Business education website Poets&Quants for Undergrads again ranked the University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce the fourth best undergraduate business program in the U.S., with the Commerce School’s renowned academic experience earning the #1 ranking. Based on surveys completed by alumni from 91 leading U.S. business schools, McIntire’s academic experience garnered a perfect index score of 100.
McIntire earned the highest-ranked spot of any public university, and by maintaining its position at #4, joins Wharton for most consistently placing in the top five schools in recent years.
The Commerce School also climbed one spot from last year’s rankings for excellence in both the admissions standards and career outcomes categories.
The overall strong showing is the result of high marks received across three equally weighted categories, measuring each school’s ability to foster, challenge, and develop students’ minds (academic experience); the quality and diversity of a program’s students (admissions standards); and the world’s top employers’ responses to those graduates (career outcomes). Survey topics to determine those results included faculty availability, extracurricular opportunities, and alumni network accessibility.
“As this ranking demonstrates, our undergraduate program excels in supporting our students academically and professionally as they use commerce to make a positive impact—both here on Grounds and in a multitude of careers across the globe,” says McIntire Dean Nicole Thorne Jenkins. “Year after year, McIntire’s repeated success is possible because our students and alumni benefit from the ongoing commitment of our faculty and staff to create transformational learning experiences. And as we continue to revamp and reinvigorate our curriculum, the world-class education the Comm School provides stands as the culmination of the dedication shared by the entire McIntire community.”
Designed to give UVA students a comprehensive skill set, develop global perspectives, and provide experiences that prepare them to deliver business value in the marketplace, McIntire’s B.S. in Commerce is centered on its hallmark Integrated Core program. An intense and demanding third-year curriculum, the program treats students as consultants from day one, teaching them to work collaboratively and developing their skills across analytic, strategic, organizational, and behavioral areas. Blending instruction and insights from faculty teams, alumni practitioners, and corporate leaders, the Integrated Core is carefully constructed to provide students with exposure to the complexities of business.
Amanda Cowen, Senior Associate Dean for Academic Programs and Professor of Commerce, says that McIntire remains dedicated to preparing its students for not only their first job, but also for a lifetime of success in the constantly evolving global marketplace: “The Commerce School’s integrated curriculum provides students with hands-on experience undertaking complex organizational challenges and collaborating with diverse teams. Accordingly, students graduate McIntire with a comprehensive understanding of business and the professional competencies they need to thrive, contribute, and lead.”
The unique McIntire experience is leveraged by a connected and supportive network of alumni, families, corporate partners, and friends. Core aspects of the academic experience such as recruitment and retention of award-winning staff and faculty, immersive student experiences, and leading-edge coursework and technology are funded through the generous philanthropy of the Commerce community. Particularly, unrestricted giving to the McIntire Annual Fund provides flexibility to capitalize on emerging opportunities, ensuring that McIntire remains at the forefront of business education.
McIntire’s corporate partners also play a critical role in the academic experience, meeting regularly with students, challenging them to create comprehensive solutions to pressing, real-world business problems and, in turn, to effectively communicate their findings during presentations to executives. All aspects of the program place a robust emphasis on the development of vital professional business such as leadership, teamwork, communication, design thinking, creativity, self-learning, and interpersonal skills.
Beyond the Integrated Core, students complete up to two specialized concentrations in Accounting, Finance, Information Technology, Management, and Marketing. Students may choose additional areas of study in tracks such as Real Estate, Entrepreneurship, Business Analytics, Quantitative Finance, Global Commerce, and Strategic Brand Consulting & Communications. The School offers a portfolio of specialized courses, which includes minors in Leadership, Entrepreneurship, Real Estate, and General Business (for non-Commerce majors), as well as flexible micro-courses designed to deliver foundational business content to all University students.
This year, as part of a broader School-wide initiative, McIntire launched a portfolio of Commerce for the Common Good signature courses that address significant societal challenges in business, with subjects such as racial and ethical issues in commerce, applications of the global capitalism system, and conflicts and temptations inherent in financial markets.
