Bachelor of Applied Science
The Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS) is designed especially for the learner who has completed an Associate of Arts (AA) or an Associate of Science (AS) degree. CalSouthern has developed the BAS to accept these AA and AS course credits toward the Bachelor of Applied Science. CalSouthern can accept up to 90 semester credits in transfer, thereby leaving the last 30 credits, equivalent to the senior year of undergraduate studies, to be completed at CalSouthern.
CalSouthern also recognizes the academic value of vocational and trade school coursework. Graduates from accredited vocational, technical, and business post-secondary schools can also benefit from having their previous coursework recognized for admission into the BAS program.
The Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS) is a flexible, interdisciplinary degree completion program that offers learners unique areas of concentration tailored to their individual interests and goals. The program is designed to allow for program customization, which makes advising an integral component of the BAS degree program. Learners will work closely with Learner Support Services to develop a degree plan tailored to their academic and professional goals. This ensures that learners obtain the requisite foundation in General Education and the theoretical and specialized knowledge in their chosen area of concentration.
Program Learning Outcomes
- Implement effective leadership strategies enhancing collaboration and organizational effectiveness.
- Support problem-solving strategies through the use of qualitative analysis for effective business decision-making.
- Integrate functional business knowledge across the following areas: marketing, management, leadership, and ethics.
- Solve business problems through critical analysis while addressing the needs of the global environment for business and supporting cultural diversity in the global market.
- Produce professional communications to deliver business messages to a variety of audiences through multiple mediums including print, audio, digital, and visual applications.
- Identify ethically compromising situations and factors to solve business problems.
Degree Requirements
This program has 4 academic components: General Education, required Core Courses, courses in an Academic Concentration, and General Electives from the University’s list of courses and/or credits transferred from prior college courses.
| DEGREE REQUIREMENTS |
CREDITS |
| General Education Courses |
36 |
| Core Courses |
24 |
| Concentration & Elective Courses |
15 |
| General Elective Courses |
45 |
| TOTAL CREDITS REQUIRED FOR COMPLETION |
120 |
Completing Your Degree Plan
Your Degree Plan, completed at the time of entry, is intended to be a guide toward the completion of your degree. As you progress through the program and understand the relevance of the coursework to your individual needs, you may alter your plan through consultation with Learner Support Services (meaning you can change courses or objectives, however, you cannot reduce the total credits needed for your degree).
Required Courses
General Education Courses (36 Credits Required)
The 36-credit requirement for General Education is met by a combination of transfer credits accepted and courses completed at CalSouthern. CalSouthern accepts general education courses completed at other post-secondary institutions in “bulk” as meeting our GE requirement. We do not try to match the GE courses one-on-one with our GE courses. However, if the learner does not meet the 36-credit requirement, then GE courses from our list will be required. For that purpose, learners will be taking a balanced representation of GE from these five areas: English, humanities, mathematics, natural sciences, and social sciences. Please see the Undergraduate General Education section of the catalog for a listing of General Education Courses available.
Core Courses (24 Credits Required)
Concentration and Elective Courses (15 Credits Required)
Electives permit learners to transfer AA, AS, and vocational courses that have been completed at another post-secondary institution and to receive recognition of credits earned toward the BAS degree. If additional credits are required in this area to meet the 120-credit requirement, then courses can be selected from any academic area that does not require prerequisites.
At CalSouthern, learners may choose elective courses in a particular area of interest to concentrate their studies in. For the BAS, the following areas of concentration are offered: accounting, entrepreneurship, human resource management, international business, leadership, management, marketing, and technology management. By completing 5 courses in any one area, the concentration will be shown on the learner’s degree and transcript. Learners can also take a random sampling from more than one category to satisfy interests and add breadth without declaring a particular concentration.
General Elective Courses (45 Credits Required)
The elective courses category is designed to provide learners with the opportunity to explore their interests in any undergraduate courses offered by the University that do not have pre-requisites.
This program is not designed to meet the educational requirements for a specific professional license or certification required for employment in an occupation. As such, CalSouthern has made no determination regarding prerequisites for licensure or certification in any state or jurisdiction.
While California Southern University, as a member of the AIU System, is part of a Title IV eligible institution offering Title IV eligible programs, CalSouthern has elected and designated this program as not participating in Title IV federal financial aid programs. This means students enrolling in this program may not use Federal Student Aid to help pay for this program. Instead, it offers a variety of zero interest payment options for students.