McIntire’s M.S. in Commerce Program Takes Top Spot in Value Colleges Ranking

The M.S. in Commerce program offered by the University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce was ranked the best of its kind in the nation by higher education research website Value Colleges.

U.Va.’s program edged out competing one-year, pre-work-experience master’s in management programs offered by Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management and the University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business.

According to the website, McIntire’s high ranking was based on its achievement of “the right balance between reputation, quality and cost to give students a high return on investment and a proven advantage [in] the job market.”

Calling the McIntire School of Commerce “one of the nation’s best-regarded business schools,” the website lauded the M.S. in Commerce program’s use of McIntire’s signature integrated core curriculum, noting that it creates a learning experience that is “more similar to a real business setting than the traditional classroom and immerses students in business thinking.” The M.S. in Commerce program also features an intensive international study and travel component known as the Global Immersion Experience.

Data used in calculating the program’s ranking came from Payscale’s 2015 College Salary Report; tuition costs, as reported by the institutions in question; and the institution’s U.S. News & World Report ranking. Citing the U.Va. program’s real-world-oriented curriculum, high level of student support and close affinity with the McIntire School’s numerous top-ranked programs, the website describes the M.S. in Commerce program as a “definitive value.”

McIntire Dean Carl Zeithaml said that the program’s high ranking is not entirely surprising.

“McIntire’s undergraduate and graduate programs consistently rank among the elite programs in the nation, achieving high marks for teaching, facilities and job placement,” he said, noting the recent No. 1 ranking by the website College Choice of the school’s M.S. in Accounting program, and McIntire’s longstanding top performance in Bloomberg Businessweek’s annual ranking of undergraduate business programs.

On Wednesday, U.S. News listed McIntire’s undergraduate program No. 6 nationally in its latest rankings.

The school’s consistent excellence is a team effort, Zeithaml said. “Our terrific students, faculty and staff are supported by a remarkable community of alumni, parents, friends, corporate sponsors and recruiters, whose commitment ensures that the quality of our teaching is unparalleled across all of our programs; that our research remains on the cutting edge; and that we continue developing innovative, dynamic coursework that prepares our students to succeed in today’s complex global business environment.”