On October 31^st, 2022, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) issued an official announcement. After being voted and approved by the Initial Accreditation Committee and the Board of Directors, School of Management, Jinan University has earned the five-year AACSB Business Accreditation. Up to now, only 5% of the business schools in the world have obtained the AACSB international accreditation.

(AACSB Announces that the School of Management Has Earned International Accreditation)

The School of Management of Jinan University passed the Eligibility Application in 2017. After completing multiple rounds of evaluation, including the initial self-evaluation report, progress report, and the final self-evaluation report, SoM came to the final step of peer-review team visit in 2022.

From July 4th to 6th, 2022, the AACSB peer review team (PRT), composed of Prof. Yugang Yu, Executive Dean of the School of Management, University of Science and Technology of China, Prof. Song Lin, Dean of the School of Business, Central University of Finance and Economics, and Prof. Pingyu Hsu, Dean of the School of Management, Taiwan Central University, conducted a three-day virtual visit to SoM. During the review, the PRT discussed the strategic plan, student cultivation, resource allocation, academic research, assurance of learning, curriculum quality, faculty management and support, faculty qualifications and sufficiency, student development and support, and administrative support according to AACSB official standards. Overall, the PRT has conducted a comprehensive assessment of SoM, covering 15 interviews with 185 people from teachers, students, administrative staff representatives, alumni representatives, etc.

The PRT fully affirmed the attention and support of JNU and SoM leaders to international accreditation. They believed that the School of Management had fully met all the evaluation standards required by AACSB, and spoke highly of the work of the SoM in most aspects. Simultaneously, the peer-review team put forward valuable suggestions for the further improvement of the SoM's strategic plan, faculty qualifications, and assurance of learning.

 (Scene of Online Peer-review Team Visit)

Earning the AACSB international accreditation is an important milestone for the development of SoM. AACSB accreditation is known, worldwide, as the longest-standing, most recognized form of specialized accreditation that an institution and its business programs can earn. Earning this accreditation means that the business education of SoM has reached the world-class level. It is of great significance to SoM's branding, governance, international impact, and business expansion.

(Group Photo of Peer-review Team Visit)

The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) was established in 1916, which is the oldest and most comprehensive business school association. The average duration for the whole AACSB business accreditation process is 5 to 8 years. AACSB accreditation was first jointly initiated by 16 well-known university business schools, including Columbia University, Harvard University, New York University, Northwestern University, University of California, Berkeley, University of Chicago, University of Pennsylvania, Yale University, etc., aiming to promote business schools around the world to improve quality of business education. AACSB accreditation is known, worldwide, as the longest-standing, most recognized form of specialized accreditation that an institution and its business programs can earn. Therefore, AACSB accreditation represents the highest achievement of business schools around the world. Earning AACSB international accreditation is also an affirmation of quality and development prospects of the SoM. It is an important symbol of excellent management education in business schools.