Marketing
Program Details
Marketing professionals are creative problem solvers who use their skills to connect people to products, ideas, businesses and services. As a student in the undergraduate marketing major, you’ll dive into the captivating world of consumer research and brand management while honing your skills in many types of marketing, including digital marketing, search engine optimization, international marketing, social media marketing, category management and more.
You’ll also benefit from the curriculum’s distinctive focus on experiential learning opportunities. As part of the marketing major, you will work with multiple business on real-world business problems. Past classroom experiences have included partnerships with major brands and companies like Kellogg's, Kroger, Red Bull, The Cincinnati Reds, Tide and Procter & Gamble.
Xavier's marketing major was ranked by U.S. News & World Report as the #32 undergraduate marketing major in the nation for 2024. 99 percent of our students, including those in the marketing major, are working, volunteering or in graduate school within six months of graduation (Class of 2022). Xavier University's Williams College of Business is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB).
Degree Awarded
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) in Marketing
Curriculum
The sample course sequence below illustrates class offerings for the Marketing major. Consult the official Xavier University course catalog for detailed registration and advising information.
Fall
- CORE 100 First-Year Seminar............ 3cr.
- MATH 140 or 170: Calculus............ 3cr.
- ENGL 101: English Composition............ 3cr.
- Second Language Elective............ 3cr.
- MKTG 300: Principles of Marketing............ 3cr.
- CORE 101: GOA First Year Experience............ 0cr.
- BUAD 101: The Business Profession I............ 0cr.
Spring
- THEO 111: Theological Foundations............ 3cr.
- Historical Perspectives............ 3cr.
- Second Language Elective II............ 3cr.
- BAIS 220: Management of Business Technology............ 3cr.
- ECON 200: Microeconomics (Social Science)............ 3cr.
- BUAD 102: The Business Profession I............ 0cr.
- CORE 102: GOA First Year Experience 102............ 0cr.
Fall
- PHIL 100: Ethics as an Introduction to Philosophy............ 3cr.
- Creative Perspectives............ 3cr.
- BAIS 210: Quantitative Methods............ 3cr.
- ACCT 200: Introductory Financial Accounting............ 3cr.
- ECON 201: Macroeconomics............ 3cr.
- BUAD 201: The Business Profession II............ 0cr.
Spring
- Scientific Perspectives & Lab............ 3cr.
- Theological Perspectives............ 3cr.
- ACCT 201: Introductory Managerial Accounting............ 3cr.
- BAIS 211: Introduction to Business Analytics............ 3cr.
- MGMT 200: Organizational Management............ 3cr.
- BUAD 202: The Business Profession II............ 0cr.
Fall
- PHIL 200: Philosophical Perspectives............ 3cr.
- MGMT 201: Business & Professional Communication (OC/WRIT flags)............ 3cr.
- FINC 300: Business Finance (QR flag)............ 3cr.
- MKTG 370: Consumer Behavior............ 3cr.
- MKTG Elective............ 3cr.
- BUAD 301: The Business Profession III............ 0cr.
Spring
- Humanities Elective............ 3cr.
- ENGL 205: Literature & Moral Imagination............ 3cr.
- ECON 300: International Trade & Business Environment............ 3cr.
- MKTG 302: Market Research............ 3cr.
- Business Elective or Internship for Credit............ 3cr.
- BUAD 302: The Business Profession III............ 0cr.
Fall
- Natural Science Elective and Lab............ 3cr.
- BLAW 300: Legal Environment (ERS/DCR flags)............ 3cr.
- MKTG Elective............ 3cr.
- MKTG Elective............ 3cr.
- General Elective............ 3cr.
- BUAD 401: The Business Profession IV............ 0cr.
Spring
- MKTG 495: Marketing Strategy............ 3cr.
- MKTG Elective............ 3cr.
- Business Core Capstone............ 3cr.
- MGMT 302: Quality & Productivity in Operations............ 3cr.
- General Elective............ 3cr.
- BUAD 402: The Business Profession IV............ 0cr.
- CORE 499: Reflection on the Core Curriculum............ 0cr.
Sample Courses
Xavier is known for providing an education that's both challenging and personal. Here are some courses that are part of the marketing major at Xavier:
Consumer Behavior (MKTG 370) – Contemporary approaches to business emphasize the importance of adopting a consumer focus. Marketing, in particular, begins and ends with the consumer – from determining consumer needs to ensuring post-purchase satisfaction. You gain knowledge about consumer psychology and ways of better meeting peoples’ needs.
Marketing Research (MKTG 302) – Marketers need to understand how marketing research is used to make better business decisions, what research methods are appropriate for different types of problems, and how results should be interpreted.
International Marketing (MKTG 320) – The course provides a foundational understanding of international marketing management by investigating the economic, political, technological, competitive and social/cultural factors that impact firms’ managerial marketing mix decisions.
Professional Selling (MKTG 361) – This course introduces students to the dynamics of selling and techniques of persuasive leadership and explores selling as a profession through multiple channels. This course will provide you with an understanding of the processes and techniques involved in sales and sales force management.
Brand Building (MKTG 368) – This course takes a consumer-centric and real world approach to explore how companies create, build and sustain compelling and inspired brands. Students learn how brand strategy and action plans are crafted and developed within successful consumer-led companies.
Digital Marketing & Analytics (MKTG 385) – Students will learn to formulate and enact intelligent data-driven strategies and incorporate fundamental web marketing analytics into existing business practices. Core content will focus on identifying and understanding digital marketing metrics to gauge success of traditional, digital, interactive, and social media marketing efforts.
Principles of Category Management (MKTG 315) – Category Management is a discipline that maximizes the partnership between a retailer and manufacturer. Numerous consumer insight metrics and their use in the sales and marketing processes are examined.
Career Outcomes
99% of Xavier students, including those in the marketing major, are employed, attending grad school, or working in service or volunteer positions within six months of graduation (Class of 2022).
Career Opportunities: Brand Ambassador, Brand Manager, Digital Marketing Strategist, Marketing Analyst, Marketing Coordinator, Marketing Consultant, Marketing Manager, Marketing and Promotions Manager, Marketing Specialist, Product Marketing Manager, Sales Representative, Social Media Manager, SEO Specialist
Recent Student Job Placements: 84.51°, Amazon, Cincinnati Health Department, Cintas, Claritas, Danone, Directions Research, Enterprise, Fifth Third Bank, Four Entertainment Group (4EG), InfoTrust, J.M. Smucker Co., Johnson and Johnson, Kellogg Company, Kirk's Natural Brands, Kroger, L’Oréal Marketing, Macy's, Mercy Health, Nielsen, Oracle, Orr Fellowship (Indianapolis), Quotient Technology, Seneca Holdings, Standard Textile, TQL, True Brands, Venture For America Fellowship
More: Xavier's Career Development Office assists students in their search for employment by offering individual career counseling sessions, conducting workshop series on interviewing and resume writing techniques and maintaining an educational, vocational and employer information resource center. More than 100 nationally known companies visit the campus annually to interview graduating seniors for positions in business and industry.
Student Clubs
Xavier Marketing Club
The Xavier Marketing Club is associated with the American Marketing Association. The club seeks to offer marketing majors and other students the opportunity to gain a broader, realistic, more practically oriented exposure to marketing activities. The Marketing Club strives to improve each member's marketability in today's highly competitive job market.
Business Leaders for Tomorrow
Members of this student organization explore business processes firsthand by networking with and learning from various business leaders in Cincinnati and beyond. Events from past years have included trips to Silicon Valley and Chicago, job shadowing days and guest lecturers.
Minorities in Business
The vision of M.I.B is to position Xavier University as a target school for Fortune 500 diversity recruitment programs. Our mission is to create a vibrant and supportive community that fuels the professional growth and success of our members.
Women In Business (XWIB)
Preparing and empowering women to be tomorrow’s leaders through professional training, personal development workshops, mentoring and service.
Take the Next Step
Marketing Courses Grounded in Real-World Learning
Faculty within the Marketing Department offer a variety of courses which combine theory and practice and emphasize hands on experiences. The majority of marketing courses incorporate a combination of guest speakers, client projects, site visits and/or case studies in addition to traditional lectures.
Additional Experiential Learning Opportunities for Marketing Majors
The Sedler Family Center for Experiential Learning in Business offers students hands-on experiences and connections in the Cincinnati, Silicon Valley and Portland business communities. The Center offers students the opportunity to collaborate with professors, business people and other business students.
The Sedler Family Center for Experiential Learning in Business
Cincinnati: No. 1 City for Recent College Grads
Cincinnati, Ohio features some of the largest companies in the world, which means students in the marketing major have countless opportunities for careers, internships and mentorships at places like Kroger, Procter & Gamble and Fifth Third Bancorp. The city is ranked the #1 Best City for College Graduates (smartasset.com) and the #15 Best Place to Start a Career (WalletHub).
Faculty Spotlight: Richie Liu, Ph.D - Marketing
Meet Richie Liu, Ph.D, associate professor in the Marketing Department.
Graduate With Honors
Are you looking for an academic challenge? The Smith Scholars Honors Program offers business students a more innovative, challenging curriculum in a cohort setting. This highly-selective program emphasizes experiential learning through funded global travel, work-study opportunities and close connections and support from professors and peers.
Marketing Major at Xavier University
The Marketing program at Xavier University is a minimum 120-hour degree program that studies the dynamic processes used by individuals and organizations to anticipate and satisfy customers' needs and wants. In today's society, this is accomplished through marketing research, product planning and pricing, promotion (advertising and selling) and distribution. Students will learn to develop an understanding of the concepts, functions and institutions of marketing; gain an appreciation of consumer orientation; sharpen your abilities to analyze marketing problems and formulate marketing policies; and prepare for strategic marketing challenges and opportunities in a global marketplace.
Xavier University's Williams College of Business is accredited by the AACSB. AACSB-accredited schools offer students a relevant and challenging curriculum, the highest quality faculty and career opportunities that are not found at other business schools.
Xavier University is a private university located in Cincinnati, Ohio, providing a liberal arts education in the Jesuit Catholic tradition. Founded in 1831, the University is the sixth-oldest Catholic university in the nation. It has been ranked among the top 10 master's-level universities in the Midwest by U.S. News & World Report for the past two decades. The Princeton Review names it one of the "Best 385 Colleges in America."