Crummer Graduate School of Business Earns AACSB Reaccreditation
The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business has once again verified Crummer’s commitment to academic rigor and excellence.
The Crummer Graduate School of Business at Rollins College has once again received accreditation from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), one of the most selective and rigorous evaluations for business schools around the world. The AACSB accreditation places Crummer among the top 5 percent of global business programs.
“We are thrilled that the Crummer Graduate School of Business has earned its AACSB reaccreditation, which is considered the gold standard for graduate business education,” says Deborah Crown, dean of Crummer. “The accreditation process is lengthy and rigorous, and this prestigious accreditation reaffirms our mission to produce innovative, responsible, and global business leaders who impact their organizations and communities. Crummer’s long tradition of positive impact on business and society will continue to flourish with our cutting-edge global research by our faculty, our robust entrepreneurial community, our collaborative nonprofit community, and our applied MBA capstone experience. As we look to the future, we will continue to set a high bar for impact and engagement.”
Crummer’s mission to develop global business leaders through comprehensive, experiential education has earned it Florida’s No. 1 MBA recognition by Forbes multiple times, and a distinction it has held for the past 6 years. For more than 60 years, the program has supported students and graduates like Julien Meyer ’16 MBA, who helmed multiple startups before hitting it big with NorthStar, a boutique investment bank that was recently acquired by global brokerage Revere Securities. He credits Crummer for instilling in him a sense of perseverance that has proved to be a key aspect of his success.
“There’s a culture at Crummer that says in whatever role you are as a business professional, your goal should be to continue growing, learning, and improving,” says Meyer. “All of my classes were based on real-world experiences shared by my professors, and the guest speakers were at the top of their fields. Crummer really rounded me out as a business person, and I’m always grateful for that.”
This latest reaccredidation ensures that Tars seeking out an MBA or executive doctorate are part of a long legacy of prestigious alumni representing the best in business education. This includes students enrolled in Rollins’ and Crummer’s 3/2 Accelerated Management Program, which allows students to earn an undergraduate degree in any major along with an MBA in as little as five years. Extracurricular and Center-driven programs like Crummer’s annual Venture Plan Competition (hosted by Crummer’s Center for Advanced Entrepreneurship), the largest business plan and pitch competition for startups in Central Florida, add to the real-world benefits and experience that Crummer students can garner before they even receive a degree.
Crummer’s Integrated Capstone Experience within the Early Advantage MBA Program is a unique flagship state-of-the-art business learning experience that provides impact for not only students, but community stakeholders as well. Crummer leverages its partnerships with leading companies to provide students a real-time experiential learning experience with a regional organization, consulting on everything from organizational finances, new programming, marketing initiatives, and more. Launched in 2017-2018, the Integrated Capstone Experience has had more than 54 successfully completed projects. Students who participated in the program and have now graduated, are routinely bringing back projects to Crummer from their post-graduation employers.
These are just a few of the ways that Crummer’s innovative programming coordinates with AACSB’s mission to ensure excellence in teaching, research, curriculum development, and learner success. The accreditation process is multiyear and requires that applicants align academic standards with those set forth by AACSB. Each AACSB reaccredidation lasts for five years. In March, Rollins’ undergraduate business programs earned reaccredidation through the organization, ensuring that Tars at every point in their journey have access to the highest standard of business education available.