Marketing, Bachelor of Science (720)
Program Coordinator
Lukas Forbes, lukas.forbes@wku.edu, (270) 745-2993
Why complete a degree in Marketing?
Marketing is the people-oriented engine behind every successful exchange between businesses and the customers, clients, or communities they serve. WKU’s Marketing program prepares students for a wide range of careers — from brand and product management to digital marketing, market research, retail management, and professional sales — through small classes taught by faculty with real-world marketing experience, and provides a strong foundation for students who hope to launch their own business.
What is your path to a degree in Marketing at WKU?
The Marketing program requires 84 hours of professional and elective coursework, within the 120 hours required for a baccalaureate degree. Rather than a course-by-course list, the path is intentionally structured so each stage builds the skills students need for both certification and career.
Business Core (27 hours)
Before diving into specialized major coursework, students build fluency across the core functions of business — accounting, economics, finance, marketing, management, statistics, and analytics. This shared foundation, completed by every Gordon Ford College of Business major, ensures graduates don’t just understand their discipline in isolation; they understand how that work connects to strategy, operations, and decision-making across an organization. A culminating strategy course ties these functions together, asking students to think like leaders rather than specialists.
Career Preparation Curriculum (6 hours)
Technical skill alone doesn’t land a job or carry a career — employers consistently rank communication and professionalism alongside technical knowledge. This curriculum is designed to ensure students enter the workforce ready on day one: developing polished written and verbal communication, building a professional identity early in their academic career, and culminating in a senior-level assessment that confirms readiness for the profession.
Required Marketing Courses (24 hours)
Courses covering consumer behavior, personal selling, marketing research, marketing management, and supply chain management give every graduate a complete view of how a product or service moves from concept to customer, regardless of the specific career path they choose.
Skillset Electives (12 hours)
Great marketers need more than product knowledge — they need ethical judgment, the ability to read data, creative instincts, and negotiation skill. Rather than leaving these to chance, the curriculum requires a course in each, ensuring every graduate is well-rounded across the competencies employers actually evaluate in marketing hires.
Concentration Coursework (15 hours)
Marketing careers diverge sharply depending on path — a digital strategist and a B2B salesperson need very different skill sets. The concentration structure lets students go deep in the specific area that matches their career goals, rather than spreading their final coursework thin across everything.
Concentrations
- Strategic Marketing
- Sales
- Social Media Marketing
Concentrations
- Strategic Marketing (MKGM)
- Marketing Sales (MKSA)
- Social Media Marketing (MKSM)
Program Requirements (84 hours)
A baccalaureate degree requires a minimum of 120 unduplicated semester hours. More information can be found at www.wku.edu/registrar/degree_certification.php.
Students who began WKU in the Fall 2014 and thereafter should review the Colonnade requirements located at: https://www.wku.edu/colonnade/colonnaderequirements.php.
The major in marketing requires 84 hours of professional and elective courses and leads to a Bachelor of Science degree. Marketing majors must earn a “C” or better in all Marketing classes (MKT prefix) used as part of the major. Transfer marketing classes with a grade lower than a “C” will not count towards the Marketing major. No minor or second major is required, although minors and certificates inside and outside the Gordon Ford College of Business are encouraged.
Core Courses
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Business Foundations | ||
| MATH 123 | Mathematical Applications for Business * | 3 |
| ACCT 110 | Accounting for Decision Makers | 3 |
| BDAN 250 | Introduction to Analytics | 3 |
| ECON 202 | Principles of Economics (Micro) | 3 |
| ECON 206 | Statistics | 3 |
| MGT 210 | Organization and Management | 3 |
| MKT 220 | Basic Marketing Concepts | 3 |
| FIN 330 | Principles of Finance | 3 |
| MGT 498 | Strategy and Policy | 3 |
| or ENT 496 | Hilltopper Student Consulting Experience | |
| Career Preparation | ||
| BA 170 | Business Student Basics 1 | 1 |
| or BA 175 | University Experience-Business | |
| or BA 220 | Special Topics in Business Administration (Lower Division) | |
| MGT 261 | Business Communication Fundamentals | 3 |
| MKT 399 | Career Readiness in Marketing | 1 |
| MKT 499 | Senior Assessment in Marketing | 1 |
| Required Courses for All Marketing Majors | ||
| FIN 161 | Personal Finance | 3 |
| BDAN 305 | Data Modeling and Analysis | 3 |
| ECON 306 | Statistical Analysis | 3 |
| MKT 321 | Consumer Behavior | 3 |
| MKT 325 | Personal Selling | 3 |
| MKT 421 | Marketing Research | 3 |
| MKT 422 | Marketing Management | 3 |
| MKT 423 | Supply Chain Management | 3 |
| Skillset 1: Ethics and Critical Thinking | ||
| Select 1 of the following courses or any ethics course with department approval: | 3 | |
| Legal Environment of Business | ||
| Ethics and Critical Thinking | ||
| Skillset 2: Data Analysis | ||
| Select 1 of the following courses or any data analysis course with department approval: | 3 | |
| Structured Data Analysis | ||
| Senior Seminar-Marketing | ||
| Digital Marketing | ||
| Skillset 3: Creative Execution | ||
| Select 1 of the following courses or any creative course with department approval: | 3 | |
| Integrated Marketing Communications | ||
| Social Media Marketing | ||
| Digital Media | ||
| Skillset 4: Negotiation | ||
| Select 1 of the following courses or any negotiation course with department approval: | 3 | |
| Business Negotiation | ||
| Advanced Personal Selling Strategies | ||
| Total Hours | 69 | |
Choose one concentration from below:
Strategic Marketing Concentration
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Integrated Marketing Communications | ||
| Digital Marketing | ||
| Social Media Marketing | ||
| Select 1 of the following: | 3 | |
| Retailing Management and Strategy | ||
| Business-To-Business Marketing | ||
| Social Media Marketing | ||
| Select 6 hours of marketing electives: | 6 | |
MKT 3@ | ||
MKT 4@ | ||
| Select 3 hours of professional electives: | 3 | |
ACCT 3@ | ||
ACCT 4@ | ||
BA 3@ | ||
BA 4@ | ||
BDAN 3@ | ||
BDAN 4@ | ||
CIS 3@ | ||
CIS 4@ | ||
ECON 3@ | ||
ECON 4@ | ||
ENT 3@ | ||
ENT 4@ | ||
FIN 3@ | ||
FIN 4@ | ||
MGT 3@ | ||
MGT 4@ | ||
MKT 3@ | ||
MKT 4@ | ||
| Total Hours | 15 | |
Sales Concentration (MKSA)
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| MKT 329 | Business-To-Business Marketing | 3 |
| MKT 424 | Sales Force Management | 3 |
| or MKT 332 | Sales Analytics | |
| MKT 425 | Advanced Personal Selling Strategies | 3 |
| Select 3 hours of marketing electives: | 3 | |
MKT 3@ | ||
MKT 4@ | ||
| Select 3 hours of professional electives | 3 | |
ACCT 3@ | ||
ACCT 4@ | ||
BA 3@ | ||
BA 4@ | ||
BDAN 3@ | ||
BDAN 4@ | ||
CIS 3@ | ||
CIS 4@ | ||
ECON 3@ | ||
ECON 4@ | ||
ENT 3@ | ||
ENT 4@ | ||
FIN 3@ | ||
FIN 4@ | ||
MGT 3@ | ||
MGT 4@ | ||
MKT 3@ | ||
MKT 4@ | ||
| Total Hours | 15 | |
Social Media Marketing Concentration (MKSM)
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| MKT 322 | Integrated Marketing Communications | 3 |
| MKT 328 | Digital Marketing | 3 |
| MKT 331 | Social Media Marketing | 3 |
| Select 3 hours of marketing electives: | 3 | |
MKT 3@ | ||
MKT 4@ | ||
| Select 3 hours of professional electives: | 3 | |
ACCT 3@ | ||
ACCT 4@ | ||
BA 3@ | ||
BA 4@ | ||
BDAN 3@ | ||
BDAN 4@ | ||
CIS 3@ | ||
CIS 4@ | ||
ECON 3@ | ||
ECON 4@ | ||
ENT 3@ | ||
ENT 4@ | ||
FIN 3@ | ||
FIN 4@ | ||
MGT 3@ | ||
MGT 4@ | ||
MKT 3@ | ||
MKT 4@ | ||
| Total Hours | 15 | |
Finish in Four Plans
Marketing, Marketing Sales Concentration
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Colonnade: Arts & Humanities | 3 | Colonnade: Natural & Physical Sciences | 3 |
| COMM 145 | 3 | ECON 202 | 3 |
| MATH 123 | 3 | ENG 100 | 3 |
| ACCT 110 | 3 | BDAN 250 | 3 |
| HIST 101 or HIST 102 | 3 | FIN 161 | 3 |
| BA 170, BA 175, or BA 220 | 1 | ||
| 16 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| MGT 261 | 3 | Colonnade: Literary Studies | 3 |
| Colonnade: Natural & Physical Sciences with Lab | 3 | MKT 325 | 3 |
| MKT 220 | 3 | MGT 210 | 3 |
| ECON 206 | 3 | MGT 200 | 3 |
| BDAN 305 | 3 | Data Analysis | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| MKT 329 | 3 | MKT 321 | 3 |
| Creative Execution | 3 | Colonnade: Writing in the Disciplines | 3 |
| Colonnade: Connections | 3 | FIN 330 | 3 |
| ECON 306 | 3 | MGT 405 | 3 |
| Marketing Elective | 3 | Professional Elective | 3 |
| MKT 399 | 1 | ||
| 16 | 15 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Colonnade: Connections | 3 | Colonnade: Connections | 3 |
| MKT 421 | 3 | ENT 496 or MGT 498 | 3 |
| MKT 425 | 3 | MKT 422 | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | MKT 424 or MKT 332 | 3 |
| MKT 423 | 3 | MKT 499 | 1 |
| 15 | 13 | ||
| Total Hours 120 | |||
Marketing, Social Media Marketing Concentration
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Colonnade: Arts & Humanities | 3 | Colonnade: Natural & Physical Sciences | 3 |
| COMM 145 | 3 | ECON 202 | 3 |
| MATH 123 | 3 | ENG 100 | 3 |
| ACCT 110 | 3 | BDAN 250 | 3 |
| FIN 161 | 3 | HIST 101 or HIST 102 | 3 |
| BA 170, BA 175, or BA 220 | 1 | ||
| 16 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Colonnade: Natural & Physical Sciences with Lab | 3 | Colonnade: Literary Studies | 3 |
| BDAN 305 | 3 | MKT 325 | 3 |
| ECON 206 | 3 | MGT 200 | 3 |
| MGT 261 | 3 | MGT 210 | 3 |
| MKT 220 | 3 | Data Analysis | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| ECON 306 | 3 | Colonnade: Connections | 3 |
| FIN 330 | 3 | Colonnade: Writing in the Disciplines | 3 |
| MKT 322 | 3 | Negotiation | 3 |
| Marketing Elective | 3 | MKT 321 | 3 |
| Creative Execution | 3 | MKT 423 | 3 |
| MKT 399 | 1 | ||
| 15 | 16 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Colonnade: Connections | 3 | Colonnade: Connections | 3 |
| MKT 331 | 3 | ENT 496 or MGT 498 | 3 |
| MKT 421 | 3 | MKT 422 | 3 |
| Professional Elective | 3 | MKT 328 | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | MKT 499 | 1 |
| 15 | 13 | ||
| Total Hours 120 | |||
Marketing, Strategic Marketing Concentration
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Colonnade: Arts & Humanities | 3 | Colonnade: Natural & Physical Sciences | 3 |
| COMM 145 | 3 | ECON 202 | 3 |
| MATH 123 | 3 | ENG 100 | 3 |
| ACCT 110 | 3 | BDAN 250 | 3 |
| FIN 161 | 3 | Colonnade: Natural & Physical Sciences w/lab | 3 |
| BA 170, BA 175, or BA 2201 | 1 | ||
| 16 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| MGT 261 | 3 | Colonnade: Literary Studies | 3 |
| HIST 101 or HIST 102 | 3 | Colonnade: Connections | 3 |
| MKT 220 | 3 | MGT 210 | 3 |
| ECON 206 | 3 | MGT 200 | 3 |
| BDAN 305 | 3 | Data Analysis | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| ECON 306 | 3 | Negotiation | 3 |
| Colonnade: Connections | 3 | Colonnade: Writing in the Disciplines | 3 |
| MKT 325 | 3 | FIN 330 | 3 |
| Marketing Elective | 3 | MKT 321 | 3 |
| Creative Execution | 3 | MKT 327, MKT 329, or MKT 331 | 3 |
| MKT 399 | 1 | ||
| 15 | 16 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Colonnade: Connections | 3 | ENT 496 or MGT 498 | 3 |
| MKT 322, MKT 328, or MKT 331 | 3 | MKT 422 | 3 |
| MKT 421 | 3 | Professional Elective | 3 |
| MKT 423 | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| Marketing Elective | 3 | MKT 499 | 1 |
| 15 | 13 | ||
| Total Hours 120 | |||