If you're a high school student thinking about a future in business, you might assume it is a rigorous path of math and economics classes. In reality, the most prepared students arrive on campus with a broad, well-rounded foundation. Modern businesses sit at the intersection of analytics, communication and technology, so the best high school preparation reflects that mix rather than any single discipline.
You don't need to know exactly what specific business program you'll pursue before you graduate high school. What matters more is building the core skills that every business path relies on.
Build a Strong Quantitative Foundation
Business runs on numbers, so having a strong math foundation should be a priority. Take the highest level of math your school offers, especially a statistics class. Statistics is one of the most directly applicable courses for anything involving data, forecasting or decision-making. Whether you eventually choose a career in finance, business analytics or management, understanding numbers will serve you well from your very first semester.
Get a Basic Understanding of Economics
An introductory course in microeconomics or macroeconomics teaches you to think in terms of incentives, trade-offs and markets, ideas that show up in virtually every business discipline. These courses will give you the basic vocabulary and way of thinking that help you understand college-level business courses faster.
Sharpen Your Writing and Speaking
Business is as much about communication as it is about numbers. You'll be writing memos, pitching ideas and presenting to teams and clients throughout your career, so courses that emphasize writing, along with electives like public speaking or debate, are highly valuable. Having strong communications skills separate people with good ideas from the leaders who can actually get them adopted.
Get Comfortable with Technology
With the advent of AI, basic digital and data literacy is now essential in business. An introductory course in computer science, coding or business technology will be beneficial, especially as more business roles lean on data, automation and analytics tools. Familiarity with spreadsheets and exposure to coding languages like Python or SQL will put you ahead of the curve.
Explore Business Electives
Take an introductory business, accounting, marketing or entrepreneurship class, if your high school offers them. These courses are a low-stakes way to discover which aspect of business genuinely interests you before you have to choose a major, and it shows college admissions teams that you have a real curiosity about business.
The Right Fit Matters
No single checklist guarantees admission to a prestigious business school. What these university are really looking for are students who challenge themselves, write clearly, reason quantitatively and are curious about how organizations, markets and people work.
These types of students are exactly what Stevens School of Business is built for. U.S. News & World Report ranks Stevens No. 72 Best Business School for 2026, with eight undergraduate majors, each reflecting a different way to develop your business skills.
Accounting & Analytics: pairs core accounting fundamentals with the data analysis skills top employers expect.
Business & Technology: our most popular major, combining a business concentration (finance, marketing, information systems, economics or international business) with a technology concentration of your choice.
Business & Artificial Intelligence: combines a rigorous business education with applied artificial intelligence, machine learning, data analytics and emerging technologies to strategically apply AI to solve complex business challenges.
Economics: grounded in the rigor of the American Economic Association's guidelines for data analysis and problem-solving.
Finance: recognized by the CFA Institute University Affiliation Program, preparing students for the CFA exams.
Management: develops analytical decision-making alongside project and people management skills.
Marketing Innovation & Analytics: combines creative campaign strategy with the analytical methods used to measure it.
Quantitative Finance: a highly technical path into investment banking, risk management, and financial modeling, with Bloomberg certification starting in the first year.
Because Stevens is a technology-focused university, every one of our majors weaves in analytics and technology from day one, which is exactly why building a comfort level with math, data and technology in high school gives you a strong head start. Whichever direction you're leaning, a well-rounded high school curriculum, paired with activities like DECA, Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) or student government, is the best preparation you can give yourself before choosing a top business program at a prestigious university.
Learn more about the Stevens School of Business programs:
