and critical thinking skills; aligning curricula with expectations; and using assessment to guide continuous improvement.

Graduates will be able to:

1. Demonstrate their knowledge of all areas of their College of Business course of study as applied to business situations.
2. Discuss the nature of marketing systems and the marketing function within organizations.
3. Analyze the decision processes of individuals and groups toward consumer products and recognize the implications of these processes for marketers.
4. Design research studies, interpret results, and make recommendations.
5. Understand the role of problem solving in a strategic context.

Content/discipline knowledge and skills are assessed at the college and departmental levels through ETS Major Field Tests and papers, exams, and other projects completed in the following required courses: GEB 4890 Business Strategy, MAR 3023 Introduction to Marketing, MAR 3503 Consumer Behavior, MAR 3613 Marketing Research, and MAR 4804 Marketing Strategy.

Graduates will be able to:

1. Employ the conventions of standard written English.
2. Select a topic, and develop it for a specific audience and purpose, with respect for diverse perspectives.
3. Select, organize, and relate ideas and information with coherence, clarity, and unity.

Communication skills are assessed as part of the General Education Program through papers, exams, and projects completed in ENC 1101 Composition I, ENC 1102 Composition II, and HUM 2510 Understanding the Visual and Performing Arts.  Communication skills are also assessed in the capstone course GEB 4890 Business Strategy.

Graduates will be able to:

1. Select and organize information.
2. Identify assumptions and underlying relationships.
3. Synthesize information, and draw reasoned inferences.
4. Formulate an appropriate problem solving strategy.
5. Evaluate the feasibility of the strategy.

Critical thinking skills are assessed as part of the General Education Program through papers, exams, and projects completed in ENC 1101 Composition I, ENC 1102 Composition II, and HUM 2510 Understanding the Visual and Performing Arts. Critical thinking skills are also assessed in the capstone course GEB 4890 Business Strategy.