FAU Executive Education Jumps in Financial Times Rankings

MEDIA CONTACT: Paul Owers
561-379-8597, powers@fau.edu

BOCA RATON, Fla. (May 11, 2020) – The Florida Atlantic University College of Business’ Executive Education program jumped 12 spots in the 2020 Financial Times worldwide rankings for open enrollment professional education programs, posting one of the largest improvements of any university.

FAU ranked No. 1 in both Florida and the U.S. Southeast and also ranked No. 11 nationally and No. 59 globally (up from No. 71 in 2019) in the FT Executive Rankings. The Financial Times ranks the top 75 universities around the world, and in this year’s rankings only 15 percent are U.S. schools.

“We are focused on delivering top-quality education programs to working professionals in Florida, and we are pleased when those programs also bring global recognition to our university,” said Daniel Gropper, Ph.D., dean of FAU’s College of Business. “Lifelong learning and continuing education are more than buzzwords for us – we know they are keys for advancement for working professionals.”

Financial Times establishes the rankings using student feedback, course design, faculty, teaching methods and facilities. FAU ranked No. 4 in the world for female participants in Executive Education and No. 8 in the U.S. for quality of participants.

“We take pride in the caliber of our participants in the professional development programs,” said Vegar Wiik, executive director of FAU Executive Education. “We thank them for choosing FAU as their executive education provider, and we are proud to offer our convenient high-quality programs that empower South Florida working professionals to continue excelling in their careers.”

FAU Executive Education offers professional development courses, seminars, certificate programs and corporate and customized programs for professionals in all industries, from business owners to senior executives, seeking to pursue a higher level of knowledge, accelerate their career growth, improve performance and drive innovation.

With more than 60 programs, FAU Executive Education offers the most diversified selection of national and international certification programs in South Florida. These programs cater to individuals who want to hone their skills on a specific topic of interest, whether to gain a further understanding of the subject matter, better their performance at work, or diversify their expertise. Offered in convenient online, evening, weekend or boot camp formats, these programs are designed by subject matter experts and deliver immediate, relevant knowledge that will make participants more marketable in any industry.

FAU’s Executive Education also offers executive degree programs that are designed for professionals who want to increase their skills without career interruption. All degree programs encourage long-lasting personal and professional relationships through their cohort design, as well as flexibility through weekend, evening and online courses.

“Making the ‘Financial Times’ list of top Executive Education programs globally is a result of our deliberate efforts, and it builds on the recognition we achieved in the past year for top online Graduate and International Business programs in ‘US News & World Report,’ and top Entrepreneurship programs in ‘Princeton Review’ and ‘Entrepreneur’ magazine,” Gropper said.

Last fall, FAU’s College of Business launched its Executive Ph.D. in Business Administration, becoming one of the few AACSB-accredited business schools in the U.S. and the first in Florida to offer a Ph.D. in business in the executive format. The Hospitality and Tourism Management program and Executive Education recently offered a free online Hospitality and Tourism Management certificate for industry workers and professionals affected by the COVID-19 crisis, resulting in more than 80,000 registrants from more than 150 countries. Additionally, FAU’s Edu-Vantage Partner Program, which works with businesses, corporations and organizations to provide a high-quality educational strategy for fulfilling their employee education packages, established a partnership with JM Family Enterprises to offer its 4,300 full-time associates full tuition for both undergraduate and graduate degrees and certifications.

“At FAU, we carry out our education and research programs with ‘unbridled ambition’ and this latest recognition provides further evidence that we are continuing our upward trajectory,” Gropper said.

-FAU-

About Florida Atlantic University: Florida Atlantic University, established in 1961, officially opened its doors in 1964 as the fifth public university in Florida. Today, the University, with an annual economic impact of $6.3 billion, serves more than 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students at sites throughout its six-county service region in southeast Florida. FAU’s world-class teaching and research faculty serves students through 10 colleges: the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, the College of Business, the College for Design and Social Inquiry, the College of Education, the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the Graduate College, the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing and the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. FAU is ranked as a High Research Activity institution by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The University is placing special focus on the rapid development of critical areas that form the basis of its strategic plan: Healthy aging, biotech, coastal and marine issues, neuroscience, regenerative medicine, informatics, lifespan and the environment. These areas provide opportunities for faculty and students to build upon FAU’s existing strengths in research and scholarship. For more information, visit fau.edu.