University of Washington Michael G. Foster School of Business

The University of Washington Michael G. Foster School of Business is the business school at the University of Washington, Seattle. It was founded in 1917 and is the second oldest institution of management education on the West Coast (behind the Haas School of Business). The school has nearly 46,000 alumni, and is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business and the European Quality Improvement System (EQUIS).^[1] The School is one of four U.S. business schools to earn the EQUIS. The school offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees. Enrollment each year is about 2,500 students in its undergraduate and graduate programs and over 1,000 working professionals in its executive education seminars and lifelong learning programs. In 2006, U.S. News ranked the Business School 23rd in the nation and 7th amongst public institutions. An objective ranking of Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index by Academic Analytics ranks University of Washington #1 in research productivity in Business Administration and #8 in marketing.^[2][3] The Foster School's Custom Executive Education Programs are ranked fourth of their kind by The Economist. UW Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship is ranked fifth best in the country by Entrepreneur magazine.

History

On September 7, 2007, it was announced that the UW Business School would be named for Michael G. Foster.^[4][5]

Academic

UW Foster School of Business prepares students for management and leadership in a global economy. The school offers undergraduate degrees in business, and has a full-time Master of Business Administration (MBA) program, Global Executive MBA program, Evening MBA, Executive MBA, Technology Management MBA, Master of Professional Accounting in Auditing & Assurance and Taxation and a doctoral program.^[6] In 2005, there was a total of 95 full-time faculty with 41 endowed chairs, professorships and research fellowships. The University of Washington Foster School of Business' faculty along with that of the University of Illinois at Chicago have been ranked No. 1 in productivity.

• Business Undergraduate.^[7] UW Foster School of Business offers concentrations in areas of Accounting, Entrepreneurship, Finance, Human Resources Management, Information System and Marketing. The Undergraduate program ranked 11th among public universities by U.S. News & World Report in 2011. The same source ranked the International Business program 9th, Accounting 11th, Entrepreneurship 21st and Finance 25th in the nation.
• Full Time MBA. The University of Washington MBA Program offers full-fledged curriculum, choices and connections for future business leaders of the world. The learning experience is designed to extend beyond the curriculum and campus.
• Evening MBA. The UW Evening MBA is designed for professionals who need both an MBA degree and the ability to continue working full-time. This is a three-year program.
• Executive MBA. The UW Executive MBA Program is for mid- to senior-level managers and executives. Participants are experienced executives from across North America and beyond. This is a work-compatible MBA that lasts approximately 21 months and can be customized.
• Technology Management MBA. The UW Technology Management MBA is designed for professionals who have a passion for technology and want to gain new business knowledge and managerial skills. This is an 18-month program that offers a business management curriculum with a technology focus.
• Global Executive MBA. The Global Executive MBA Program is a 12-month, accelerated, full-time program for global managers. It is geared for middle and senior managers who aim for executive levels. The program has advanced courses in global strategy, finance, business leadership and management. Location is at the University of Washington campus in Seattle.
• Master of Professional Accounting. – The program has two tracks: Auditing & Assurance or Taxation^[8]. Students use this graduate degree to prepare for a CPA or other accounting career.
• PhD Program. The UW Ph.D. Program^[9] in Business Administration is a research-based program designed to train future thought leaders and scholars. Graduates are expected to preserve, generate and disseminate business knowledge and practices to students and practitioners worldwide. The University of Washington PhD Program offers concentration in these areas: Accounting, Finance, Information System, Management (Organizational Behavior and Strategic Management), Marketing, Operations Management and Technology Entrepreneurship.

Campus

The University of Washington Foster School of Business contains five buildings with a sixth under construction as of 2011. Five of the buildings are in Seattle, Washington.

• Paccar Hall is one of two new buildings that serve as headquarters for the University of Washington Foster School of Business campus. It contains faculty offices, classrooms, a cafe and commons.
• Balmer Hall, named for Thomas Balmer, former president of the University Board of Regents, was formerly the home of the Foster School but was recently demolished to make room for a newer building that will open in 2012.
• MacKenzie Hall, named in memory of Prof. Donald Mackenzie, Chair of the Department of Accounting from 1949 to 1955.
• Lewis Hall contains the Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship, Global Business Center, Business & Economic Development Center and the MBA Career Center.
• Executive Education Center contains the Albert O. and Evelyn Foster Business Library.
• Eastside Executive Center is located in Kirkland, Washington, and houses offices and classrooms for the Technology Management MBA Program.

Centers and programs

The following centers and specialty programs are part of the UW Foster School of Business.

• Business and Economic Development Center. The Business and Economic Development Center (BEDC)^[10] connects students, faculty, and staff from the UW Business School with a diverse business and nonprofit community. The program helps expand students’ knowledge and skills by helping small businesses and under-represented minority students and by undertaking economic development research.
• Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. The University of Washington supports Seattle and the Pacific Northwest, one of the primary venture capital and entrepreneur communities in the West Coast, United States. The Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship connects students, faculty and business community members together and serves as resource for start-ups and companies.
• Center for Leadership and Strategic Thinking. The Center for Leadership and Strategic Thinking ^[11] focuses on integrating rigor and relevance in terms of how leadership and strategic thinking are developed. The center examines methods and effectiveness of leadership in health care, defense, aviation and other business industries.
• Certificate in International Studies in Business. Created in 1992 with support from the Center for International Business, Education and Research, the Certificate of International Studies in Business^[12] at the University of Washington educates undergraduate UW business students to gain knowledge of international issues and global business practices.
• CFO Forum. The University of Washington Business School CFO Forum promotes communication between CFOs of leading corporations and UW faculty. The interaction between academia and industry in the forum provides a means for all constituents to share their knowledge, and learn about the latest finance research.
• Global Business Center. The UW Global Business Center works in partnership with the United States Department of Education to contribute to the international competitiveness of American business by developing and supporting international business programs for students, faculty, and the business community.

Achievements

Some select and recent achievements of University of Washington Business School:

• Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index by Academic Analytics ranks University of Washington #1 in research productivity in Business Administration and #8 in marketing in 2006.^[2][3]
• UW Executive Education at the Foster School of Business is ranked third of its kind in the world by The Economist^[13]
• UW MBA won 2006 International Venture Capital Investment Competition The UW Business School won the prestigious international Venture Capital Investment Competition (VCIC) held at the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School. This is UW's second victory in 3 years. Other finalists are NYU, Michigan, Harvard, MIT, USC, Duke, Colorado and Cambridge.^[14]
• UW MBA won 2004 Venture Capital Investment Competition^[15]
• UW Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship is ranked fifth best in the country by Entrepreneur magazine.
• Accounting Doctoral Students Won National Competition UW Business School accounting team won a national case competition, xTREME Faculty (xFAC), sponsored by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
• UW Finished in 5th Place in National Collegiate Sales Competition. UW Business School finished 5th place out of the 35 participating universities.^[16]

Publication

• Foster Business. Business magazine reports on the latest news from the UW business school.^[17]
• Foster eNews. Email-based quarterly report from the UW Foster School of Business and specialty programs.^[18]
• Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis. It highlights theoretical and empirical research in financial economics.^[19]

See also

• List of United States business school rankings
• List of business schools in the United States
• MBA

References

1. ^ "5 new schools receive EQUIS accreditation". EQUIS – the European Quality Improvement System. http://www.efmd.org/html/Accreditations/cont_detail.asp?id=040929rpku&aid=041029wupz&tid=1. 
2. ^ ^{a b} Academic Analytics
3. ^ ^{a b} The Chronicle of Higher Education
4. ^ Gardner, Nancy (September 7, 2007). "UW names Business School to honor Michael G. Foster". Foster School of Business. http://www.foster.washington.edu/about/Pages/AboutMichaelGFoster.aspx. 
5. ^ http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003872955_uwbiz07m.html^{[dead link]}
6. ^ Foster MBA
7. ^ Foster Undergraduate BA
8. ^ Master of Professional Accounting
9. ^ PhD Program
10. ^ Business and Economic Development Center
11. ^ University of Washington (n.d.). Center for Leadership and Strategic Thinking http://www.foster.washington.edu/centers/leadership/
12. ^ Certificate of International Studies in Business
13. ^ Economist Intelligence Unit
14. ^ UWBS won 2006 VCIC International Competition
15. ^ UWBS won 2004 VCIC Competition
16. ^ UW Finished in 5th Place in National Collegiate Sales Competition
17. ^ Business
18. ^ News Online
19. ^ JFQA

External links

• Michael G. Foster School of Business Web Site
• University of Washington Web Site
• UW Business School Flickr Site