P.3 READINESS FOR ACCREDITATION REVIEW
College of Business Programs in Relation to this Standard

P.3.a PROGRAMS IN BUSINESS SHALL HAVE BEEN IN OPERATION FOR A SUFFICIENT TIME FOR EVALUATION

The programs in the College have been in existence for a sufficient period of time for their quality to be evaluated. The five BS programs and the MBA degree program have been in existence since the University opened in 1997. The Master of Science in Accounting and Taxation and the Master of Science in Computer Information Systems are the only new programs approved by the Board of Regents in the past five years. These programs were initiated in 1999 in response to the accounting and technology communities’ demand for these specialized degree programs.

P.3.b PROGRAMS IN BUSINESS SHALL BE IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE STANDARDS FOR THE YEAR OF SELF-EVALUATION AND VISIT PERIODS

The FGCU College of Business satisfies the AACSB International standards for the Self-Evaluation year 2001-2002 and the visit period in the fall of 2002. Further, processes are in place that will ensure continued satisfaction of these standards in the years beyond.

The College has restructured its MBA curricula in response to student and external business demand, in response to changes resulting from creation of MS degree programs, and to better manage student enrollment and faculty deployment. During 1998-1999 and 1999-2000, major changes were made to expand the breadth of coverage, reduce the number of concentrations, and establish a standard course offering sequence to better manage enrollments and faculty assignments. The Business Advisory Council and student interaction with faculty in the change process ensured responsiveness to these critical constituency groups. Minor changes have been made to the five undergraduate degree programs to reduce the number of concentrations, remove undersubscribed courses, and add new courses in response to the market and student demands. In addition, several new minors for nonbusiness majors were added to provide students outside of the College with an introduction to special areas of interest. These programs are expected to continue through the year of self-evaluation and visit.