A big year for Florida Gulf Coast University entrepreneurs just got another boost. The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur magazine rank the university’s undergraduate entrepreneurship program No. 22 in the “Top 50 Undergraduate Schools for Entrepreneurship Studies for 2022” list. FGCU first appeared on the list two years ago at No. 30 and ranked No. 29 last year.
“I’m proud to see us climbing the ladder on The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur magazine list,” said Sandra Kauanui, director of the Daveler & Kauanui School of Entrepreneurship. “This helps to set us apart from other programs in Florida and beyond. With the new building up and running, this award is a nice crowning achievement to wrap up 2021.”
This year, FGCU entrepreneurs witnessed the debut of Lucas Hall, a 27,000-square-foot, three-story facility housing the entrepreneurship school. Despite the pandemic, the building was fully funded through a $10.4 million philanthropic campaign. A recent gift delivered an additional $4 million in support.
Through the school’s curriculum, entrepreneurship students develop skills necessary to create and lead new businesses or contribute to established companies. As of this fall, there are 537 students majoring in the program, with thousands more from other fields of study taking entrepreneurship classes. Since 2016, over 300 businesses were created by students taking program courses, earning nearly $12.6 million in total gross revenue.
“The value of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial thinking continues to grow in our daily lives,” said Jason Feifer, editor in chief of Entrepreneur magazine. “By sharing this list, we want to continue to provide the much-needed information that people are looking for to forge their path to entrepreneurship. This list is a valuable reference tool for where future leaders can attain the knowledge, community and training grounds to succeed on that path.”
For the 2022 list, The Princeton Review selected the schools and tallied its rankings based on its summer 2021 survey of administrators at nearly 300 undergraduate and graduate schools offering entrepreneurship studies. The survey asked administrators over 60 questions about their school’s commitment to entrepreneurship studies inside and outside the classroom. The Princeton Review analyzed more than 40 survey data points to determine the rankings
“We heartily recommend the fine schools that made our entrepreneurship studies ranking lists this year,” said Rob Franek, The Princeton Review’s editor in chief. “Their faculties are outstanding. Their programs have robust experiential components, and their students receive awesome mentoring and networking support that will serve them for years to come.”
As a complement to its No. 22 placement in the “Top 50 Undergraduate Schools for Entrepreneurship Studies for 2022” ranking, FGCU is No. 3 on the top Southeast undergraduate entrepreneurship list, which includes 12 states. The Princeton Review also includes FGCU in its “2022 Best Colleges: Southeastern” and “Green Colleges” lists
For more information about FGCU’s Daveler & Kauanui School of Entrepreneurship, visit fgcu.edu/soe.