This is the introductory course in Marketing. As such it is a part of the core requirement of all business majors, is the foundation for all subsequent courses in Marketing and several other allied curricula, and is a basic part of the “common body of knowledge” that is required for a business minor. The instructional content focuses on the vocabulary and concepts that are the basis of managerial problem solving by marketing decision makers.

Both “micro” and “macro” approaches are taken in order to demonstrate the interrelationships between marketing decisions and the competitive environment. Course coverage includes the application of basic microeconomic concepts and analytic problem solving to the study of marketing issues as they are related to other managerial decisions.

COURSE PREREQUISITES:

The prerequisites for this course are
                                         - a cumulative 2.2 GPA,
                                         - junior standing and,
                                         - a passing grade in ECON 2020.

The textbook for this course is PRINCIPLES OF MARKETING 11th edition (Pearson Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey), copyright 2006. It is authored by Phillip Kotler & Gary Armstrong.

This text has been packaged in a special bundle for this course by the publisher under the ISBN #: 0-13-227764-6. This package includes:

Alternatively, this text is available in an online version (without all the bundled material) at a substantially reduced rate at Safarix eTextbook’s.

Since this text has been in use since the fall term of 2005, numerous resellers offer both used and new versions of this text at substantially discounted prices. Normally you should be able to find a “very good” copy of the text for less than $50 and “like new” copies selling for between $50 and $100. There is also an “International soft cover edition” listed in “new/sealed” condition that sells for between $55 and $65. Students should use caution when purchasing some of these bargain texts. It should be noted that the listing for most all used texts are for the textbook only and typically do not include the augmented materials.

Of special interest is the frequency in which book resellers offer sealed, new Instructor Editions of the text. These are specially annotated versions of the text that are given as examination copies to faculty members who in turn simply sell them to used book purchasers. Some resellers even offer copies of the Test Bank, Instructor's Teaching Guides and Case Solution Manuals that are acquired from low life instructors who swap their ethics for a few extra dollars.

GRADE DETERMINATION:

Your grade for the course will be determined by your relative performance on four equally weighted examinations. The dates for the exams are posted on the calendar. Each exam is non-cumulative. That is, the material covered for each examination will be limited to the chapters covered since the last exam.

The results of each examination will be scaled to be a portion of the highest scores actually achieved by the 3-5% top scoring students in the class. Thus your grade will be determined as a proportion of peer performance and will not be determined by the length, difficulty or the squirrely wording of the questions that were either randomly selected from the computerized test bank or drafted by your instructor. Note that this action does not curve grades it simply eliminates much of the impact of ambiguous or unduly complex questions.

EXAMINATION PROCEDURES:

Fifty multiple choice questions will be used for each examination. The rationale for this number is based in part on the advise of instructors with long term experience with large section Principles courses and in part on the experience of the College Board. The College Board offers a CLEP exam for the Principles of Marketing Course. Their time allowance is 90 minutes for 100 multiple choice questions (not including the time for providing personal information). That is a time limit of 54 seconds per question. Thus using this as a reasonable standard, you would expect 55.6 questions per 50 minute time period. Some students find that their performance/ability is such that they require more time for these types of exams. If this is your situation, you need to request special accommodations through the Program for Students with Disabilities in 1244 Haley Center.

All exams will be objective exercises and will be machine scored. You will need to bring an AU, DUC, blue "General Purpose Scan Sheet" and a # 2 lead pencil to each examination. Since exam times are limited you are advised to complete (bubble-in on the scan sceet) the basic identification stuff before coming into the exam.

Your exam seating will be assigned by seat number. Each student will be required to show a picture ID (preferably your student ID card, but your driver's license will do if you can't find your student ID) upon turning in the exam.

There will be at least three versions of the same exam used for each class. Each class will have different questions for each examination.

At least fifty percent of the questions on each exam will be randomly drawn from the text publisher’s test bank. These questions will come directly from the textbook and may not reflect material covered in class, covered in the study guide or included in the practice tests that are accessed via Course Compass.

At least twenty percent of the questions on each test will come from material that was presented in class that is not covered in the textbook, the study guide or the practice tests. These off-text materials will be taken from the instructor’s lectures, from videos that are presented in-class and selected website that may be explored during a given lecture.

MAKE-UP EXAMS:

University policy requires that a make-up examination be given for all exams that are missed with a University approved excuse. College of Business policy requires that such make-up exams be given within two weeks. It is the student’s responsibility to provide the instructor with a written University approved excuse at the time that the make-up is given. All makeup exams will be different from the exam given to the class and should be scheduled during the instructor’s posted office hours.

The schedule of exam dates, including make-ups, is given on the course calendar.

ATTENDENCE and GENERAL CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR:

Class Attendance is not required. Regardless of your attendance, you are expected to keep up with the assigned text reading and to view the chapter videos. If you elect to come to class you must comply with some basic courtesies that should be afforded your instructor and your classmates. No eating, drinking or reading newspapers during class. Remove hats and cutoff all beepers, phones or other disruptive electronic devises. Most importantly, please refrain from talking during the lectures.

Enter the classroom through the rear doors only. Do not use the emergence doors located on the stage. Please reserve the back 3 rows of seats for those students who come in late. It is also advisable not to sit in the three rows closest to the overhead screen.

COURSE CALENDAR: Click here to go to the course calendar.