Entrepreneurship program ranks among top 50 in U.S.

The Princeton Review, in partnership with Entrepreneur Magazine, announced a study Nov. 16 naming Rowan University’s undergraduate entrepreneurship program among the best in the U.S.

The study, which placed the program among the top 50 undergraduate offerings nationwide out of more than 300 considered, also cited Rowan’s entrepreneurship curricula among the top 12 in the Northeast.

The Princeton Review’s Top Schools for Entrepreneurship 2022 includes programs at just two Garden State schools, Rowan and the New Jersey Institute of Technology.

Regionally, others to make the list include programs at the University of Maryland, College Park; Drexel University, the University of Delaware and the University of Connecticut.

William G. Rohrer College of Business Dean Sue Lehrman said Rowan’s success in teaching and inspiring entrepreneurs stems in large part from its interdisciplinary approach.

“This recognition not only raises the profile of the Rohrer College of Business, but colleges throughout the University including the Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering, the Ric Edelman College of Communication & Creative Arts, the College of Science & Mathematics and our School of Osteopathic Medicine, all of which have engaged in Rowan's Entrepreneurship Across the Campus initiative,” Lehrman said.

Dr. Eric Liguori, the William G. Rohrer Professorial Chair of Entrepreneurship and executive director for the Rowan Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, said inclusion on The Princeton Review’s list also speaks to the intelligence and tenacity that define Rowan’s student body.

“There’s a hustle and grit to Rowan students that coalesces very well with an entrepreneurial mindset,” Liguori said. “We see that in our students, our faculty, our administration, and now it’s reflected in our rankings. While Rowan may not have nearly the money that many other ranked schools have, we leverage the collective efforts of the campus to deliver entrepreneurship programs with impact. The power of entrepreneurship is that it’s the ultimate leveler, the single best way to build and control your own future.”

Liguori noted that during the past five years nearly 6,000 Rowan students have taken an entrepreneurship course and that 348 high school students have enrolled in the RCB’s popular summer program, “Think Like an Entrepreneur.” For Fall 2021, there are 121 students registered as entrepreneurship majors, more than 90 entrepreneurship-certified faculty across campus, and enrollment in the interdisciplinary entrepreneurship minor is up 433% over the last five years.

In addition to the B.S. in entrepreneurship offered through the college, Rowan offers a B.S. in engineering entrepreneurship through the College of Engineering, an entrepreneurship minor, an MBA concentration, three graduate certificates and one undergraduate certificate. A second MBA concentration and certificate will launch in Fall 2022, focusing on cannabis commercialization.

The Rowan Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship this summer received the Entrepreneurship Center Global Impact Award from the International Council for Small Business, a recognition that celebrates RCIE’s cross-campus program on the world stage.

Liguori said the program, though not focused exclusively on creating startups, gives students like those who founded Arke Aeronautics vast resources in knowledge and mentorship. Still under development, the company would send drones ahead of first responders to accident scenes where, many believe, it has great potential to save lives.

“Now more than ever, people realize the value of an entrepreneurial mindset across a variety of fields,” he said. “We focus on getting people to think entrepreneurially, and that mindset applied across disciplines is really powerful.”