The University of Hartford’s Barney School of Business was recently ranked for the first time ever on the Bloomberg Businessweek’s “Best Undergraduate Business Schools 2016,” appearing at the No. 101 spot. This success was the result of reviews from students, employers and professors.
Barney School of Business dean Marty Roth said that he would like to see the school move up to the third quartile, which would be a ranking around No. 70 out of the 114 schools listed. To accomplish this, Roth explained that students and employers will need to continue filling out the surveys and giving positive feedback on the program.
After the ranking came out, students and faculty were ecstatic to hear the news that the Barney School had made this year’s list.
“Barney is definitely making a great name for itself and it will certainly help me and every other student when looking for a job,”senior marketing major Patrick Fayne said. “To be listed among big-name schools is a great achievement.”
Other students who have commented about the recent ranking have said, “being apart of this program is an honor,” and “I’m proud to be a part of it.”
Bloomberg’s methodology is designed to capture how well programs prepare their graduates for job success. One of the things focused on heavily within the Barney School is the requirement of an internship, which is an essential part of the Career Ready program which is geared toward making students confident, competent and connected.
Barney was ranked No. 57 under the internship category, its highest rank of the four categories. They were also ranked No. 101 in employer survey rank, No. 93 in student survey rank and No. 108 in salary rank.
“When the rankings came out it was one of those moments you could step back and feel good about the the hard work put into the program,” Roth said.
The Barney School has received a lot of national recognition this year, including a multitude of different rankings for the graduate program.
Dr. Celia Lofink, Barney School professor and director of undergraduate services, said, “We are excited about the fact that our commitment to career readiness has realized a 42 percent increase in our freshmen class, and 87 percent of our students graduate with a job or pursuit of an advanced degree.”
The Career Ready program, run by Lofink, was a major contributor to being ranked by Bloomberg Businessweek. The program focuses on important factors of being a young professional, ultimately leading to higher job yields as well as outstanding reviews from employers.
Roth hopes the external recognition from places like Bloomberg Businessweek will increase the percentage of accepted students this year, and drive more applications for the following cycle.