Best Undergraduate Business School Degree Programs

If you’re one of the thousands of people every year looking to begin a degree in business, figuring out what school to attend to pursue your degree can be difficult. Almost every college in the country offers a business degree; how do you choose between the almost countless options? What criteria do you use to whittle down your list of possible schools? Our list of the top undergraduate business degree programs in the country should help you, either by providing you with a group of schools to pursue acceptance in, or by giving a list of schools you can use as a rubric for what determines the quality of a good business school.

1. University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business (South Bend, Indiana) Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of business has been ranked number one on Business Week’s list of top undergraduate schools for business degrees for the last three years. The annual cost is just under $40,000. Full-time enrolled students number at about 1,800, and the average class size is 34. Over 90 percent of its students gain internships, and 98 percent gain employment upon graduation, with an average starting salary of around $55,000. The workload in this program is about 14 hours a week.

2. University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce (Charlottesville, Virginia)

Consistently in the top 5 of any list of undergraduate business degree programs is the University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce. The annual cost is just about $11,000. Full-time enrolled students number at about 700, and the average class size is 48. Almost 90 percent of its students gain internships, and 93 percent gain employment upon graduation, with an average starting salary of around $60,000. The workload in this program is about 20 hours a week.

3. Emory University’s Goizueta Business School (Atlanta, Georgia)

Emory University’s Goizueta Business School is not as old and prestigious as some of the other top programs in the country, but is quickly becoming established as a top-tier option for undergraduate business degrees. Full-time enrolled students number at about 650, and the average class size is 43.8. Almost 90 percent of its students gain internships, and 84 percent gain employment upon graduation, with an average starting salary of around $55,000. The workload in this program is about 16 hours a week.

4. University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

Another great program is the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. One unique feature of this school is that it offers a satellite program in San Francisco, California for those students on the west coast who may not want to travel so far away from home for their education. Full-time enrolled students number at about 2,500, and the average class size is 38. Almost 94 percent of its students gain internships, and 88 percent gain employment upon graduation, with an average starting salary of around $70,000. The workload in this program is about 16 hours a week.

5. Cornell University’s Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management (Ithaca, New York)

Cornell’s Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management has a tradition of excellence as long as its name, and makes most lists of top business programs in the country. Full-time enrolled students number at about 700, and the average class size is 69. Almost 85 percent of its students gain internships, and 98 percent gain employment upon graduation, with an average starting salary of around $56,000. The workload in this program is about 16 hours a week.

Cynthia Mayweather is a huge education proponent and frequently suggests visiting justcolleges.com.