ALMA — A new major being introduced at Alma College in central Michigan will allow students to benefit from instructors with real-world experience in the field, small class sizes and a friendly and safe community, while preparing for positions in high-level, executive roles.
Beginning in fall 2025, students can formally begin to pursue a Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in marketing, although they can begin to take coursework for the major already. The marketing program, like others at Alma College, has been approved by the Higher Learning Commission.
“What we’ve tried to do is to create a program that will set students up, not only for a job, but to be a high-level leader in the fields of marketing and business,” said Professor of Business Andy Singer. “When complete, our students will have hands-on experience in creating, analyzing and implementing traditional and digital marketing campaigns. We’re really excited to roll out this new program to prospective students.”
As part of the marketing major, students will have opportunities to take courses such as marketing management, professional selling, design fundamentals, UI-UX design, search engine optimization, branding, digital marketing and project management. Working with the Career and Personal Development Office they’ll be able to set up a required internship in their field of study while benefitting from the college’s vast alumni network for possible job connections.
Although not required, students will also have opportunities to participate in extracurricular activities centered around their chosen field of study, such as Business Professionals of America.
“This program is a seamless fit for what we already offer at Alma College,” said Singer, whose own professional background includes positions as a product manager, director of marketing and sales manager, all the way up to the presidential level. “Marketing is essentially one of those disciplines that requires an interdisciplinary skillset in order to be successful. That’s our bread and butter at Alma College — a liberal arts education that allows students to adapt and grow, based on changes in the industry.”
The new marketing major comes off the heels of some major changes to the college’s already-stout business program offerings. The business major was completely revamped in 2022, in collaboration with members of the college’s Board of Trustees who work as high-level executives in the private sector. It gave students the opportunity to concentrate their studies in four distinct disciplines; business analytics, environmental responsibility, leadership and management, and sports management. A fifth concentration, operations and supply chain management, was added in 2023.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, jobs in marketing are plentiful — and in growing supply. According to the Bureau, the number of jobs for advertising, promotions and marketing managers in 2022 was 389,000. Employment of those positions is expected to grow by 6 percent from 2022-23, which is faster than average. Median pay for those positions, as of 2023, was more than $150,000 annually.
For more information on the new Alma College marketing degree program, visit alma.edu/academics/programs/marketing or call or call (989) 463-7139.
