The University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business ranked No. 1 in the country for the third consecutive year in Bloomberg Businessweek’s seventh annual survey of “The Best Undergraduate Business Schools.” The ranking was announced today (March 20).

“We consider this a tremendous achievement,” said Roger Huang, Kenneth R. Meyer Professor of Global Investment Management and interim dean of the Mendoza College. “To us, it speaks to the collective effort and spirit of our faculty, staff and students. We also are deeply appreciative of our alumni, the Notre Dame Career Center, the University, and friends of the College for their constant, enthusiastic support.”

In comments accompanying the ranking, the editors wrote, “Notre Dame once again is firing on all cylinders … very strong academic numbers.”

The Mendoza College was rated No. 1 in student satisfaction, and No. 2 in the recruiter ranking for 2012. The survey also gave the College marks of “A+” in teaching quality, facilities and services, and job placement.

Rounding out the top five spots are University of Virginia (McIntire), Cornell University (Dyson), University of Pennsylvania (Wharton), and Emory (Goizueta).

Bloomberg Businessweek noted that students at Mendoza are quick to laud the school’s focus on ethics and its assistance when it comes to job hunting, as well as its strong alumni support. The article discussed the improved recruiting landscape and the positive attitude toward job hunting on the part of business students. Bloomberg quoted Huang as saying, “Students seem to be more focused on being able to get a job when they graduate. They want the broader experience, and many do have the desire to include some type of volunteer or service work. But they also want assurance that if I study ‘X,’ I will be able to get a job doing ‘X.’"

“The College of Business puts an emphasis not only on outstanding academic growth, but also on finding your vocational calling and on doing business the right way and for the right reasons,” said a Mendoza College graduating senior in the comments section of the survey. “This summer was my first experience at comparing my business skills against those from other top universities. I felt throughout the summer that my finance knowledge, problem-solving abilities, and clarity of communication were at the top of my intern class.”

Another survey respondent noted, “The most unique aspect about ND in general is the alumni network, and this shows a lot in Mendoza. Recruiters come to campus from all over the country, and they are all alumni. This makes the interview process easier, and increases your chances of getting recommended for the next round of interviews or for the job.”

To rank the programs, Bloomberg Businessweek used nine measures, including surveys of both senior business majors and employers, median starting salaries for graduates, and the number of alumni each program sends to top MBA programs. A calculation of academic quality is also included in the methodology, combining average SAT scores, student-faculty ratios, class size in core business courses, the percentage of students with internships, and the number of hours devoted to class work.

One hundred forty-two undergraduate business programs participated in this year’s ranking. Eighteen were eliminated from consideration because of insufficient response rates in the student survey, employer survey, or both. In total, 33 percent of students responded to the survey.

A complete list is available here.

The Mendoza College of Business currently enrolls 1,888 undergraduate students in six majors: accountancy, finance, marketing, management consulting, management entrepreneurship and IT management. After completing the University’s innovative First Year of Studies program, Notre Dame business majors enter the Mendoza College in their sophomore year.

The Mendoza College also offers graduate degree programs – including a Master of Business Administration, Executive Master of Business Administration, Master of Science in Accountancy, and Master of Nonprofit Administration – as well as non-degree executive education and nonprofit professional development programs.

Contact: Carol Elliott, director of newswriting, Mendoza College of Business, 574-631-2627, Elliott.37@nd.edu