October 31, 2002

Smith Jumps to #25 in BusinessWeek Rankings

The Robert H. Smith School of Business has jumped to #25, up two spots from #27, in BusinessWeek magazine's just-released biennial rankings of the nation's best business schools. The rankings are part of 'The Best B-Schools' cover story in BusinessWeek's October 21 issue, now available on newsstands.

The 2002 rankings are based, in part, on surveys of corporate recruiters, as well on surveys of the MBA classes of 2002 and MBA graduates from 2000 and 1998. The Smith School scored especially well in categories based on the surveys of its MBA graduates. The graduate surveys helped the Smith School earn 'A' grades in the 'curriculum' and 'ethics' categories. The school also earned the #7 spot onBusinessWeek's list of 'schools that get the highest grades from their grads for faculty quality' and the #15 spot in the 'graduate poll' category, up significantly from the rankings in 2000.

"Thanks to strong, well-rounded teaching, (the Smith School) vaulted 10 spots in (the) student ranking," notes BusinessWeek, in the 2002 'Best B-Schools' issue.

In addition, the Smith School earned the #21 spot for its 'intellectual capital,' which reflects the quality of the school's faculty research. BusinessWeek includes this component in the rankings because its editors believe the best B-schools disseminate their know-how and ideas to real-world managers, and therefore can be judged on the public reach of their faculties.

"BusinessWeek's Best B-School ranking is truly about value'the value that an MBA education adds to a graduate's r'um'and the value these grads add to the companies that hire them," said Stephen Shepard, the magazine's editor-in-chief.

The Smith School's strong showing in the BusinessWeek survey comes on the heels of the school's top rankings in two other closely watched lists. Last month, The Wall Street Journal ranked the Smith School's MBA program #16 in the world, while U.S. News & World Report ranked the school's undergraduate business program #18.

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About the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business

The Robert H. Smith School of Business is an internationally recognized leader in management education and research. One of 12 colleges and schools at the University of Maryland, College Park, the Smith School offers undergraduate, full-time and flex MBA, executive MBA, online MBA, business master’s, PhD and executive education programs, as well as outreach services to the corporate community. The school offers its degree, custom and certification programs in learning locations in North America and Asia.

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