The UNC Business Essentials program is a comprehensive certificate program aimed at preparing non-business majors for a world in which every graduate needs to understand the basics of business. Created by the capable educators of the Kenan-Flagler Business School, the certificate program gave me an edge and helped me feel more prepared and confident about my future, especially in this rocky economic atmosphere. Business Essentials covers an introductory overview to the business sphere, accounting, economics, marketing, business operations, and targeted writing skills. I learned to create a balance sheet, to organize a supply chain, to write a proper memo, and to manage inventory, among many other skills. And as a very busy college student, I greatly appreciated the flexibility of Read More
Tag Archives: flexibility
Pursue Your Passion But Gain Business Knowledge, Too
UNC Business Essentials is probably the best option for someone who is not a business major or minor. As an undergraduate, there are countless opportunities available at your fingertips, and at times it’s overwhelming to weigh what you should do against what you want to do. Maybe you know that you need business knowledge, but your passion is in American history or music or geology. This is where UNC Business Essentials excels. This program allows you to pursue the major you’re passionate about while still obtaining the business knowledge that is all but required to succeed in today’s job market. As a Communication Studies and Psychology double major, I had no idea how a business worked. My freshman year I Read More
Navigating the Business World
As both a Biology and Comparative Literature major, I understand the value a business background adds to a science degree and to a humanities degree. I consider myself a well-rounded person, but one thing I’ve always been interested in was business but could never take any courses. UNC Business Essentials is truly business for the non-business major and adds to my resume greatly. Now that I’m a graduating senior, I feel so much more confident that not only can I add the UNC Kenan-Flagler name to my list of accomplishments, but I truly have the business background to navigate a business-related career whether it be related to accounting, marketing, or economics. And no matter what field I find myself in, Read More
Connecting UBE to the Real World
One feature of the Business Essentials program that I found extremely useful and interesting was the discussion board linked to each module. Because the program is open not only to students but also to professionals, the variety of discussion posts – whether in the form of questions, commentaries, or anecdotes from professional experience – really helped me to synthesize the information I had learned in the module with real-life experiences and draw connections with some of the questions and thoughts I had in my own mind. Particularly, as a student, it was enlightening to read what professionals in the business world had to say. There’s something to say for the fact that we learn from experience. In the case of business and this Read More
On the Road with UBE
I gained an incredible amount of knowledge about the essentials of business – such as accounting and operations – over the course of just a few months, thanks to UBE’s certificate program. However, my favorite aspect of the program is undoubtedly its flexibility. This past summer was a very busy one for me; I was not only completing the program, but also working a 9-hours-a-day internship and traveling with my family. For these reasons, I was more than a little nervous that I would not be able to find enough time to devote to studying and moving through the modules. UBE is designed to ensure success, though, and the ability to download the program to my computer and work through Read More
Learning to Talk the Talk
The most valuable skill that I learned from UNC Business Essentials was everything in the Business Communications module. In this module, I learned how to properly communicate and write for a business setting. This module stated that headings were important to allow the reader to know what topics you will be addressing and also organizes the document for the reader, ensuring that they read it as it was intended. The module emphasizes the importance of the visual, even in written documents, that way, the reader does not feel overwhelmed and can access the information quickly. This information will be useful when seeking a job because I can use these skills in corresponding with future employers and use them at my first job. With Read More
Getting Interviews at Goldman Sachs
I am a non-business major, and I applied exclusively to business internships, specifically investment banking internships because I thought that would be the best fit for me long term. My top choice was to do investment research, but having very little finance experience, I wasn’t sure I would get an offer. I think having Business Essentials on my resume helped to show employers that though I was not a business major and lacked substantial finance coursework, I was still very interested in business. This helped me to get the interview. During the interview I was asked to talk about the three financial statements and how they worked together. This was a section that the Business Essentials program did an amazing Read More
Working, Interning, or Traveling, UBE Goes Wherever You Are
Looking back on the summer I spent completing the UNC Business Essentials coursework, a few things stick out in my mind that made the experience pleasant, useful and productive. The program was convenient to complete, packed with detailed and applicable information, and boosted my confidence as I approach graduation and entering the workforce. The convenience of the program was probably my favorite aspect of it, if I had to choose just one. I wouldn’t have signed up to participate in UNC Business Essentials if it had been a classroom-based, in-person program with a regimented schedule and courses to attend. I didn’t know where I was going to be living last summer, whether I’d be working or interning or traveling, so Read More
UBE in Italy! Getting Noticed All Over the World
My freshman year at Carolina, I was deciding between studying economics and business. I ultimately decided on economics, as I have always been really interested in the intersection between politics and economics, especially on the international level. While I am happy with my decision, I always wanted to take a business class, as knowing basic business skills is important in any profession; however, with a double major and minor, I could never find the time in my class schedule. When I heard about UNC Business Essentials, I was really excited. It provided the perfect overview of business skills and allowed me to take the courses wherever and whenever I wanted to. This was great, as I was working and taking Read More
Job Offer After Job Offer
As a senior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, I am very fortunate to be able to say that I have already accepted a job offer and that, upon graduation, I will be leaving North Carolina to begin a career in technical device sales. However, most people have a hard time understanding how it is that I am beginning a career in sales when my major is biology. In fact, several (read: almost all) of the companies I interviewed with questioned my choice as well. Nonetheless, upon brief explanation of my certificate in business from UNC Business Essentials, each of my doubters nodded in comprehension. I would even go so far as to say that they were downright impressed Read More