Only five percent of schools globally have achieved this standard
Following an intense peer-review process, Indiana University Northwest announced that its School of Business and Economics has received an extension of its AACSB International (AACSB) accreditation, a designation earned by only five percent of the world's schools offering business degrees at the bachelor's level or higher. This is the third time the School has been reaccredited since its initial accreditation in 2005.
According to AACSB, 96 percent of Fortune 100 CEOs, plus the industry-changing founders of Starbucks, Instagram, and Warby Parker, earned their business degrees from AACSB-accredited institutions.
To achieve and maintain AACSB international accreditation, business programs must satisfy the highest quality standards related to strategic management of resources, interactions of faculty and students in the educational process, and achievement of learning goals in degree programs. Earning and maintaining this accreditation, which is granted for five years, confirms the commitment of the School of Business and Economics to quality, continuous improvement, and excellence.
Cynthia Roberts, dean of the School of Business and Economics, credited the hard work of the School’s faculty, staff, students, alumni, and advisory board, for earning the credential, and noted that members of the review team were particularly impressed with the active participation by all the partners.
“The process of accreditation is rigorous, and serves a very valuable purpose,” Roberts said. “It allows us to reflect on our programs and practices in order to ensure quality and relevance, identify how we can improve upon them, and expand ways we can positively impact our region.”
Roberts said the accreditation team singled out the innovative curriculum which provides a distinctive focus on teamwork and leadership and offers value-added features such as the Assessment Center, the STARS peer mentoring program, and the opportunity for students to earn credentials in Microsoft Office and Lean Six Sigma. The reviewers also commended the work the e the School’s Center for Economic Education & Research does to provide important statistics related to the health of the regional economy. This includes the Business Confidence Index, Northwest Indiana Coincident Index and the Northwest Indiana Gross Metropolitan Product (GMP).
Noting the unique personal connections that form between students and faculty, Roberts is perhaps most proud of the ways the School connects student work in the classroom to real projects and experiences in the community.
“The reviewers were particularly impressed with how we interact with students on a daily basis and involve them in research, business partnerships, and more,” Roberts said, “and we’ll be looking to expand these opportunities in the future.”
To learn more about the School of Business and Economics, visit iun.edu/business. To learn about the prestigious AACSB International accreditation, visit aacsb.edu.
About Indiana University Northwest
One of eight campuses of Indiana University, IU Northwest is located in metropolitan Northwest Indiana, approximately 30 miles southeast of Chicago and 10 miles from the Indiana Dunes National Park. The campus has a diverse student population of approximately 4,000 degree-seeking students and 1,500 dual-credit students. The campus offers Associate, Baccalaureate and Master’s degrees in a variety of undergraduate, graduate and pre-professional degree options available from the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Health and Human Services, the School of Business and Economics, the School of the Arts, and the School of Education. The campus is also host to IU School of Medicine-Northwest-Gary, which actively involves students in research and local healthcare needs through its four-year medical doctorate program. IU Northwest emphasizes high-quality teaching, faculty and student research and engagement on campus and in the community. As a student-centered campus, IU Northwest is committed to academic excellence characterized by a love of ideas and achievement in learning, discovery, creativity and engagement. Indiana University Northwest is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer committed to achieving excellence through diversity. The University actively encourages applications from women, minorities, veterans, persons with disabilities, and members of other underrepresented groups.
