Gies College of Business: A Legacy of Excellence and Innovation in Business Education

For over a century, Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has been a pioneering force in business education. Intentionally designing its innovative programs, leading-edge curriculum, and experiential learning opportunities, Gies empowers and prepares students to turn big ideas into meaningful actions. Recognized as a leader in delivering high-quality residential and online education, Gies educates more than 8,000 degree-seeking students - including 7,000+ online learners - and has exceeded 2.6M online course enrollments from learners around the world. Gies learners put their purpose into practice and develop lifelong success skills for a global economy.

Top Rankings and Recognition

Gies College of Business consistently receives high rankings from reputable publications like U.S. News & World Report, solidifying its position as a top-tier business school.

U.S. News & World Report Rankings

Gies College of Business is ranked as a Top 10 public business school by U.S. News & World Report. In the 2024 rankings, Gies was ranked No. 7 among public business programs and No. 14 overall. These rankings are based on surveys of deans and senior faculty members of business programs around the country. U.S. News asks deans and senior faculty members to rate the academic quality of undergraduate business programs. On the overall university rankings the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign came in at No. 33 (No. News’ Top 20.

Specialty Rankings

Gies College of Business has achieved recognition in various specialty areas. Including accounting’s #1 ranking, Gies ranked among the nation’s Top 20 in eight specialty areas:

Accounting #1
Marketing #9
Insurance/Risk Management #9
Management #12
Finance #15
Management Information Systems #17
Supply Chain #18
Analytics #19

Accounting is once again ranked No. 2 in the nation.

Innovative Programs and Curriculum

Gies College of Business offers a wide array of programs designed to meet the evolving needs of the business world. All of our programs - from accountancy, to management, and finance - offer you opportunities to explore different business functions, learn critical problem-solving skills, and gain real-world leadership experience.

Online MBA (iMBA) Program

Gies Business focuses on opening multiple pathways to business education. All of our master’s programs either fully or partially stack into our iMBA program. Learners can also stack for-credit courses into certificates and can stack certificates into degrees.

Launched in 2016, the innovative online MBA program (iMBA) makes high-quality education more accessible for learners and was named 2022 MBA Program of the Year by Poets&Quants. The iMBA was the first fully online MBA program that was designed specifically with the online learner in mind and offered at a market-shattering price. Because the iMBA is flexible and costs around $24,000, many learners can continue to work full time without accruing the massive debt often associated with an MBA degree, which can range from $70,000 to $200,000. In addition, there is no on-campus requirement, and learners can pay for each course individually as they take them, instead of paying for an entire semester up front.

Learners in the iMBA program collaborate, network, and solve problems alongside others from around the world, and they learn from the same world-renowned faculty experts who teach in our on-campus programs. Because the program is intentionally designed for learners who are still working, students can apply what they learn to their careers as they learn it. And it shows - during their time in the program, learners receive an average pay increase of over 20 percent, and over 60 percent of learners receive a promotion, job offer, or new position while in the program.

Each iMBA course has self-directed, asynchronous pre-recorded video courses through Coursera, complementary readings, and a high engagement virtual classroom environment. The virtual classes are weekly live sessions with faculty and your classmates. Degree programs are flexible with completion time ranging from 24-60 months. Students can select from 5 focus areas and 18+ electives. Core specializations include Strategic Leadership and Management, Managerial Economics and Business Analysis, Value Chain Management, and Financial Management.

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Experiential Learning

In addition to outstanding faculty, a big piece of Gies students’ success is thanks to the College’s commitment to experiential learning. Every Gies undergraduate student participates in at least one real client project, where they can take what they’ve learned in the classroom and apply it to a real-world problem. In fact, 94% of Gies students report improved ability to solve problems, work in a team, and tell their story - and 95% believe they have a better story to tell recruiters, thanks to their experiential learning projects. Gies Business also offers opportunities to collaborate with other prestigious colleges at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, like The Grainger College of Engineering and the Carle Illinois College of Medicine, the world’s first engineering-based medical school.

Focus on Accounting Education

Gies Business has been at the forefront of accountancy education for more than 100 years. As one of the nation’s first accountancy programs, Gies boasts a proud history of innovation, advocacy, and excellence. Gies granted the nation’s first PhD in accounting in 1936; hosted the first international conference of accounting education in 1961; and launched Project Discovery, a revolutionary projects-based curriculum, in 1997. For the past century, Gies has been the home to some of the world’s top scholars, corporate CFOs, and multiple National Accounting Hall of Fame inductees.

In addition to the recognition for undergraduate accounting, Gies’ faculty are also recognized as some of the best in the world. Last fall, Gies Business came out on top in the two primary rankings of accounting research scholarship by Brigham Young University. The Department earned the #1 spot in the overall research and publications rankings and the #1 ranking in the Relevance of Accounting Research (ROAR).

The University offered courses in accounting before the creation of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign College of Business. In 1919, H.T.

Gies College of Business and Coursera Partnership

Gies College of Business and Coursera have partnered to offer a limited number of need-based scholarships covering 70% of tuition for qualified students. Recipients will be selected based on need, academic standing, and essay submissions. The scholarship application can be completed within your graduate college application.

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Illinois MakerLab

The Illinois MakerLab is the world's first business school 3D printing lab located on the third floor of the Business Instructional Facility. After opening in spring of 2013, the MakerLab has provided printing, custom designing and prototyping, educational, and other related services for both the Urbana-Champaign and University of Illinois community. The lab is equipped with over 20 Ultimaker 3D printers and is run by undergraduate and graduate students.

Campus and Facilities

Gies College of Business is located in Champaign, Illinois. The campus is located around the intersection of Gregory Street and Sixth Street. The college currently occupies three buildings: Wohlers Hall, Business Instructional Facility (BIF), and the Irwin Doctoral Study Hall.

Business Instructional Facility (BIF)

The Business Instructional Facility (BIF) is a state-of-the-art, collaborative space where business students learn and study. The LEED® certified building houses a popular commons area, classrooms, Career Services and academic counseling offices, Illinois MakerLab, Margolis Market Information Lab, and a 300-seat auditorium.

Wohlers Hall

Students will attend many of their classes in Wohlers Hall, which features classrooms, an auditorium, and offices for faculty and staff. Wohlers Hall is located across the street from BIF and makes for convenient access for students going back-and-forth from classes. Wohlers Hall, formerly known as Commerce West, was built in 1963.

Irwin Doctoral Study Hall

Irwin Doctoral Study Hall is adjacent to Wohlers Hall. It offers private, quiet study room and workspaces for business doctoral and post-doctoral scholars as they pursue their research and teaching activities.

Impact of Ranking Methodology Changes

Changes in ranking methodologies can impact how business schools are perceived and how they allocate resources.

U.S. News & World Report Ranking Rule Change

News ranks business school programs will effectively ban schools that do not have full-time residential MBA programs. All told, at least 14 business schools, with some 47 individual rankings, will be negatively impacted, with the Graduate School of Business Administration at Gonzaga University among the most affected by the change. Schools that will be impacted by the change are understandably disappointed. “Students are the ones being punished here,” says W. Brooke Elliott, dean of the Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. “They deserve - and expect - a clear, complete picture of the market as they approach such an important decision.

The change in methodology may well pressure more schools not to abandon their full-time MBA programs. News ranking. Several more prominent schools that had shut down their full-time MBA offerings years ago due to declining enrollment also will be impacted. They include the University of Iowa’s Tippie College of Business. Tippie began phasing out its full-time residential MBA in 2017. The school wanted to redirect resources to the college’s highly regarded part-time MBA, a new pair of specialized master’s programs, and a new online MBA.

News ranking rule change was announced to business schools participating in the forthcoming ranking in a notice published on March 24. News says it reached out to 508 business schools accredited by the AACSB. News ranks schools by specialty in descending order based on the number of nominations each receives in its peer assessment survey that goes out to deans and directors. News also will be using data on both the old GMAT test and the new GMAT Focus Edition that was introduced in fall 2023. If an MBA program’s school reported both tests for fall 2024 entrants, then both tests were used in the rankings after being converted to the percentile distribution weighted by the proportion of test-takers for each GMAT test.

Loss of Specialty Rankings

Gies, however, will lose four specialty rankings, including production/operations, management, and finance besides its No. News‘ MBA ranking. Now it will lose its number three specialty ranking in production and operations. News suggested that the organization could undo the change before publication of its rankings on April 8. Until then, however, the change is real and forthcoming. The four specialty rankings achieved by Santa Clara University’s Leavey School of Business last year will also disappear. Seattle University’s Albers School of Business & Economics is expected to disappear from three separate rankings due to the change.

Notable Alumni

Gies College of Business has produced numerous successful alumni who have made significant contributions to various industries. Gies College of Business has many notable alumni. Robert J. Nicholas Dopuch (ACCY '61) - Former Head of Accounting, Washington University in St. A.C. Sybil C. Richard H. John D. Samuel K. Skinner (ACCY '60) - Secretary of Transportation (1989-1991); White House Chief of Staff during the George H. W. Wilma L. Heitor Almeida - Stanley C. and Joan J. Jack A. Kent Monroe - John M. Aric Rindfleisch - John M. Scott Weisbenner - William G.

Gies College of Business: Business on Purpose

Gies Business puts purpose at the center of everything we do, designing every undergraduate and graduate program with intention. The courses our learners take, the events they attend, the projects they complete - it’s all created with careful thought and collaboration.

We help learners explore their passions and see how they fit into their career, taking intentional steps to ensure that the experience our learners gain is the experience they need to succeed as purpose-driven leaders and collaborators well beyond their years at Gies Business. And we’re committed to extending life-changing access to that experience to as many learners as possible from different backgrounds and different stages of life.

Gies College of Business is committed to creating an inclusive environment where all feel seen, heard, and valued. When you join the Gies Business community, you gain more than a welcoming place - you become part of a supportive and engaged network of alumni, students, faculty, and staff from around the world.

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