Simon Graduate School of Business

Photos provided by the University of Rochester

By Rachel Z. Arndt

Simon Graduate School of Business

The University of Rochester is certainly unique: It has North America's only full-size antique Italian organ, the most powerful fusion laser, and in 1929 the university opened the first optics school in the U.S. The upstate New York university was founded in 1850 along the Erie Canal. Although it started out with a focus on liberal arts, Rochester is now a successful research university that offers classes at six schools, including the Simon Graduate School of Business Administration. Today the university has about 3,000 graduate students, along with 5,000 undergraduates who can choose among more than 200 majors.

The University of Rochester first introduced its business program in 1958, but the program really took off in 1964 when William H. Meckling was appointed dean. Meckling shaped Rochester's MBA to emphasize economics-based problem solving. In 1986 the business school was named the William E. Simon Graduate School of Business Administration. Simon, a former U.S. Treasury Secretary, donated money to the school and chaired the Executive Advisory Committee from 1986 until 2000.

In addition to MBA programs—full-time, part-time, and executive—Simon offers an MS degree in nine specialized areas of study, including finance and marketing, as well as a PhD in a half dozen majors including strategy and operations management.

Photos provided by the University of Rochester. Caption information provided by the school and BusinessWeek research.

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