Undergraduate Major & Minor - Marketing

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Marketing is about understanding customers. Marketers create, communicate, and deliver value with the goal of satisfying customers’ needs. Marketers include puzzle-solvers, data scientists, consumer psychologists, and inspired innovators.

  • Marketers are investigative, identifying unfulfilled needs and desires.
  • Marketers are analytically-driven, quantifying the size of markets and potential for profits.
  • Marketers are strategic, pinpointing how a company can win in a competitive environment.
  • Marketers are creative, designing and promoting appealing products and services.

Job opportunities in marketing include product or brand management, consulting, customer insights, analyzing markets, sales and business development, and advertising and media communications.

Major Curriculum

Marketing Major Program Requirements and Course Descriptions

 

Minor Curriculum

Marketing Minor Program Requirements and Course Descriptions

Four-year Plan

Marketing Major Sample Plan

The APAS is the official method for tracking the completion of your specific degree requirements. Please be aware that there are multiple ways for students to progress through this major. This is just one sample. Students should work with their advisor to develop their individual plan.

Italic: course pre-requisites and co-requisites (designated by &)

Bold: Liberal Ed requirement

Print Plan

Freshman Year

Fall Semester

  • Econ 1165 Business Economics (Soc Sci) (4cr)
  • BA 2551 Business Statistics in R (Math) (4cr)
  • BA 1011 Leading Self & Teams (2cr)
  • BA 1021 Design Your Life (1cr)
  • Writ 1301 First Year Writing (4cr)

15 credits

Spring Semester

  • Acct 2051 Financial Reporting (4cr)
  • BA 2051 Solving Business Scenarios in Excel (2cr)
  • BA 2062 Powerful Problem Solving (2cr)
  • Design Your Career (1cr)
  • BA 2005 Corporate Responsibility & Ethics (Civ) (3cr) 
  • Liberal Ed (3-4cr)

15-16 credits

Sophomore Year

Fall Semester

Maroon Block I-Core

  • Mktg 3001 Principles of Marketing (3cr)
  • IDSc 3001 Information Systems & Digital Transformation (3cr)
  • BA 3001 Race, Power, & Justice in Business (RPJ) (3cr)
  • Acct 3001 Strategic Management Accounting (3cr)
  • BA 3051 Data-Driven Business Decisions (BA 2551 & BA 2051) (3cr)

15 credits

Spring Semester

Gold Block I-Core

  • Fina 3001 Finance Fundamentals (Acct 2051 & BA 2551) (3cr)
  • Mgmt 3004 Strategic Management (3cr)
  • SCO 3001 Sustainable Supply Chain Management (3cr)
  • HRIR 3021 Human Capital Management (3cr)
  • BA 3062 Impact Lab Project (BA 2062) (2cr)

15 credits

Declare a major: 
z.umn.edu/CarlsonDeclare

Junior Year

Fall Semester

  • BA 3551 Business Analytics (BA 2551 & BA 2051) (3cr)
  • Mktg 3011 Marketing Research (Mktg 3001 & statistics) (4cr)
  • Mktg 3041 Buyer Behavior (Mktg 3001) (4cr)
  • Liberal Ed (3cr)

14 credits

Spring Semester

  • BA 3033W Business Communication (3cr)
  • Marketing Foundations course (4cr)
  • Liberal Ed (4cr)
  • Liberal Ed (3cr)
  • Elective (2cr)

16 credits

Senior Year

Fall Semester

  • Marketing Analysis course (4cr)
  • Marketing Analysis or Foundations course (4cr)
  • Liberal Ed (4cr)
  • Liberal Ed (3cr)

15 credits

Spring Semester

  • Mktg 4081W Capstone: Marketing Strategy (Mktg 3001, 3011, 3041 & majority of major completed) (4cr)
  • Liberal Ed (3cr)
  • Elective (4cr)
  • Elective (4cr)

15 credits

Total Credits Needed for Degree: 120


Note: Students must complete an international experience as part of the program requirements. Short-term programs or semester-length programs may be used to meet this requirement. Explore your options: z.umn.edu/CarlsonIE

Kim Nguyen

I love the way marketing combines my interests in psychology, storytelling, and creativity while offering a variety of career paths to pursue.

Kim Nguyen, '26 BSB

Frequently Asked Questions

In the Marketing major, you'll work with real data, analyze actual ad campaigns, and build the confidence to solve complex marketing challenges. Your classes are centered around hands-on projects, and packed with opportunities to practice what you are learning. By the time you reach your senior strategy capstone, you'll be fully prepared to tackle the marketing problems companies are facing today.

Marketing is a fast-paced, ever-changing field. Whether you're interested in brand and product management, digital and social media strategy, or high-growth fields like marketing analytics and research, you’ll graduate ready to make a real impact in the industry. Marketing majors can work for startups or large corporations, and have the skills to help a business thrive.
 

Find more Marketing Key Career Info

Yes, modern marketing is all about data. At Minnesota Carlson, we’ll help you build data fluency, which is the ability to use numbers to tell a story and make smart decisions. Beyond your business statistics requirements, you'll take coursework in marketing research and electives like Data-Driven Marketing. You’ll learn to use the same tools industry leaders use to analyze consumer data, track campaign performance, and prove that your creative ideas get results.
 

You’ll have plenty of ways to get hands-on experience and build your network. Join the Student Marketing Association (SMA) to connect with recruiters from top companies like Target, 3M, and Cargill through panels, workshops, and site visits. You can also test your skills in competitions like the AMA Minnesota Collegiate Case Competition or take the popular Marketing-in-Action elective, where you’ll act as a consultant to work on live projects for real clients. Plus, you can attend events like the annual Ignite Conference to see the latest trends shaping the future of marketing.
 

Contact Undergraduate Program