Wholesale and Retail Buyers

• Obtain information about goods or services.
• Research issues related to the environment or sustainable business practices.
• Confer with personnel to coordinate business operations.
• Discuss business strategies, practices, or policies with managers.
• Identify strategic business investment opportunities.
• Authorize financial actions.
• Determine the value of goods or services.
• Purchase products or services.
• Purchase stocks of merchandise or supplies.
• Negotiate contracts with clients or service providers.

• Having telephone conversations.
• Using e-mail.
• Working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions.
• The freedom to determine tasks, priorities, and goals.
• Frequent decision-making.
• Working with a group or team.
• Meeting strict deadlines.
• Sitting.
• Responsibility for outcomes and results.

• Fashion Merchandising
• Sales, Distribution, and Marketing Operations, General

• Agricultural Business and Management
• Apparel and Textiles
• General Sales, Merchandising and Related Marketing Operations
• Specialized Sales, Merchandising and Marketing Operations

Enrolling in a community college can be a great place to start your four-year degree. While all 31 Minnesota State community colleges, technical colleges and universities offer all or part of the Minnesota Transfer Curriculum (a 40-credit package of general education courses accepted for transfer to other state colleges and universities, the University of Minnesota, and some private colleges and universities), not all two-year colleges offer degrees intended to transfer to a four-year bachelor's degree.

If you plan to transfer to obtain a four-year bachelor's degree, it is important to know which degree path is right for you:

• Associate of Arts (AA) degrees offered at community colleges are designed to transfer into liberal arts four-year majors.
• Associate of Science (AS) and Associate of Fine Arts (AFA) degrees offered at community and technical colleges transfer into specific four-year majors and will likely require completing additional general education courses at a university.
• Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degrees offered at technical and community colleges are not designed to transfer. They lead to immediate entry into the workplace.
• Diplomas and certificates offered at technical colleges are not designed to transfer. They lead to immediate entry into the workplace.

Talk to a transfer specialist as early as possible to determine the best associate degree for your goals. Be sure to review your Degree Audit Report (DARS) each semester to best prepare for transfer. Get more help understanding transfer using the tools below.

• Visit Transferology to see if your courses will transfer.
• Search Articulation Agreements to find formal transfer agreements between schools.

• Monitoring Performance—Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
• Negotiating—Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
• Persuading Others—Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
• Thinking Critically—Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Learning New Things—Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
• Listening—Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Reading—Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Speaking—Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Making Decisions—Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
• Being Aware of Others—Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

• Customer and Personal Service—Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Sales and Marketing—Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
• Computers and Electronics—Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Mathematics—Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• English Language—Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Clerical—Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
• Administration and Management—Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• Economics and Accounting—Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
• Communications and Media—Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
• Mechanical—Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

• Enterprising—Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.
• Conventional—Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.

• Real Estate Brokers
• Purchasing Agents
• Administrative Service Managers
• Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers
• Loan Officers
• General and Operations Managers
• Supervisors of Administrative Support Workers
• Buyers and Purchasing Agents of Farm Products
• Customs Brokers
• Procurement Clerks

• Merchant Wholesalers, Durable Goods
• Management of Companies and Enterprises
• Food and Beverage Stores
• Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods
• Wholesale Electronic Markets and Agents and Brokers

• Real Estate Brokers
• Purchasing Agents
• Administrative Service Managers
• Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers
• Loan Officers
• General and Operations Managers
• Supervisors of Administrative Support Workers
• Buyers and Purchasing Agents of Farm Products
• Customs Brokers
• Procurement Clerks