<p>Many premier undergraduate business programs like Virginia, Notre Dame & Wharton do a great job of placing their students in some of the most competitive industries (eg, management consulting, investment banking, etc.). However, with today’s soft economy and uncertain job prospects for many graduating from college, more and more students are taking matters into their own hands and starting their own businesses. So, if one has an entrepreneurial bent and thinks that this could also be their route, which colleges have programs that directly address this interest?</p>
<p>The Princeton Review has published its ranking of the Top 25 Undergraduate Entrepreneurship programs. Prestige is NOT part of their methodology as these practical folks know that personal skills have far more consequence for a new business owner than the diploma one carries. </p>
<p>The following schools are recognized for having the most vibrant undergraduate programs to nurture entrepreneurs via three main steps:</p>
<ol>
<li> teach business fundamentals in the classroom</li>
<li> staff their departments with successful entrepreneurs</li>
<li> provide experiential or entrepreneurial opportunities outside of the class</li>
</ol>
<p>Here are the rankings:</p>
<p>1 Babson
2 U Houston
3 U Arizona
4 Baylor
5 Temple
6 Drexel
7 U Dayton
8 Depaul
9 CUNY-Baruch
10 Southern Cal
11 U Oklahoma
12 Northeastern
13 Syracuse
14 Wash U
15 Miami (OH)
16 U Wisconsin
17 U North Carolina
18 BYU
19 Xavier
20 Loyola Marymount
21 Ball State
22 U Alabama
23 U Iowa
24 Washington State
25 U North Dakota</p>
<pre><code>Honorable Mention
Harvard
U Illinois UC
U Illinois Chicago
Kennesaw State
MIT
METHODOLOGY (PR surveyed 2300 schools re their offerings in entrepreneurship)
</code></pre>
<p>1 Academics & Requirements (major/minor, courses, internships, experiential learning, small business consulting)</p>
<p>2 Students & Faculty (% of students in entrepreneurship or related program, % students actually launching businesses, % of businesses launched still in operation, % of faculty that have actually walked the walk)</p>
<p>3 Outside the Classroom (partnerships with other schools, clubs/orgs for entrepreneurial students & their budgets for this, # of non-curriculum-based activities and competitions they offfer & their budgets for this, # of mentorship programs, and total dollar amount of scholarships dedicated to entrepreneurship studies & students</p>