Robert J. Trulaske, Sr. College of Business Improves in BusinessWeek Rankings

In BusinessWeek’s recently published annual rankings, the University of Missouri’s undergraduate business program in the Robert J. Trulaske, Sr. College of Business took a step up from last year. The BS BA program was ranked #76 among undergraduate programs, compared to #84 in the previous year. Mizzou’s program is in the top one-fifth of all accredited programs in the U.S., is #34 among public universities, and ranks fourth among Big 12 institutions.

“I’m sure that all of the other schools with undergraduate business programs are striving to improve the quality of the educational experience for their students and, as a by-product of doing so, move up in the rankings.  Thus our ranking improved despite stiff competition,” says Bruce Walker, dean of the Trulaske College of Business.  “I attribute our gain to the growing awareness of the distinctive aspects of Mizzou’s BS BA program, which combines top-caliber classroom instruction with a wide array of professional development experiences.”

BusinessWeek’s rankings are data-intensive, taking into consideration numerous factors, including selectivity in admissions at the program level, class sizes, starting salaries of graduates, and alumni contributions. The publication also obtains opinions from recruiters, recent alumni, and seniors in the college. To be eligible for the rankings, schools must have an accredited undergraduate business degree program that meets the magazine’s criteria for program size, age, test scores, and grade point averages for business majors, and number of full-time tenured faculty, among other factors.

The college’s BS BA program was also designated as "one of America's best," with a ranking of #48 in the September issue of U.S. News & World Report.  The magazine's rankings are based on a survey of deans and directors at undergraduate business programs accredited by AACSB.