By Rosemarie Ruccella
The School of Business Management is aiming to improve its prestige by renaming itself.
The Business Student Association (BSA) is asking students if they want to change their degree’s name from a Bachelor of Business Management (BBM) to Bachelor of Commerce (B. Comm.)..
The name question was raised when the School of Business Management introduced a Bachelor of Commerce (retail) degree.
“When Ryerson passed the new degree for retail, [faculty thought] why don’t we think about changing our name,” said Lee Maguire, associate dean of the School of Management.
“The discussion then took its normal course through halls, washrooms and classrooms.”
The debate over the issue is picking up steam. While business alumni seem to support the change in name, students taking the program are divided.
The faculty and alumni of the business school argue prospective employers recognize a Bachelor of Commerce more than the BBM degree. The School of Business Management surveyed 29 Canadian universities, 18 of which had B. Comm. degrees.
The BSA is circulating 800 questionnaires among the 3,000 business students to gauge support for the idea.
John Yu, of the BSA, supports the idea of a new name.
“It all comes down to how people perceive you,” said Yu.
“If people know [the quality of] Ryerson, they know the program is different. If [the employer] doesn’t know about Ryerson’s program, than a B. Comm. is more beneficial because it’s more known.”
Gregg Lee, a third-year business student, agreed: “The problem is that people who hire have B. Comm. degrees, but they’re not the same as ours.”
Other business students disagree.
“I think this is an attempt by Ryerson to be like other universities. I think Ryerson should be proud of its uniqueness,” said Sarah Maloney, a third-year business student.
“[Being called] business management gives students an advantage,” said Nadia Rampersad, a fourth-year business student. “It tell employers that Ryerson students can take charge.”
The School of Business Management has scheduled a meeting Feb. 18 at 4 p.m. to discuss the name change. The BSA surveys will be presented to the Business Council on March 7, when it’s expected they will make a decision based on student reaction.
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