Appalachian State’s Walker College of Business ‘One of the Best’ in Princeton’s 296 Best Business Schools Review

Oct. 16, 2012. The Walker College of Business at Appalachian State University has been included in the 2013 edition of the Princeton Review’s annual guidebook, “The Best 296 Business Schools.” The guidebook is published by Random House/Princeton Review Books.

According to Robert Franek, Princeton Review senior vice president for publishing, “We consider the Walker College of Business one of the best institutions a student could attend to earn an MBA. We selected the schools we profile in this book – 280 of which are in the U.S.A. and 16 are international – based on our high regard for their academic programs and our reviews of institutional data we collect from the schools. We also solicit and greatly respect the opinions of students attending these schools who rate and report on their experiences at them on our 80-question survey for the book.”

The Princeton Review’s survey asked 19,000 students at the 296 schools their opinions of their school’s academics, student body and campus life as well as about themselves and their career plans. The student surveys analyzed for this edition were all completed online and conducted during the 2011-12, 2010-11 and 2009-10 academic years.

“The Walker College’s rigorous MBA degree program and the college’s international focus prepare graduates for leadership responsibilities in a dynamic global environment,” said Dr. Randy Edwards, dean of the college. “Our graduates not only acquire the knowledge needed to succeed as business leaders, they also demonstrate the leadership and teamwork skills, analytical and critical thinking skills and appreciation for diversity and multiculturalism needed to succeed in today’s business environment.”

“The Best 296 Business Schools” has two-page profiles of each school. They include write-ups on academics, career and placement, student life and environment, and admissions. The profiles also have ratings (scores from 60 to 99) for academic experience, admissions selectivity and career services.

In the profile on the Walker College of Business, students praised the college for its “solid preparation in accounting, presentations skills and doing business in a global economy.”

The Princeton Review editors noted that, “the entire MBA—including an optional internship—can be completed in only one year.” They also noted that, “Despite its speedy schedule, the MBA covers all functional areas of business, including accounting, economics, finance, management, marketing, operations, and information systems. In addition to the core curriculum, students have the option of tailoring their education through a concentration in one of three fields: sustainable business, international business, or general management.”

The Princeton Review does not rank the schools in the book on a single hierarchical list from 1 to 296, or name one business school best overall. Instead, the book has 11 ranking lists of the top 10 business schools in various categories. Ten lists are based entirely or partly on The Princeton Review’s surveys of students attending the schools in the book.

A few lists, such as “Best Career Prospects,” use both student survey and institutional data. One list, “Toughest to Get Into,” is based solely on institutional data. The lists in the book are posted at http://www.princetonreview.com/business-school-rankings.aspx.

In addition to the Princeton Review honors, the college’s Risk Management & Insurance (RMI) program was listed among the “10 Largest Risk and Insurance Schools” in Risk Management magazine’s September issue. The magazine ranked the program No. 5 nationally. It was No. 6 last year.

In 2011-12, Appalachian’s RMI program graduated 67 students, an increase of 14 from the academic year prior. The magazine reports that is a continued pattern of growth.