The C.T. Bauer College of Business at the University of Houston placed No. 41 in this year’s 2023 rankings – down some from last year’s No. 35 in the 2022 rankings. Bauer had nearly the same acceptance rate for this year’s incoming class, at 34.40%, as last year’s rate of 34.17%. The average SAT scores for the most recent class were ten points lower than last year’s average score of 1295.
Some 86.62% of the Class of 2023 grads secured full-time employment within three months of graduation, up slightly from 88.52% for the Class of 2022. Additionally, internship rates went up some, with 60.10% of the Class of 2023 landing a business-focused internship before graduating in contrast with 56.15% for the Class of 2022.
Houston did best in the Admissions Standards category, where they placed 37th. The B-School’s strong, specialized programs and opportunities to connect with real business professionals are what make the Bauer education unique.
REAL EXPERIENCE IN SPECIALTY PROGRAMS
Bauer offers seven majors to undergraduates including: Accounting, Entrepreneurship, Finance, Management, Management Information Systems, Marketing, and Supply Chain Management. But perhaps what makes the Bauer education most attractive is the abundance of specialities that students can choose from. Bauer’s specialty programs allow students to dig deeper into their field of interest and feature opportunities to gain real work experience.
For instance, the B-school’s Program for Excellence in Selling allows students to engage in live selling. Students are required to achieve a sales quota in each of their classes, much like the real world of business sales.
“In the Program for Excellence in Selling, you gain real-life sales experience by maintaining your quota to pass your class. You gain 275 hours of live training experience by the time you complete the program,” one alumni told us.
Bauer’s Wolff Center For Entrepreneurship enables students to learn how to start and operate their own businesses. Much like other specialty offerings at Bauer, the Wolff Center for Entrepreneurship allows students to gain real-world experience in the field.
At many other B-schools, your major will give you access to courses with experienced professors. But at Bauer, your learning isn’t tied to a textbook. Rather, students can dig deeper into their major and truly explore fields and specializations that interest them. By the time Bauer students graduate, they have a strong sense of what an industry or role is like.
OPPORTUNITIES TO CONNECT
Connections are key to business. And at Bauer, students can gain strong experience through connecting with faculty and business professionals in all different experiences such as case competitions.
“I participated in 8 different case competitions and won awards, which helped me to apply the academic knowledge to real life case scenarios and gave me the opportunity to be in front of professionals and got coaching sessions from them,” said an alum.
Another alumni told us that the connections made within the classroom led to career opportunities beyond the classroom.
“I participated in a sourcing case competition that was a part of the class curriculum. It helped me gain the skills necessary to get my foot in the door in the industry I was seeking, and helped me connect to employers, and in the end, helped me get a job.”
With strong specialty programs and connections that lead to future internship and employment opportunities, Bauer students are well-prepared for any career they choose to pursue.
Alumni say:
“Participated in an independent research course which was an Investment analysis project with competition between teams to assist a private equity company’s analysis in a current investment opportunity culminating with a team presentation, recommendations and pitch. It was important because it provided experience working on a current real-world problem in my desired sector (private equity) utilizing powerful techniques and strategies with a highly motivated team which drew upon all the hard and soft skills I’ve learned at UH and more. It was independent yet we had excellent guides, fast-paced, enlightening, and empowering.”
“The Program for Excellence in Selling under the Stephen Stagner Sales Excellence Institute gave me the most valuable experience as not only a student but a business professional. From carrying real quotas to engaging C level executives at Fortune 500 companies I had a unique experience that not many other students get to have. This gave me confidence in my application of business skills that translated from lectures to real world experiences. Additionally, this home in my skills due to it being a live environment and not just a controlled environment within a classroom setting.”
“As part of a few classes we had projects with actual real world companies. It was unique in that we got actual feedback from people who would actually be implementing any solutions we came up with. It was like practice for jobs we actually wanted to hold and taught us a lot about the various industries we were interested in.”
“The program gives you live training and exposes you to real-world projects, from starting an internet business to working with intellectual property to launching new ideas.”
“I really enjoyed the classes that were sponsored by Houston area companies because it really helped build my group collaboration, time management, and public speaking skills. This has certainly given me leverage in projects that I currently work or lead as an assistant manager.”
