Business-to-Business Sales - BS
Sales professionals play a major role in helping customers select the sources for their goods and services. Strong skills in sales can help any job candidate survive a competitive business landscape. Cultivating sales skills pays off, even in times of recession. Because most sales professionals are compensated based on their performance, experts can earn significant salaries and commissions. The demand for skilled, experienced sales managers is growing faster than the average for all other jobs in the next decade. Students can specialize in niche fields to become more successful. A major in business-to-business sales can be combined with a minor in business administration or finance or communication studies to develop expertise in those niche areas.
Students can capitalize on the many emerging opportunities for women in the sales profession. The St. Kate's sales program will prepare students to become a knowledgeable, ethical professional in a rewarding career. Starting salaries of $45,000 or more are common, and experienced sales people can easily reach incomes of $100,000 or higher. Studies show that more CEOs of U.S. corporations come from sales, marketing and finance than from any other area of the company.
The classroom experience is dynamic with students preparing for their healthcare sales career by practicing their sales skills with buyer role plays, understanding the importance of time and territory management, learning how to negotiate for win-win situations with customers, and building confidence with product presentations.
Students also participate in four sales competitions during the academic year. Several Sales graduates have participated in the prestigious Mayo Innovation Scholars Program sponsored by Mayo Clinic.
St Kate’s alumni speak in many classes about their preparation for successful jobs by graduating with a Business to Business degree. Alumni work at 3M, Upsher-Smith, Best Buy, General Mills, Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Cardinal Health, Red Cross, JAMF, and many small/mid-size companies.
Guest speakers from Fortune 500 companies, mid size companies and start-ups participate in classes to talk about their companies, careers and strategies to be successful in sales.
Courses include Intro to Sales, Ethics and Integrity in Sales, Customer Intelligence, Professional Sales and Advance Sales.
At St. Kate's, students will have the opportunity to learn, work and study with sales and marketing faculty who have real-world experience that enriches their theoretical expertise. St. Kate's unique sales program integrates the critical-thinking and problem-solving focus of a broad-based liberal arts education with professional sales preparation. The business-to-business sales major was developed with extensive input from top executives at 3M and other companies to create a new model for sales education. This model emphasizes lifelong learning rather than short-term skills acquisition, developing an analytical and conceptual framework that will serve students for the life of their career.
Students who would like to develop sales skills and competencies that lead to business-to-business sales careers, but don't currently plan to complete a sales major may be interested in a sales minor or one or both of the sales certificates that St. Kate's offers. Sales certificate students will learn a solid business foundation along with the ability to build strong relationships and partnerships with customers. Ethics and integrity in sales are woven throughout the curriculum, as are oral and written communication skills, leadership skills and technology skills.
This major is available to students enrolled in the College for Women only.
Common Aspects of All Business Majors
St. Kate’s offers a values-based business education built upon a foundation of liberal arts and guided by the following mission: Grounded in Catholic social teaching, the Department of Business Administration at St. Catherine University delivers a transformative business education, empowering students to develop performance-ready expertise, adaptability, and confidence to become ethical and effective leaders in their chosen field.
In the classroom, students work to successfully master business fundamentals and gain an appreciation for the interrelated nature of business functions—tools necessary for navigating a global, competitive business environment. By conducting online research and preparing computer-based presentations, students learn to incorporate technology into solutions for business problems and become prepared for careers in worldwide, decentralized organizations. Examples of this type of essential, highly-relevant coursework are collected in each student’s business portfolio, serving as a showcase of academic accomplishments required for graduation.
St. Kate’s business majors benefit from abundant resources as they move through the program towards their career goals. Exceptional instructors, both full-time professors and practicing professionals with a broad range of experience, provide a balanced theoretical and applied business curriculum. Outstanding women role models and accomplished executives participate on-campus as guest speakers, mentors, and recruiters. Many of them are St. Kate's alumnae and employees of the 60+ companies attending St. Kate's annual on-campus job fair—the largest of any Minnesota private college or university.
St. Kate’s business administration department, part of the School of Business, offers a bachelor of arts or a bachelor of science in one of the following fields:
Majors*:
- Accounting
- Business Administration
- Business Management
- Business-to-Business Sales
- Healthcare Sales
- Healthcare Management
- Marketing
Minors*:
- Accounting
- Business Administration
- Business Analytics
- Finance
- Healthcare Sales
- Integrated Marketing Communications and Design
- Leadership
- Management
- Marketing
- Sales
Certificates*:
- Healthcare Sales Certificate
- Sales Certificate
- Accounting - Post-baccalaureate Certificate
*See individual descriptions or the Programs of Study section of this catalog for information about which college offers the program (the College for Women or the College for Adults).
See also: Accounting, Healthcare Sales, Business Management, Healthcare Sales Certificate, Sales Certificate
This major is offered in the College for Women only.
Curriculum
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ACCT 3202 | Business Finance | 2 |
| BUSI 2012 | Business Analytics | 2 |
| BUSI 3502 | Global Business | 2 |
| BUSI 3642 | The Legal Environment of Business | 2 |
| BUSI 3652 | Business Law - Contracts | 2 |
| BUSI 4750 | Business Practicum | 4 |
| BUSI 4800 | Business Portfolio | 0 |
| MKTG 2302 | Introduction to Marketing | 2 |
| MKTG 3250W | Digital Integrated Marketing Communications | 4 |
| SALE 2332 | Introduction to Selling | 2 |
| SALE 3330 | Professional Sales: Customer Centered Selling | 4 |
| SALE 3432 | Customer Intelligence | 2 |
| SALE 3632 | Ethics and Integrity in Selling | 2 |
| SALE 4430W | Advanced Sales: Strategic Account Management | 4 |
| Select one course from: | 4 | |
| Social Entrepreneurship | ||
| Strategic Management | ||
| Strategic Marketing | ||
| Total Credits | 38 | |
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Supporting Courses (minimum grade of C- required) | ||
| ACCT 2110 | Financial Accounting | 4 |
| ACCT 2130 | Managerial Accounting | 4 |
| ECON 2610 | Principles of Microeconomics | 4 |
| LEAD 2202 | Leadership and Influence | 2 |
| MGMT 2402 | Principles of Management | 2 |
| Select one of the following: | 4 | |
| Statistical Analysis for the Social Sciences | ||
| Statistical Analysis for Decision Making | ||
| Statistical Methods in Psychology | ||
| Statistical Analysis | ||
| Total Credits | 20 | |
Business Portfolio
All majors are required to complete a business portfolio. The portfolio is the vehicle that enables students to integrate the life skills and knowledge they bring with them and the knowledge, skills and values learned within the courses and field experiences throughout the program. This portfolio allows students to validate their experiences at St. Catherine University.
The portfolio is cumulative in nature; most aspects are completed as part of course work. Students must present the portfolio to their advisor no later than the week of September 15-22 for December graduation or the week of February 15-22 for May graduation.
For specific portfolio (BUSI 4800 Business Portfolio) requirements, please refer to the Professional Portfolio Handbook.
Business-to-business sales majors satisfy the Writing Requirement for Majors and the fourth writing requirement by completing SALE 4430W Advanced Sales: Strategic Account Management and MKTG 3250W Digital Integrated Marketing Communications. They complete the Liberal Arts and Sciences Core Writing Requirement with two other writing-intensive courses (CORE 1000W The Reflective Woman and CORE 3990W Global Search for Justice).
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Fall Term | ||
| MKTG 2302 | Introduction to Marketing | 2 |
| SALE 2332 | Introduction to Selling | 2 |
| Spring Term | ||
| BUSI 2012 | Business Analytics 1 | 2 |
| BUSI 3502 | Global Business | 2 |
| LEAD 2202 | Leadership and Influence | 2 |
| MGMT 2402 | Principles of Management | 2 |
| Fall Term | ||
| ACCT 2110 | Financial Accounting | 4 |
| MKTG 3250W | Digital Integrated Marketing Communications | 4 |
| Select one from: | 4 | |
| Statistical Analysis for the Social Sciences | ||
| Statistical Analysis for Decision Making | ||
| Statistical Methods in Psychology | ||
| Statistical Analysis | ||
| Spring Term | ||
| ACCT 2130 | Managerial Accounting | 4 |
| SALE 3330 | Professional Sales: Customer Centered Selling | 4 |
| Fall Term | ||
| ACCT 3202 | Business Finance | 2 |
| ECON 2610 | Principles of Microeconomics | 4 |
| BUSI 3900W | Social Entrepreneurship 2 | 0-4 |
| or MKTG 4300 | Strategic Marketing | |
| MKTG 3350 | Market Research and Analytics | 4 |
| Fall Term | ||
| BUSI 3642 | The Legal Environment of Business | 2 |
| BUSI 3652 | Business Law - Contracts | 2 |
| SALE 4430W | Advanced Sales: Strategic Account Management | 4 |
| Spring Term | ||
| BUSI 4754 | Business Practicum | 4 |
| BUSI 4800 | Business Portfolio | 0 |
| MKTG 4300 | Strategic Marketing 2 | 0-4 |
| or MGMT 4490W | Strategic Management | |
| Total Credits | 58 | |
- 1
Taken during J-Term
- 2
One of these three courses is required.