The Robins School of Business has jumped from No. 20 to No. 12 in BusinessWeek Magazine's 2009 rankings, released online late Thursday.
The school was ranked high in several of the survey's categories, including a No. 1 ranking in academic quality -- tied only with the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business and Wake Forest's Calloway School. Richmond's business school also received the magazine's highest grade in teaching quality and facilities and service -- A plus -- and scored well for having one of the lowest faculty-student ratios among the top 50 schools.
It ranked high as an MBA feeder school, saw an increase in student satisfaction and reputation among recruiters, and scored strongly for student engagement in academic activity.
But the school received a "B" in its job placement rating, the only school in the top 15 to score below an A in the category. Students in the past have complained that job recruiting and eventual placement are too regionalized.
The University of Virginia's McIntire School of Business ranked No. 1, replacing the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business, last year's top-ranked school.
Robins School of Business Dean Jorge Haddock said Richmond's rankings had validated the quality of programs that the business school offers and also had attracted prospective students. A deep pool of resources enables the business school to maintain low classes sizes and provide individualized education programs to all of its students, he said.
Haddock is appreciative of the alumni, corporate friends, staff and students who have contributed to the success of the business school, he said.
Despite the economy's recent downturn, business school programs have not suffered because the demand for business education hasn't changed, Haddock said. The only discernible change in the demographic of the business school has been a small decrease in students studying finance and a comparable increase among students studying marketing and accounting.
The Robins School of Business has steadily climbed the ranking charts since BusinessWeek first published the list in 2006. In 2007, the business school was ranked No. 23, up from its No. 25 ranking in 2006.
This version of the story ADDS detail, background and quotes from Haddock.
Contact staff writer Dan Petty and reporter Jimmy Young at dan.petty@richmond.edu or jimmy.young@richmond.edu
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