College of Business (University of Nebraska–Lincoln)

College of Business
TypePublic
Established1913 (1913)
Parent institution
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
DeanKathy Farrell
Academic staff
130 (2025)
Students4,398 (2025)[1]
Location
CampusUrban
AffiliationsAACSB
Websitebusiness.unl.edu

The College of Business (COB) is the business school at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in Lincoln, Nebraska. It was founded in 1913 as the School of Commerce and became the College of Business Administration in 1919. Kathy Farrell has served as the James Jr. and Susan Stuart Endowed Dean since 2017.[2]

The College of Business is the second-largest of nine colleges at NU and includes twelve undergraduate degree programs. It was a charter member of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business in 1916 and is accredited in business and accounting.[3]

History

The college opened as the School of Commerce in 1913 under the direction of economics professor James Edward Le Rossignol.[4] Le Rossignol oversaw the department's transition into the College of Business Administration in 1919 and served as its first dean, establishing the Bureau of Business Research to analyze the economy of the state of Nebraska.[4] Nebraska began offering a Master of Business Administration degree in 1964.

The CBA was primarily based in the College of Business Administration Building (formerly Social Sciences Hall) from the 1960s until 2017. When the college vacated the aging building, it was renovated to accommodate NU's Global Affairs department and renamed in honor of Louise Pound.[5]

In 2017, the college completed construction of Howard L. Hawks Hall on the corner of Vine Street and 14th Street on NU's City Campus. The $84-million, 240,000-square foot facility was named in honor of regent Howard Hawks, who gave significantly to the university for over thirty years.[6] The same year, "Administration" was removed from the name of the college, which became the College of Business, at the request of a Big Ten Conference advisory committee seeking to use the same nomenclature for each member school.[6]

Academics

The College of Business ranked thirtieth among public schools and fifty-third among all schools in U.S. News & World Report's 2025 ranking of American business colleges.[7]

Degree programs

  • Undergraduate degree programs: Accountancy, Actuarial Science, Agribusiness, Business Administration, Business Analytics, Business and Law, Economics, Finance, International Business, Management, Marketing, Supply Chain Management
  • Undergraduate minors: Accountancy, Actuarial Science, Business for Non-Business Majors, Business Analytics, Clifton Builders Management, Economics, Entrepreneurship, Finance, Global Leadership, Law and Business, Management, Marketing, Supply Chain Management
  • Graduate degree programs: Accountancy, Actuarial Science, Business Analytics, Economics, Finance, Supply Chain Management, MBAJD, MPA – Architecture, MPA – JD
  • PhD programs: Accounting, Economics, Finance, Management, Marketing, Supply Chain and Analytics[8]

Nebraska has offered a "study at Oxford" foreign-exchange program since 1988, allowing students to spend a month at the University of Oxford.

References

  1. ^ "Points of Pride". University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Retrieved 28 July 2025.
  2. ^ "Kathleen A. Farrell – Dean, College of Business, University of Nebraska–Lincoln". Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. Retrieved 28 July 2025.
  3. ^ "University of Nebraska–Lincoln". Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. Retrieved 28 July 2025.
  4. ^ a b "Mission: Business Research" (PDF). Nebraska on the March (Summer 1973). Retrieved 28 July 2025.
  5. ^ Chin Tung Tran (15 April 2022). "Global education center at Louise Pound Hall unites Global Affairs offices". The Daily Nebraskan. Retrieved 28 July 2025.
  6. ^ a b Chris Dunker (4 August 2017). "UNL business college building to be named for Howard Hawks". Lincoln Journal Star. Retrieved 28 July 2025.
  7. ^ "Best Undergraduate Business Programs Rankings". U.S. News & World Report. 2025. Retrieved 28 July 2025.
  8. ^ "Academic Departments and Areas". University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Retrieved 28 July 2025.