There are winning streaks, and then there is indisputable excellence.
In late January, the college’s commitment to delivering a high-quality educational experience was validated yet again by the 2022 Poets&Quants (P&Q) survey, which places the college No. 78 nationally for best overall undergraduate business programs.
In a repeat of its 2020 ranking, the college was also ranked No. 3 nationally for business schools with the most diverse student body. Additionally, the college ranked No. 55 best nationally in its ability to attract and retain high quality students, as well as No. 55 best for nurturing and improving soft skills in business, based on alumni feedback.
This marks the fifth year in a row, since the 2017 launch of its annual survey, that P&Q placed the NIU College of Business on its shortlist of the nation’s elite schools. This well-deserved accolade accompanies the college’s decades-long presence (34 years) among the nation’s best undergraduate business schools as determined by U.S. News & World Report in its annual ranking, which is released every August.
“Without question, the NIU College of Business has a long legacy of excellence brought about by the unwavering commitment of its faculty and staff,” says Beth Ingram, executive vice president and provost for Northern Illinois University. “One of many important outcomes from that commitment has been the distinction of being ranked third nationally for the highest percentage of traditionally underrepresented students. Diversity of perspectives, backgrounds, and ideas enhance our entire university community and make the campus and learning experience all that much more vibrant.”
Poets&Quants for Undergrads is the leading online publication for undergraduate business education news. Its annual ranking is considered the most comprehensive assessment of undergraduate business programs.
For the first time since the launch of the ranking, P&Q adjusted its methodology for the 2022 survey. The publication reduced the weight given to both average SAT scores and to acceptance rates, respectively. New to this year’s evaluation was the addition of the average high school GPA of the most recently enrolled class along with the average percentage of students who reported being National Merit finalists or semifinalists.
In making the change, Nathan Allen, Poets&Quants for Undergrads project manager, explained that P&Q wanted to look closely at three foundational issues they believe to correlate strongly with quality. “We believe the quality of business education comes down to three core issues: the quality and diversity of the raw talent coming through the door, what a school does with that talent over four years, and finally how the marketplace responds to the graduates coming off campus,” Allen says.
Or, as summarized on the P&Q website: admissions standards, student experience and career outcomes.
Within those overarching categories, schools were evaluated on specific issues. Recent NIU business graduates gave the college high marks (grade of A) when asked if they would recommend the business program and if business faculty were available outside of class, respectively. They scored the college strongly favorably (grade of B+) across a series of issues that include how well the program prepared them for work; whether the degree was worth its cost in tuition, time and resources, respectively; and the quality of teaching in the college as well as the ability of the degree to help them climb into a new socioeconomic status.
“That our students continue to rank their experience with us so highly – even with the challenges caused by an ongoing pandemic – provides strong endorsement of the efforts of our faculty and staff to create exceptional experiences. I find it especially gratifying to receive such powerful validation from our students and our alumni,” says Balaji Rajagopalan, dean of the NIU College of Business. “We are diligent about providing a high quality and accessible educational experience, as well as attracting well prepared students. We are equally committed to the career success of our graduates. Our strong alumni feedback in that regard is incredibly gratifying as well.”
The publication’s methodology included a survey of more than 5,400 alumni and school-reported data. Recent graduates across 94 elite and highly competitive schools were surveyed on the issues listed above as well as aspects of faculty availability, extracurricular opportunities and accessibility of the alumni network. Poets&Quants is the only ranking instrument in the world to collect this data set in one ranking.
Along with achieving continuous recognition as one of the nation’s elite business schools, the NIU College of Business has often been listed as one of few Illinois schools in this specific ranking. For the second year running, NIU was one of only two universities in Illinois that made the Poets&Quants national ranking of best undergraduate business programs.
by M. De Jean, director of marketing, NIU College of Business
