DePaul’s Coleman Entrepreneurship Center and Women in Entrepreneurship Institute support DePaul student and alumni entrepreneurs through a variety of programs and events. DePaul University has once again been recognized by the Princeton Review as one of the top universities in the nation for studying entrepreneurship.
DePaul’s graduate entrepreneurship program ranked No. 19 and the university’s undergraduate entrepreneurship program placed No. 32 in The Princeton Review’s
Best Colleges for Entrepreneurs 2021, which surveyed more than 300 institutions to identify the top 50 programs in each category this year. The rankings come on the heels of Poets&Quants naming
DePaul’s MBA in entrepreneurship among the best programs in the world last month.
DePaul’s programs earn high marks because they blend theory and practice, says Lisa Gundry, chair of the Department of Management & Entrepreneurship at DePaul's Driehaus College of Business. “Students have the opportunity to study with faculty who bring relevant knowledge into vibrant classes that include entrepreneur guest speakers and projects with local businesses, as well as interactions with our city and regional partners that promote new and growing firms.”
These partners include Chicago business incubators 1871, 2112 and mHub, where DePaul’s memberships provide students with access to entrepreneur community events and networking.
DePaul’s Coleman Entrepreneurship Center and
Women in Entrepreneurship Institute also support DePaul student and alumni entrepreneurs with programming that includes workshops, mentorships, internships, startup incubators, innovation showcases and new venture pitch competitions.
The combination of academic and co-curricular programming places DePaul at the forefront of “creating the next generation of leaders in entrepreneurship and innovation,” Gundry says. “Whether starting their own ventures, developing their careers in entrepreneurial firms, or developing new products, services and technologies at existing businesses, our students are prepared to build and grow businesses that make a difference to the community and economy.”
Alumni entrepreneur outcomes tracked by the Coleman Entrepreneurship Center underscore the success of DePaul’s approach, says Bruce Leech, executive director of the center. “Over the past 10 years, 277 undergraduate alumni started new ventures, raised over $193 million in capital, and 89% are still in business. At the graduate level, 178 alumni started new ventures, raising over $17 million in capital and 96% are still in business.”
DePaul recently expanded its academic programs by launching an
entrepreneurship major for business students and an
entrepreneurship minor for non-business majors. Enrollment in entrepreneurship study is growing – up 12% at the undergraduate level and 13% at the graduate level at DePaul.
Thomas Donley, interim dean of the Driehaus College of Business, noted that DePaul has the distinction of being the only Illinois university ranked in the top 50 by The Princeton Review in both the undergraduate and graduate categories. “Students can rely on DePaul,” he says, “to help them develop their entrepreneurial mindset in high quality programs at any stages of their academic and professional careers.”
The rankings are published on The Princeton Review website and will be featured in the December issue of Entrepreneur magazine.
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