College of Business Administration

This is an archived copy of the 2022-2023 catalog. To access the most recent version of the catalog, please visit http://catalog.shsu.edu.

Administrative Officers

Title/Department Officer
Dean Shar Self, Ph.D.
sharself@shsu.edu; (936) 294-1254
Associate Dean Kurt Jesswein, Ph.D.
jesswein@shsu.edu; (936) 294-4582
Associate Dean Shani N. Robinson, Ph.D., CPA
shani.robinson@shsu.edu; (936) 294-4241
Assistant Dean TBD
Chair, Department of Accounting Philip W. Morris, Ph.D., CPA, Chair
morris@shsu.edu; (936) 294-1259
Chair, Department of Economics and International Business Mark Tuttle, Ph.D., Chair
mht001@shsu.edu; (936) 294-1386
Chair, Department of General Business and Finance Joey Robertson, Ph.D., Chair
joey_robertson@shsu.edu; (936) 294-1278
Chair, Department of Management, Marketing, and Information Systems Gerald Kohers, Ph.D., Chair
kohers@shsu.edu; (936) 294-1256
Associate Director, Graduate Programs Mr. Rick Thaler, Associate Director
busgrad@shsu.edu; (936) 294-1239

Contact Information

Graduate ProgramsMr. Rick Thaler, Associate Director

Smith-Hutson Building 103, (936) 294-1239

College of Business Administration

Vision

Sam Houston State University’s College of Business Administration aspires to be among the best regional colleges of business administration in the nation.

Mission

The College of Business Administration (COBA) develops business professionals by providing a student-focused learning environment that actively engages students, faculty, the business community, and other stakeholders in the creation and dissemination of knowledge and the development of relevant skills.

Core Values

The faculty and staff of the College of Business Administration embrace the following core values in pursuit of the mission.

Quality - COBA faculty and staff will provide a quality educational environment, maintaining a relevant curriculum and teaching pedagogy that nurtures intellectual development.

Responsibility - COBA faculty and staff will be responsible and dependable, take personal initiative and accept accountability. 

Respect - COBA faculty and staff will engage in a spirit of cooperation and collegiality that promotes trust, collaboration and respect of others.

Individuality - COBA faculty and staff, recognizing the value of diversity, will respect individual goals and objectives, and celebrate faculty, staff and student success.

Honesty - COBA faculty and staff will be ethical in their behavior, will act with integrity and will be honest, open and fair with all stakeholders.

Highlights

The College of Business Administration is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business International (AACSB International) and has a nationally recognized chapter of Beta Gamma Sigma, the national honor society in business. The College's online programs are highly ranked by US News & World Report.

Each year the College of Business Administration conducts a career fair that offers students the opportunity to interact with 50 or more employers from all types of business and not-for-profit organizations. Additionally, the Department of Accounting conducts a "Meet-the-Firms Night" each fall for primarily accounting, finance, and management information systems majors.  

Student Organizations and Activities

  • Alpha Kappa Psi
  • APICS - Association of Operations Management
  • Association of Certified Fraud Examiners
  • Association of Information Technology Students 
  • Association for Supply Chain Management
  • Banking and Finance Club
  • Beta Alpha Psi
  • Beta Gamma Sigma
  • COBA Ambassadors
  • Collegiate Entrepreneurs' Organization
  • International Business and Economics Club
  • The Investment Club
  • Marketing Student Club
  • MBA Student Association
  • National Association of Black Accountants
  • Omicron Delta Epsilon
  • Phi Chi Theta
  • Society for Human Resource Management 

Additional student organizations exist within specific majors and/or departments. Please see the appropriate major/department for more details.

Scholarships

Numerous scholarships are available on a competitive basis for incoming and currently-enrolled graduate students in the College of Business Administration. Students are encouraged to apply for scholarships using the Scholarships4Kats program at Financial Aid. The Scholarship4Kats program is a single application that will allow the student to apply for most scholarships available on campus whether at the departmental, college, or university-level. Applications are typically accepted through Scholarships4Kats between October 1 and February 15 for incoming students and between January 2 and February 15 for returning students. Deadlines may change so students are encouraged to check the website for current information. Scholarship recipients are announced in April for the following academic year.

Scholarships vary from year to year and typically include:

  • Bala and Santhi Maniam Finance Scholarship
  • Charles R. Carlow Endowed Scholarship
  • Kelly DeHay & Rod Danielson COBA Scholarship
  • Douglas C. Fletcher, Sr. Scholarship
  • Project Management Institute (PMI) Scholarships
  • SHSU Online Scholarships
  • John Patrick Singleton Memorial Scholarship
  • Kimbrough M. Winston, Sr. Graduate Business Scholarship
  • Neva and Wesley West Scholarship
  • Wood-Yager Scholarship

The College of Business Administration also offers competitive graduate assistantships each year for students who are accepted into the program. All students who have demonstrated distinguished academic performance may apply for a graduate assistantship. All assistantships require students to work 20 hours per week. Students interested in applying for an assistantship should contact the college directly at busgrad@shsu.edu.