KINGSTON, R.I. — October 23, 2007 — The Princeton Review has included the University of Rhode Island’s College of Business Administration in its 2008 volume of Best 290 Business Schools.
The Princeton Review released its 2008 edition of its business school guidebook early this month. Over the course of a three-year survey cycle, the Princeton Review collected the opinions of 19,000 students at more than 290 of the best master of business administration programs in the world as accredited by The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.
“The Princeton Review offers objective third party verification for the quality and distinctiveness of our full-time MBA program,” said Mark Higgins, dean of the College of Business Administration.
In surveys conducted by the Princeton Review, URI graduate business students said “smart” (technological) classrooms are a plus, and the College offers solid preparation in accounting.
Students said the College of Business Administration has great “technology in the classrooms.” The Princeton Review says that large classes are held in a tiered-seating facility equipped with touch-screen controls, a computer, projector, audiovisual equipment and both wired and wireless Internet access. Smaller classrooms boast many of the same amenities, the book says, and wireless Internet access is available throughout Ballentine Hall.
The Princeton Review fails to mention that Ballentine Hall is home to the Bruce Sherman Trading Room, which gives students in their finance classes real-time access to international financial markets.
Students also “loved” that the one-year full-time master of business administration program “is designed to have us working with real-life small businesses by setting up consulting relationships with local companies.” They also said that teamwork is an essential part of the program and that “all the professors are very competent and demand student participation in class.”
Some students said they would like more flexibility in the MBA programs so they could develop focus areas, and some said the program should do more to prepare students for work in New York or Boston, as well as internationally.
Students said fellow students are very sociable, and they value teamwork.
The book reported that applicants to URI also considered business schools at Boston College, Boston University, Northeastern University, Suffolk University, the University of Connecticut, Babson College and Bryant University.