Highest standards of business education endorsed

This successfully rounds out the school’s fourth cycle of accreditation and results in twenty years of reaccreditation with AACSB, as well as the European Foundation for Management Development Quality Improvement System (EFMD EQUIS).

AACSB is a global non-profit association whose goal is to connect educators, students, and businesses together, to create the next generation of great leaders and promote global prosperity. Established in 1916, AACSB accreditation is synonymous with the highest standards of business education and has been earned by only five percent of the world’s tertiary schools offering business degrees at bachelor’s level or higher.
 

“This is a tremendous achievement as only a small number of business schools globally have attained accreditation for this length of time,” says Professor Susan Watson, Acting Dean of the University of Auckland Business School.

“AACSB’s endorsement positions the University of Auckland Business School among a select group of world-class institutions, while also assuring our students and their employers that the Business School provides programmes of the highest international standards,” she says.

Achieving accreditation is a process of rigorous internal focus, engagement with an AACSB-assigned mentor, and peer-reviewed evaluation. The AACSB Peer Review Team found evidence of significant innovation and continuous improvement across the School's core activities around teaching, research and engagement.

The Peer Review Team was also particularly impressed with the Business School’s:
- Commitment to teaching and learning and improving the student experience
- Systematic processes and support systems for designing, delivering, and improving the     curriculum to achieve the learning goals
- Teaching quality and appropriate use of quality controls and feedback loops
- Focus on student engagement inside and outside of the classroom
- Student support services with special mention of the career development and
    employment services
- Efforts to engage and support Māori and Pacific students.

The Business School received commendations for:
- Driving innovation and entrepreneurship at the University of Auckland and in the broader     business environment in New Zealand
- Our outstanding extracurricular student engagement activities offered by the Business School Students Development and Engagement Unit, the ASB Careers Centre and the Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

“This outcome is the result of the hard work, dedication and talent of both Business School staff and supporters,” says Professor Susan Watson. “It is an exceptional way to start 2020 and I want to congratulate each and every one of you.”