The School of Management at Binghamton University has moved up six slots in national rankings among public institutions to No. 12 and jumped 13 spots in national undergraduate program rankings to No. 35.
Upinder Dhillon, dean of the School of Management, said the jump in rankings, which were released Wednesday in Business Week, comes after changes made to the undergraduate curriculum.
“Three years ago, we completely revamped our undergraduate program,” he said. “We made it much more integrative and supportive to the students … in terms of starting early.”
According to Dhillon, their initial vision was to be among the top 50 business schools in the country, and now their new goal is to be among the top 20.
“It is honestly very exciting for us,” he said. “It is really a milestone. For us to be No. 12 amongst publics is another tremendous accomplishment.”
Modifications in the school’s programs include the creation of freshman-level courses and a sequence of classes that offers an integrative learning experience.
Students in SOM also have opportunities to learn outside of the classroom.
“During the winter break, we do Wall Street Week so that students can visit businesses on Wall Street,” Dhillon said. “We spend a week visiting different firms and [the students] are hosted by alumni.”
According to Dhillon, SOM is the only school on the BU campus that has someone responsible for getting students exposure in the business world and connecting current students with alumni in their fields.
Jillian Kroll, the director of placement for SOM, is just that person.
“We have also revamped the curriculum on the professional side,” she said. “We are offering a lot of different programs, moving our students to the next level and pushing them further by providing them with professional skills … and the expectations that the recruiting organizations will have of them.”
Cody Grant, the chancellor of Delta Sigma Pi, the professional business fraternity at BU, and the president of Beta Alpha Psi, the accounting honor society, said that organizations on campus such as the pre-professional fraternities encourage students to be well-rounded and well-prepared for the economic workforce.
“The school and the business organizations on campus are on the same page, working toward the same goal, which has contributed to this success,” Grant said.
At the third annual Spotlight, an event acknowledging SOM student achievements, on March 22 in the Old University Union, there will be a celebration of the school’s improvement in ranking.
The expected speakers at the event will include President Lois DeFleur, faculty members and some of the top students of the school. The event, which is open to only SOM students, staff, faculty and administrators, is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.
“We are excellent because of our students,” Dhillon said. “It is wonderful and they deserve the celebration. I am excited about the event, and so are our students.”