Home Schools, Colleges, and Programs Wisconsin School of Business

Admission

Admission to the Wisconsin BBA Program depends on academic success in college-level course work, standardized testing, and nonacademic strengths such as leadership, involvement and other experiences outside the classroom. The BBA program admits the majority of students through the Pre-Business Process. Students obtaining admission through the Pre-Business Process must complete 24 total credits of course work on UW–Madison’s campus as well as complete the Pre-Business course work. For additional admission eligibility policies, review our Wisconsin BBA Admission Policies.

The Wisconsin BBA Direct Admit Program: High School applicants looking to obtain admission to the BBA program will follow the same guidelines as required for admission to the university. The BBA program admissions staff coordinates with UW admissions to identify top candidates to be offered admission directly from high school. Each year, a total of 100-120 students will enter the Wisconsin BBA program as freshmen.

Application Deadlines: The Pre-Business Process and Transfer Admission application is available online and opens in the spring semester. The application is due the last Friday in March at 4:30 p.m. Applicants who are identified for admission will be offered entry into the Wisconsin BBA Program for the following fall term. No admissions deferrals are made.

High school students offered admission to the Wisconsin BBA Direct Admit Program will be notified by May 1 of each year.

Transfer Students: Students transferring to the university will either be able to apply to the Wisconsin BBA Program concurrent with their UW application, or fulfill a 12-credit in-residence requirement to be eligible for admission to the BBA program. For more information about transfer guidelines and who will be eligible to apply for direct transfer, please click here.

Post-Baccalaureate Students: Because of enrollment limits, the Wisconsin BBA is unable to admit students who have already completed a bachelor's degree.

Because of limited enrollment, the Wisconsin BBA Program has more applicants than spots available each application cycle; admission is competitive. The Bachelor of Business Administration degree is awarded only to students who have been admitted to the School of Business.

Academic and Career Advising

The Wisconsin BBA Advising Center offers comprehensive academic and career advising to assist students in planning their college careers and beyond. Advisors help students find the resources and tools that enable them to explore, define, and accomplish their academic and career goals. Academic advisors support students in making choices about course enrollment and understanding and interpreting degree requirements and policies. Career advisors help students explore business careers, assist with developing resumes and cover letters, aid in finding internship and full-time job opportunities, and evaluate job offers. In addition, students are encouraged to sign up for practice interviews conducted by employers and participate in seminars focused on career opportunities and the development of effective job-search skills.

All pre-business students are assigned pre-business advisors who support them as they seek admission to the Wisconsin School of Business. Admitted business students and Certificate in Business students are assigned a team of academic and career advisors based on their declared major(s) for specialized information and assistance. In addition to providing advising, the Wisconsin BBA Advising Center serves as the academic dean’s office: interpreting policy, administering academic processes, and performing graduation checks for graduating business students. For more information, visit the advising website or contact the Wisconsin BBA Advising Center in 3150 Grainger Hall; 608-262-0471; wibbaadvising@bus.wisc.edu.

Academic Support

The Business Learning Center (BLC) is an academic support resource available to students enrolled in pre-business and business courses. The Learning Center's primary focus is to assist underrepresented students but is open to all students taking business or business-related courses. The program is designed to reinforce lectures, text materials, and discussion sections. Students interested in the Learning Center may call 608-262-1186 for more information, or stop by the Learning Center Office, 2240 Grainger Hall. Please check the BLC website for additional information, including the online application.

Business Leadership and Involvement

Wisconsin BBA students have the opportunity to get involved and build their leadership skills in a variety of ways, both through involvement in student organizations and through programs offered by the Accenture Leadership Center (ALC).

The ALC offers students unique, hands-on opportunities to develop leadership skills during their undergraduate careers. The ALC enables students to complement their academic curriculum with a variety of curricular, co-curricular and student-led experiences. Programming includes: LeaderShape (a six-day leadership training program), leadership courses, case competitions, a workshop series and a leadership certificate.

The Wisconsin BBA also has its own student government with elected student leaders. The Wisconsin BBA Student Government (BBA Gov) exists to unify and represent the student voice on issues of shared governance within the School and to promote community within the program.

With more than 50 undergraduate business student organizations, there are plenty of opportunities to get involved. Each semester there is a BBA Student Organization Fair where potential new members can meet with officers of organizations to find the organization that is best for them.

Internship and Job Preparation

Each year more than 300 regional, national, and international employers come to the school to interview students seeking internships and full-time employment. In addition, more than 4, 000 current job openings are posted online each year on BuckyNet, a recruiting database shared by several UW schools and colleges. Along with campus partners, the Wisconsin BBA sponsors two major campus career fairs each year which are attended by over 450 corporate representatives from more than 225 organizations.

The Wisconsin BBA provides post-graduation records for all business graduates to assist current students in their career planning process. Placement information and salary data from previous graduating classes are available online.

Wisconsin BBA Compass Program™

The Compass Program™ is a curricular and co-curricular multi-year sequence all BBA students complete as part of their undergraduate experience. Through coursework, structured programming, and individualized learning opportunities, Compass helps students develop the portfolio of skills needed to effectively contribute to the world around them.

During the first semester after admission to the Wisconsin School of Business, students must complete a one-credit course that is the foundation of the Compass Program. Outside of the classroom, students engage in on-going advising, workshops, and programming to gain insight into their personal style and strengths, improve their ability to work effectively with others, and learn how to chart their own personal path to success.

Source: pubs.wisc.edu