The Professional Selling Concentration provides an opportunity for all RBS students to obtain the essential knowledge required to pursue a professional career in sales. In addition, it provides those pursuing other career paths to learn valuable skills to complement their area(s) of focus. The role of selling is a critical function in all industries and is responsible for driving revenue, share and profit for an organization. Salespeople also serve as an important link between an organization and its customers. Professional Selling requires a specific set of skills for an individual to execute the sales process successfully. Even if you are not planning a career in sales, you will need to sell ideas and influence others throughout your career, no matter what your role, and this concentration will help you do just that!
According to US News and World Report “The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 3.7% employment growth for sales representatives between 2021 and 2031. In that period, an estimated 48,900 jobs should open up.”
In addition, According to a Wall Street Journal Article (July 2021), “Demand for sales roles has shot up as companies emerging from the pandemic switch to growth mode….ZipRecruiter, an online job platform, shows the number of sales roles advertised has risen steadily, up 65% in 2021 to more than 700,000 open positions around the U.S."
Goals of the Concentration
To empower students with the skills, strategies, and techniques necessary to be a successful sales professional and apply those learnings through "real-world" classroom experiences including:
- Finding customers and developing relationships
- Using strategies and tools to meet client needs
- Solving customer problems
- Psychology of Selling
- Building and motivating a sales team
Concentration's Structure
In addition to the two required courses you will take 1 sales-focused elective out of the 4 offered to meet the program requirements (see below). Upon completion of the program, students enrolled will receive the Professional Selling Certification noted on their transcripts!
Required (6 credits)
| COURSE # | TITLE | CR |
| 29:630:485 | Professional Selling | 3 |
| 29:630:401 | Sales Management | 3 |
Electives (3 credits)
| COURSE # | TITLE | CR |
| 29:620:350 | Negotiations | 3 |
| 29:630:368 | Retail Marketing | 3 |
| 29:630:369 | New Product Planning | 3 |
| 29:630:370 | Business to Business Marketing | 3 |
*You may declare the Professional Selling concentration as part of a Marketing major. These courses will count as your major electives and are the exception to the rule below.
**Please note that you cannot double count or overlap ANY courses between RBS majors and RBS certificates. All certificate courses must be on top of any courses required for a given RBS major. DEGREE NAVIGATOR WILL NOT REMOVE THE "DOUBLE-COUNTING" COURSES, SO STUDENTS WILL NEED TO MONITOR THIS ON THEIR OWN.***