Maryland Remains a Top School for Entrepreneurially-Minded Students
The University of Maryland continues to be one of the nation's top schools for entrepreneurially-minded students. The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur Magazine's annual rankings of the top 25 undergraduate and graduate school programs shows UMD has moved up to 14th on the undergraduate list - up from 18th last year. The graduate rankings remain in the top 25 - coming in at 24th this year. The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur Magazine have partnered for a number of years to create the ranking report. Surveys are conducted with school administrators from April through June. Some 2300 schools were part of the 60 question survey for this year's rankings. Entrepreneur Magazine will again feature the survey in its October issue that is available on newsstands September 25. Data used to evaluate programs at Maryland and other schools include:
The A. James Clark School of Engineering's Maryland Technology Enterprise Institute (Mtech) is widely recognized for its campus and national leadership in undergraduate entrepreneurship programs, including the Hinman CEOs Program, the nation's first living-learning entrepreneurship program, and its highly successful annual technology business plan competition. The Robert H. Smith School of Business is a major driver of entrepreneurship education at the university, with its 26-year-old Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship championing programs university-wide for students, faculty and regional entrepreneurs. UMD President Wallace Loh has made Innovation and Entrepreneurship (I&E) a major focus of his tenure in College Park. Just recently, the university was ranked 4th in the nation in 2013 for aspiring entrepreneurs by the website unigo.com. And thanks to the leadership provided by this university, the state of Maryland was named #1 in entrepreneurship and innovation by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce this summer. At that time, Vice President for Research and Chief Research Officer Dr. Patrick O'Shea pointed to UMD's dedication to "creating a culture of entrepreneurship among our faculty, students and alumni." Maryland's rankings are the result of a focus on growing entrepreneurship programs across campus - with the Smith and Clark schools leading the way. University officials say they will continue to suport and grow I&E opportunities for faculty, staff and alumni into the future. Maryland Technology Enterprise Institute (Mtech) Mtech's entrepreneurship education initiatives in 2011-2012 included 18 entrepreneurship courses, with 932 enrollments. More than $335K in scholarship funding was given to students engaged in Mtech's entrepreneurship education programs during that same year. Mtech's entrepreneurship education portfolio also includes two living-learning programs, one transfer scholarship program, seed funding, a $75,000 business plan competition and mentoring. New initiatives this past year include the first Maryland High School Business Plan Competition, the Entrepreneurship Essentials Online Program, and a new, free entrepreneurship course announced through Coursera. Highlights of Mtech's entrepreneurship education programs include:
Mtech's overall programs add to these offerings with product development funding, free intellectual property services, entrepreneur office hours, a venture accelerator, prototype lab, incubator, and additional support for companies throughout their lifecycles. Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship The Dingman Center, located at the Robert H. Smith Schoolof Business, helps lead the university's entrepreneurship effort.. It is recognized nationally for its innovative teaching methods that combine classroom activities, practical experience and cultural immersion programs. The most recent U.S. News ranking of undergraduate entrepreneurship programs (2011) ranked the Smith School's program #15 in the country. Acclaimed programs in the schools' Dingman Center include:
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