Undergraduate Program Also Highly Ranked in Entrepreneur Magazine/Princeton Review Survey

The honors keep rolling in for DePaul University’s entrepreneurship programs. Consistently ranked among the country’s best, both the undergraduate and graduate programs solidified that status in the latest rankings issued jointly by Entrepreneur Magazine and the Princeton Review.

DePaul’s graduate entrepreneurship program ranked second, while DePaul’s undergraduate program placed third in the national rankings, which will appear in the October 2006 issue of Entrepreneur. These represent the highest standing the DePaul programs have ever received in the Entrepreneur rankings.

According to a press release issued by Entrepreneur and Princeton Review, universities that achieved high rankings demonstrated a devotion “to practical, hands-on experiential learning to provide the skills that translate into real-world businesses… the top-ranked schools also had students and alumni actively involved in entrepreneurial endeavors and had faculty whose members serve as mentors, having already demonstrated success in their own entrepreneurial pursuits.”

“We are fortunate that the Chicago entrepreneurship community has recognized that entrepreneurship education is one of the linchpins of economic development and job creation,” said Harold P. Welsch, Coleman Foundation Chair in Entrepreneurship and founder of the DePaul’s entrepreneurship program. “We work closely with many significant and successful entrepreneurs who give us the benefit of their insights and experiences, which we deem essential and complementary to the development of new entrepreneurs.”

The rankings were the result of a survey of more than 700 schools offering entrepreneurship majors. Judging was based on a number of criteria, including the entrepreneurial emphasis of the curriculum, mentoring, experiential learning, faculty credentials, and the success of graduating students and alumni.

“This honor for DePaul validates the university’s commitment to entrepreneurship education and the dedication of our faculty, students and alumni to the program’s success,” said Raman Chadha, executive director of the Coleman Entrepreneurship Center at DePaul.

Founded in 1982 at the College of Commerce, DePaul’s entrepreneurship program has grown to encompass 12 undergraduate and graduate courses taught by 16 faculty members. Courses cover business plan development, entrepreneurial strategy, new venture financing, business growth and management, creativity, innovation and technological change, among other important topics. More than 400 students take courses in the program each year.

DePaul’s academic program is supported by the Coleman Entrepreneurship Center, which manages outreach programs designed to stimulate the start-up and growth of entrepreneurial firms. The center offers consulting services, The Entrepreneurial Quest Seminar Series, business plan competitions, high school outreach programs and “Angel Academy” seminars for private investors. The center is also home to the DePaul Entrepreneurs Network.

DePaul’s entrepreneur program has been ranked in the top tier by Entrepreneur magazine for four consecutive years and was named one of the best 26 programs by TechKnowledge Point Corp. in its 2006 evaluation of more than 1,000 schools around the country. DePaul’s Ryan Center for Creativity & Innovation also has been recognized for its innovative programs for fledgling business owners. The March 2006 issue of Fortune Small Business magazine named it among 10 university programs that are “entrepreneurial hot spots.”

Note to Editors: To view the 2006 rankings, please visit Entrepreneur's Web site at www.entrepreneur.com/topcolleges .