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BBP Students Present Research Posters

Students in BSU’s off-campus Biology transfer partnership with North Hennepin Community College (NHCC) collaborated on an end-of-semester poster session on December 7,  presenting their laboratory and classroom research to students, faculty, staff, and administration. Twenty posters covering basic and advanced topics in genetics were created by students in BSU’s BIOL 3930 (Scientific Communication) and BIOL 4930 (Chromatin and Gene Expression), and from NHCC’s BIOL 2360 (Genetics) courses.

The BSU courses are taught on NHCC’s campus near Minneapolis by Assistant Professor of Biology Andy Arsham as part of the Biology Baccalaureate Partnership (BBP), a collaboration between BSU’s Department of Biology and Center for Extended Learning, and NHCC’s Biology Department and University Center partnership office.  BBP students typically co-enroll in core science and liberal education courses from NHCC, including the Genetics class taught by NHCC faculty Dr. Tamara Mans, and upper division Biology courses from BSU.

“I really appreciated the enthusiasm the students showed as they explained their posters.  Their knowledge was impressive and they explained it well,” said Diane Morris, BSU’s longtime lab supervisor, who drove down for the event.  Landon Pirius, NHCC’s VP for Academic and Student Affairs said “it was a wonderful event and display of research.  I really enjoyed talking to the students and hearing them explain their study,” and explained that “some of them started off hesitantly, but really opened up as they got further along in their presentation.”

Professors Arsham and Mans, along with collaborating NHCC professors Craig Longtine and Paul Melchior, plan to have students participate in similar collaborator research presentations every semester as a way to promote student work and enhance the bi-institutional collaboration. For more information on the BBP program, please follow this link.

 

Transfer Pathways Improve Access to BSU Bachelor’s Degrees

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From the desk of professor Dean Frost

Transfer Pathways is a new program to ensure that Minnesota State Colleges students who complete associate degree programs can transfer to Minnesota State Universities without losing time and money or generating excess credits. It is a curriculum plan for a student who plans to pursue a bachelor’s degree after completing an associate degree. Transfer pathways are being developed for 30 majors and programs in Minnesota State higher education institutions.

 

transferpathwaysOne the first transfer pathways developed last spring was the one for Business Administration degree seekers.  The pathway provides a guarantee of up to 20 credits being eligible for transfer to Bemidji State’s Metro Area Business Administration four year degree in either management or marketing.  Additional credits from the A.S. degree may also apply to the Minnesota Transfer Curriculum.

What courses transfer?  The following are the topic areas in the Business Administration pathway: Business Computers, Legal Environment or Business Law, Financial Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Principles of Management, and Principles of Marketing.  Another 12 credits in Math and Economics will help to satisfy degree requirements of your Business Administration degree and count towards the Minnesota Transfer Curriculum requirements (also called Liberal Education requirements in the BSU catalog).  Your college and your A.S. degree may have different course names but so long as the course covers the topic area appropriately you can transfer the credits to the requirements for BSU’s Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration.

For community college students in the Twin Cities metro area considering a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, there are no better options than BSU’s Metro Area Business Administration program. Check it out, and contact the on-site advisors today for more details.

Scholarship Spotlight

Accounting major Jennifer Forsberg received the Ed Gersich Distance Education Scholarship, and shares with us a few of the reasons she chose BSU Extended Learning.

“As a wife and mother of four who works outside of the home and lives in a rural area, I knew attending a traditional program to finish my bachelor’s degree was out of the question. I choose BSU Extended Learning to complete my degree because of the large selection of courses and majors to choose from as well as well the option of completing the program from home in my spare time.”

When asked about her employment opportunities after earning her BS in Accounting, Jennifer noted that her employer “recognizes my values and skills”, and that “two other companies approached me to apply for openings because they knew I was close to completing my degree.”

Jennifer chose a part-time schedule that suited her working parent lifestyle, which also allowed her to graduate with very little school debt. “The CEL scholarship helped me enroll in an extra class for two semesters which pushed up my expected graduation date.” Best of luck, Jennifer!

Several scholarships are available to students in BSU Extended Learning programs. View the list of scholarships here.

Metro Area Business Administration program set to graduate first cohort

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From the desk of professor Dean Frost

BSU Extended Learning offers an on-campus bachelor’s degree in Business Administration for students in the metro area of Minneapolis/St. Paul. The courses are taught by experienced BSU faculty on the campus of Anoka Ramsey Community College in Coon Rapids. This program offers an incredibly affordable 4-year degree for those students who prefer in-person classes in a small school environment.

The Metro Area Business Administration program starts this Fall 2016 with 65 students enrolled.  We are currently offering nine sections of upper division business and accounting courses.  These courses range from such management course titles as Operations Management to Strategic Management.  The marketing courses include such courses as Personal Selling.

BSU students on-campus at Anoka Ramsey Community College, preparing for class!
BSU students on-campus at Anoka Ramsey Community College, preparing for class!

This December nine MABA students will receive their bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Bemidji State University.  There will be celebration in the metro area for the students and their friends and families after the end of Fall semester.  Next May all these students will be eligible to participate in the university’s annual commencement ceremonies held at the Sanford Center in Bemidji.

Additionally, MABA professor Rob Rick is currently working on a publication describing how American Indian residents in urban areas access health care facilities and manage their health care needs.  MABA professor and faculty advisor Dean Frost is hoping to complete work on his book manuscript, “Boundaryless Careers: 21st Century Managerial Competencies.”

bsu_in_cities_skyline_330wRecruiting for the coming Spring 2017 semester will begin shortly, and it is hoped that our new Marketing emphasis will attract more students to our affordable and convenient Metro Area Business Administration program. MABA is part of our “Bemidji State in the Cities” initiative, bringing affordable and powerful bachelor’s degrees to partner campuses in the metro area.

Our Social Work (BSW) Program is Top-10

In a recent survey, our Social Work Integrated Model (or SWIM) program was ranked in the top 10 in the country for online/hybrid BSW programs. Click to read more about the survey.

Online Accounting Program Ranks High

In a recent survey by College Values Online, Bemidji State University’s online Accounting program ranked among the best in the country. Our strong commitment to faculty advising is one reason for that.

BBP Signing Ceremony

The Biology Baccalaureate Partnership – BBP – celebrated the signing of the agreement between North Hennepin Community College and Bemidji State University. This event marks the beginning of a great relationship between our schools, and a fantastic opportunity for students!

A Great Value!

Bemidji State University has been listed among the country’s 100 most affordable colleges offering online bachelor’s degrees by Great Value Colleges.

High Quality and Value

In rankings published Sept. 8 by USA Today, college evaluation firm College Factual has named Bemidji State University one of the country’s best values for teacher education. It also rated Bemidji State as one of the top 10 percent of schools nationwide for non-traditional age students.

Accomplishing a Dream

BSU employee Kiki Schnackenberg dreamt of one day completing her Bachelor’s degree. The online options in Accounting and Business Administration from BSU’s Center for Extended Learning made earning that degree possible. Congratulations, Kiki!