SBA partners across campus to deliver two new programs

With a focus on integrative thinking, Oakland University's School of Business Administration is partnering across campus to deliver two new programs to two distinct audiences.

A continuing education program in partnership with OU’s School of Engineering and Computer Science offers engineering and business professionals the opportunity to earn a certificate in energy management, while also assisting with courses for a new bachelor’s degree in actuarial science from OU’s College of Arts and Sciences. 

Clean energy jobs grew at a national rate of 9.1 percent in the last decade. By 2038, the number of jobs in the field is predicted to reach 4.2 million – quintupling the current count. 

Together, the SBA and SECS are partnering to deliver a professional certificate program that integrates management and engineering perspectives. The Energy Management Certificate Program will prepare engineering and business professionals to stand out in the career field and help their organizations become sustainable enterprises.

Participants in this innovative program will:

• Learn about energy usage and utilization options that lead to cost and energy savings
• Apply sustainable principles to operations that reduce costs and enhance corporate reputation
• Acquire real-world skills to evaluate, analyze and implement the best conventional or alternative energy choices.

For more information contact Maureen Callaghan at mpcallag@oakland.edu or (248) 412-3235, or visit the website at oakland.edu/energymgmt. 

In its second cross campus partnership, the SBA will join CAS to provide about half the courses required to complete the new major in actuarial science.

Actuarial science is the discipline that applies mathematical and statistical methods to assess risk in the insurance and finance industries. Actuaries analyze data to estimate the probability and likely cost to a company of an event such as death, sickness, injury, disability or loss of property.

Several Michigan public universities offer programs in actuarial science, but OU’s will be the only one offered in the metro Detroit area – where most firms in the state that employ actuaries are located. OU’s program is more interdisciplinary than traditional programs at some other schools, which could give its graduates an advantage in the actuarial field.

To complete the major, students must earn credits in mathematics, statistics, economics, finance, financial accounting, computer problem-solving and business writing.

The coursework will prepare students to take the first two of four basic professional qualifying exams during their junior and senior years. Most firms that hire actuaries don’t expect new graduates to have taken those exams, said Ron Tracy, associate professor of economics. Those who did will have an advantage.

“This is a very tough curriculum, but it offers unbelievable opportunities,” Tracy continued. In fact, the U.S. Department of Labor’s 2008-09 Occupational Outlook Handbook predicts an approximate 24 percent increase in the employment of actuaries from 2006-2016.

It's estimated only about five students per academic year will be enrolled in Oakland’s program, which will begin in the fall 2010 semester. Graduates will not only be able to enter the actuarial field, but also will be well-positioned to work toward advanced degrees in economics, mathematics, statistics, business and law.