ORANGE, Calif., March 4, 2009 – The George L. Argyros School of Business and Economics at Chapman University has entered the elite list of the Top 50 Undergraduate Business Schools in the U.S., as ranked by BusinessWeek magazine in an announcement made this week. The Argyros School entered the prestigious rankings for the first time, at number 46 overall. The rankings appear in the current week’s issue (March 9) of BusinessWeek.

Chapman’s Argyros School ranks among the top 30 private institutions in the nation, according to BusinessWeek, and is the only business school in Orange County ranked in the Top 50. “Integrated coursework and an intimate setting make the grade, and faculty are available day and night,” said BusinessWeek in its published remarks about the Argyros School.

“The George L. Argyros School of Business and Economics is pleased to be ranked 46th in the 2009 BusinessWeek Top Undergraduate Business Program Rankings,” said Art Kraft, Ph.D., dean of the Argyros School. “Among the highlights, our program ranked 21st overall in recruiter satisfaction, received an A+ for quality of teaching, and received an A for academic quality. Such recognition gives external validation to our talented faculty, staff, and students as well as the widespread contributions from numerous stakeholders including alumni and friends. This was a collaborative effort to enhance quality and establish excellence while emphasizing reality-based education. These outstanding results would not be possible without the extensive commitment and vision of the leadership of Chapman University and numerous volunteers.”

To rank the programs, BusinessWeek used nine measures, including surveys of 85,000 senior business majors and nearly 600 corporate recruiters, median starting salaries for graduates, and the number of graduates each program sends to top MBA programs. BusinessWeek also calculated an academic quality rating for each program by combining SAT scores, student-faculty ratios, class size, the percentage of students with internships, and the number of hours students devote to class work.

“The results of BusinessWeek's fourth annual ranking of undergraduate business programs reflect the job market's uncertainty,” says the magazine on its website. “With 54% of responding seniors lacking an offer as of January (compared with 44% in 2008), the schools that excelled in our survey have put an intense focus on guiding students through the career search.”

See the complete BusinessWeek rankings


About the George L. Argyros School of Business and Economics:

The AACSB-accredited Argyros School of Business and Economics at Chapman University gives students access to an integrated business education taught by faculty deeply committed to student learning. The Argyros School faculty includes world renowned scholars including Nobel Laureate Vernon L. Smith. It offers undergraduate degrees in accounting, business administration, and economics, as well as MBA and Executive MBA programs. The school is home to several renowned research centers, including the Ralph W. Leatherby Center for Entrepreneurship and Business Ethics, the A. Gary Anderson Center for Economic Research, the Walter Schmid Center for International Business and the C. Larry Hoag Center for Real Estate and Finance.





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