Freeman College of Management Named a 'Top Business School to Watch'

Bucknell University's Freeman College of Management has been recognized for the second time as "a top 10 undergraduate business school to watch" by Poets&Quants for Undergrads, the leading online publication for undergraduate business education news. In only its fifth year as a college, the Freeman College has developed a reputation for providing a world-class student experience and transformative educational opportunities.

This most recent recognition underscores the distinctive strengths of the Freeman College, which offers students a cutting-edge curriculum grounded in the liberal arts. Its powerful combination of innovative classroom offerings and experiential learning opportunities give Bucknell graduates a competitive edge in any field they pursue.

"The Freeman College takes a dynamic approach to education, adapting and evolving in order to meet emerging trends and equip students with the skills and knowledge they need to succeed," says Cindy Guthrie, interim dean of the Freeman College.

The college's unique interdisciplinary approach fosters critical thinking and creative problem solving designed to prepare today's students to be tomorrow's leaders in business — and beyond. To support that endeavor, the Freeman College recently announced changes to its curriculum that will benefit students not just within the college but across the entire University.

New Minors Available to All Students

Undergraduates at Bucknell can choose among a wide array of majors, everything from art history to biomedical engineering to women's & gender studies. As varied as those are, there's a common thread that runs through them all. "Every graduate is going to work for a company or not-for-profit organization at some point," says Professor Curtis Nicholls, chair of the Department of Accounting & Financial Management. "Developing business acumen can benefit any student, regardless of what field they pursue."

To ensure Bucknell students are set up for future success, the Freeman College will offer minors that will be open to all students, beginning with the incoming Class of 2027. This will enable students in Bucknell's College of Arts & Sciences and the College of Engineering to gain accounting, analytics, management and entrepreneurial knowledge and skills that will complement their majors.

Here is what will be offered in the fall:

Accounting: Housed in the Department of Accounting & Financial Management, this minor is for students who recognize the benefits of an accounting background but wish to pursue another major. "It rounds out their exposure to the accounting area without necessarily preparing them for the CPA exam, which would be the goal of a standard accounting program," Nicholls says.

Business analytics: Housed in the Department of Analytics & Operations Management, this minor allows students to add data visualization, prediction modeling and other analytics skills to their studies in another major. "Business Analytics is in high demand in all organizations and industries, so the minor is an excellent complement to any student's primary area of study," says Professor Matt Bailey, department chair. "The courses in the minor provide them with the skills and understanding to properly frame an organization's problems, perform the needed data-oriented analysis and properly communicate their insights."

Entrepreneurship: Housed in the Department of Management & Organizations (MORS), this minor is for students who want to learn what it takes to launch new businesses and other enterprises. "The entrepreneurship minor is available to everyone on campus who is interested in developing an entrepreneurial mindset and the knowledge, skills and abilities to create entrepreneurship ventures in community-based, nonprofit, public and private sector organizations," says Professor Neil Boyd, department chair.

Human resource management: Also housed in MORS, this minor targets students who are interested in studying people in organizations as well as organizational structure and management. "We expect to see psychology students or social science students probably more than anyone, but we may see some students from other places as well," says Boyd.

Students from across Bucknell can also pursue minors in management and real estate, options that have been available since the 2020-21 academic year. The management minor allows non-Freeman College students to gain business and leadership skills they can apply in any field, while the real estate minor equips students to shape cities and landscapes as they confront grand challenges such as climate change, rapid technological evolution and economic uncertainty.

Greg Duggan '24 from Scranton, Pa., is pursuing the real estate minor to accompany his majors in economics and physics. "I thought that real estate would be an interesting pursuit and also a good backup plan," he says. "I plan to enter the financial services industry, so real estate knowledge should come in handy."

In addition to the new minors, the Freeman College also recently announced that it is consolidating majors in its MORS department in favor of a single, streamlined MORS major.

That doesn't mean every MORS student will follow the same path, however. Students within the MORS major will have the opportunity to choose from one of four concentrations: global management, managing for sustainability, entrepreneurship and human resources management. Students also have the option to construct their own unique intellectual identity path to best fit their specific interests and future goals, Boyd says.

These updates demonstrate how the Freeman College is continually adapting and evolving to ensure Bucknell students have the skills and knowledge to support their future paths, wherever they may lead.