Description of the Field

Human Resource Management is a major functional area of all businesses and includes employee recruitment and selection, training and development, employee relations, compensation and benefits, performance evaluation, and human resource planning. The human resource management major provides students with a broad overview of the educational and professional aspects of human resource management.

General Skills

Through the courses in the business foundation program, taken in the freshman and sophomore years, students typically gain these skills:

Effective written and oral communications skills, including public speaking;

Familiarity with computer concepts and applications;

Quantitative skills, including mathematics and accounting;

Fundamental knowledge of economics and social sciences.

Specific Skills

Students completing the human resource management major typically develop the following skills:

Problem solving abilities;

Proficiency in job analysis;

Proficiency in performance appraisal;

Understanding of the impact of employment law.

Academic Coursework

Representative coursework taken by students in this major includes:

Human Resource Management;

Compensation Management;

Employment Law;

Seminar in Industrial Relations;

Seminar in Human Resource Management;

Business Statistics;

Managing Dynamic Organizations.

Additional Experience

To make yourself more marketable:

Enroll in the Cooperative Education program to gain valuable work experience;

Participate in, and accept leadership roles in, organizations such as the Society for Human Resource Management;

Take electives in areas related to your career goals, such as employee benefits, labor economics, or counseling, or minor in a supporting area (e.g., industrial psychology);

Arrange for an internship or part-time job in the field.

Career Opportunities

Some of the positions typically entered by students with this major include the following:

Compensation Analyst;

Employee Benefits Specialist;

Human Resource Assistant;

Human Resource Manager (small organization);

Employment Recruiter;

Employment Interviewer;

Training and Development Specialist.

Related Fields/Graduate Study

Although graduate work is not necessary for entry into this field, students often pursue a Master of Business Administration or Master of Science degree with a concentration in human resource management. A degree in law, with emphasis on personnel/industrial relations, might also be considered.

Other Careers

Career opportunities in other academic programs at VCU are listed at Careers and Courses@ VCU.