Purdue’s next big move: A new School of Business

Plans were announced Friday (Sept. 23) for the new school, which will be supported by a substantial university investment along with a major fundraising effort designed to reengineer a top-ranked School of Business that will prepare tomorrow’s leaders and entrepreneurs, grounded in the hallmarks of a Purdue education, including STEM disciplines and business analytics.

“Students in Purdue’s new School of Business will receive a well-rounded education, including the history, philosophy and economic theory of free market systems, and a firm grounding in the liberal arts and the communication skills that come with it,” Purdue President Mitch Daniels said. “They will enter the world proud of the careers they have chosen and thoroughly prepared for leadership and managerial excellence in the most technologically complex fields.”

Amid declines in college-going rates nationwide, Purdue’s School of Management has grown by nearly 33% since 2019. Purdue believes now is the time to capitalize on that momentum with a new School of Business, which will further expand the student body and faculty, and double the size of the facility through expansion and renovation.

The school will build on Purdue’s recently inaugurated Integrated Business and Engineering (IBE) degree, highly ranked Business Analytics programs, the new Dean V. White Real Estate Finance program, and the Larsen Leaders Academy, further propelled by a new $10 million gift from Marshall and Susan Larsen celebrated on Friday night, to create a competitive advantage for students, letting them take the next giant leap into the future of business.

Long named the Purdue School of Management with the graduate school bearing the Krannert name, the new entity as a whole will be known initially as the Purdue School of Business. Purdue is targeting Fall 2023 for its first phase of enhancements, involving student enrollment growth and the addition of targeted faculty, as well as curricular and experiential education additions.

The advances of science across almost all economic sectors have created the need for business leaders who can understand not only the data in front of them, but where the next breakthrough may come from. Students who master the skills of gathering big data and using it to drive business decisions become the most valuable working professionals of today and tomorrow. Graduates from Purdue’s new School of Business will be uniquely positioned to bring discoveries to the marketplace, scale up innovations and effect societal change.

President-elect Mung Chiang said, “Purdue will have a world-class business school through this relaunch, one that will carry out top-caliber research and educate many students who will be excellent at, and proud of, creating business growth and opportunities.”

Historically, Purdue has celebrated many graduates who have become CEOs of Fortune 500 companies, with eight alumni currently serving in that role, as measured by Academic Influence. The move toward a new School of Business further builds on a standard of excellence at Purdue, beginning with the Engineering fields, where both the graduate (4th) and undergraduate (9th) degree programs are ranked nationally.

Purdue was the only university selected recently by Fast Company as a “Brand That Matters,” joining well-known businesses like Ford, McDonald’s, Nike and 3M, and was recently named America’s No. 4 most trusted public university by Morning Consult. It is also recognized as a Top Ten Public University by the Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Education and a Top Ten Most Innovative University for five years straight by U.S. News & World Report.

During the last five years, Purdue University has grown 23%, with a population of just over 50,000 students. It is ranked in the Top 5 for graduating STEM majors — 71% of its 2022 graduates earned STEM degrees.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a top public research institution developing practical solutions to today’s toughest challenges. Ranked in each of the last five years as one of the 10 Most Innovative universities in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, Purdue delivers world-changing research and out-of-this-world discovery. Committed to hands-on and online, real-world learning, Purdue offers a transformative education to all. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue has frozen tuition and most fees at 2012-13 levels, enabling more students than ever to graduate debt-free. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap at https://stories.purdue.edu.