AU COLLEGE OF BUSINESS RANKED 57th BY U.S. NEWS

AUBURN -- Auburn University's College of Business is ranked 37th nationally among public institutions and 57th overall in the new U.S. News & World Report rankings for 2005.

"We are pleased to be among the top 40 public business schools and in the top 60 overall, but we have aspirations that exceed our current rankings," said Paul Bobrowski, the new dean of AU's College of Business. "Through our process of continuous improvement, we hope to shrink the gap between our aspirations and future rankings."

AU's business undergraduate program was ranked No. 6 among Southeastern Conference-member institutions behind the University of Florida's Warrington College of Business, the University of Georgia's Terry College of Business, the University of South Carolina's Moore School of Business, the University of Arkansas' Walton College of Business and the University of Tennessee's College of Business.

For the second consecutive year, Auburn finished in a tie with the University of Alabama's Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration overall and among public institutions.

The University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School was ranked as the nation's top undergraduate business program while the University of California-Berkeley's Haas School of Business and the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor were ranked best among public institutions.

U.S. News surveyed deans and senior faculty at undergraduate business programs accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. Participants were asked to rate the quality of all programs they are familiar with on a scale of 1 (marginal) to 5 (distinguished). The "Best Undergraduate Business Programs" rankings are based solely on this peer survey.

With approximately 4,000 students, the College of Business is AU's second largest academic college.

The 2005 rankings are available on-line at www.usnews.com.

Auburn University is a comprehensive research institution with more than 23,000 students and 6,500 faculty and staff. Ranked among the top 50 public universities nationally, Auburn is Alabama's largest educational institution, offering more than 230 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degree programs.
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sept04:AU-usnewsbiz
CONTACT: Bobrowski, 334/844-4030.