Elite AACSB International Business School Accreditation Renewed for Scranton
Students work in the Alperin Financial Center of Brennan Hall, home of The University of Scranton’s Kania School of Management, which has maintained its accreditation by the rigorous standards of AACSB International – The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.
The Kania School of Management at The University of Scranton will continue to be counted among the elite colleges accredited by the rigorous standards of AACSB International – The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. Only 607 schools of business, or less than five percent worldwide, have earned this distinguished hallmark of excellence in management education. The University of Scranton is among just 24 AACSB International accredited business schools in Pennsylvania.
To maintain accreditation, a business program must undergo a meticulous internal review every five years, through which the program must demonstrate its continued commitment to 21 quality standards.
“Academic institutions and discerning business professionals, parents and graduate students recognize AACSB as the gold standard in business accreditation,” said Michael Mensah, Ph.D., dean of the Kania School of Management. “Yet many non-academics are unaware of the exhaustive process required to obtain and maintain accreditation, which delves into extensive analysis of strategic plans and outcomes related to graduation and retention rates, quality of students, student learning, faculty and staff support, research, financial resources and processes ensuring continuous improvement in key areas of achievement.”
Scranton, first accredited by AACSB in 1996, successfully completed its five-year review process and will be recognized at the 2011 AACSB International Conference and Annual Meeting in New York, N.Y. on April 28-30.
“It takes a great deal of self-evaluation and determination to earn and maintain AACSB accreditation,” said Jerry Trapnell, vice president and chief accreditation officer of AACSB International. “Schools not only must meet specific standards of excellence, but their deans, faculty, and staff must make a commitment to ongoing improvement to ensure continued delivery of high-quality education to students.”
The University of Scranton’s Kania School of Management has been listed in The Princeton Review’s “Best 300 Business Schools” for six consecutive years. In addition, based on The Princeton Review survey data, The University of Scranton’s business school was listed among the top 15 in the nation for general management in Entrepreneur magazine for two consecutive years. Scranton is also among the 433 business schools listed U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Graduate Schools.”
The University of Scranton has been recognized in The Princeton Review’s “The Best 373 Colleges” for nine consecutive years, and among the top 10 Best Regional Universities in the North ranked by U.S. News & World Report for the past 17 years. Scranton also ranked 14th in the nation among the top Service-Oriented Master’s Universities recognized by Washington Monthly and has been included in Forbes Magazine’s online listing of “America’s Best Colleges.”
The University of Scranton pursues the highest level of accreditation for its programs. Depending on the program, accreditation can be at the international, national or state level.
Founded in 1916, AACSB International is the longest serving global accrediting body for business schools that offer undergraduate, master’, and doctoral degrees in business and accounting.
