Assessment of Learning Program Ensures High Academic Standards at FCBE

For release:  February 12, 2013

The Fogelman College of Business and Economics is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB).  More than 650 member institutions hold AACSB Accreditation. Overall, nearly 50 countries and territories are represented by AACSB-accredited schools. Of the accredited schools:

• 42 institutions have undergraduate programs only (6% of accredited members)
• 30 institutions have master's and doctoral programs only (4% of accredited members)
• 178 institutions have AACSB’s additional accounting accreditation (28% of accredited members)

As you can see from this information, Fogelman College is part of a relatively small group who are fully accredited at all levels, including the School of Accountancy. Furthermore, FCBE is the only AACSB accredited business school within 200 miles of Memphis.

“We strive to provide top-quality education for our students,” said Dr. Rajiv Grover, Dean of Fogelman College. “Our students should be able to graduate from the college with a level of business preparedness to succeed in the professional world. Adherence to AACSB standards helps us fulfill this responsibility to our students and community.”

To ensure the college is meeting high levels of academic excellence and continuously striving for improvement, an Assessment of Learning Program is implemented. A primary function of this program involves determining what students learned, relative to expectations after completion of their academic programs.  Faculty members develop “learning outcomes” to detail expected competency levels of their students after graduation. Corresponding objectives are then developed to determine whether or not students are actually capable of achieving the academic pre-set standards.  Rubrics are used in various required courses to help faculty measure the degree that objectives have been met when compared with a predetermined benchmark.  If more than 30 percent of the students fall below the benchmark for a particular objective, then faculty members recommend improvements which will likely result in improvement during the next assessment of learning period.

AACSB mandates that the Assessment of Learning Program is administered two times during any five-year period, so the Fogelman College assesses each degree program on a four-year rotation plan.  During the past five years, 61 improvements have been implemented as a direct result of the Assessment of Learning Program.

“This program is serving to meet AACSB mandates and also improve the learning process in the college,” said Dr. Lloyd Brooks, FCBE Professor and Director of Assessment. “It is imperative that we set high academic standards for our students, but it is equally important that we ensure these standards of knowledge are being achieved.”

The Fogelman College Assessment of Learning Program provides information that is useful to faculty, students, and companies who employ graduates from the Fogelman College of Business and Economics. For additional information, or to view the full assessment Web site, please visit http://www.fcbeassessment.net.