About the Retail Management Bachelor’s Program
The mission of the retail management program is to prepare students to make a contribution to the retail industry and to society as a whole through quality education, research, and service. By focusing on both the role of diverse and global consumers and the complex infrastructure of retailing goods and services, faculty members maintain and expand a partnership between the retail industry and academics. Retail management courses emphasize integration of theory, e-commerce, category management, leadership, industry application, and career planning strategy (includes study in technology, communication, marketing, management, accounting and economics). An internship program, industry-sponsored course projects and a strong alumni base afford students the opportunity to interface with a dynamic combination of retail executives and organizations throughout their academic study.
The curriculum emphasizes work-related experiences, internship opportunities and career placement. A 10-week, 300- to 400-hour supervised internship in the retail industry is required of each student with a retail management major. The supervised internship experience is planned jointly by the faculty and student. RTL 3389 Professional Practices in Retailing , is required during the spring semester prior to enrollment in RTL 3390 Internship in Retailing . An earned grade of “C” or better is required in all RTL core and elective courses, as well as any course accepted as a substitution for RTL core or elective courses.
Tracks in Retail Management. The retail management program offers tracks in (1) store management and (2) corporate/research to better meet the needs of students and the retail community by focusing on the specific skills needed at the store level, operations or corporate level. Students may choose a single track or complete both tracks. Students may choose six hours from the following courses for the store management track: RTL 1380 , RTL 3345 , RTL 3375 or RTL 3380 , and RTL 4340 . The requirements for the corporate/research track are a 2.8 GPA and RTL 3380 , RTL 4320 , and RTL 4330 .
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