School of Management among best in world as it achieves EQUIS re-accreditation

The commendation means that Bradford’s School of Management is among the best, not just in the UK, but in the world.

EQUIS accreditation is notoriously difficult to gain and re-accreditation requires that schools meet rigorous standards in terms of their strategy, the design and delivery of their programmes, their ability to affect positive outcomes for graduates, produce high quality research and have impactful connections with the real-world  with a global outlook.

There are around 14,000 business schools in the world - EQUIS accredits just 206 of those. In the UK, just 33 have accreditation. Bradford has held EQUIS accreditation since 2000.

The latest EQUIS award means Bradford’s School of Management also retains its ‘triple crown’, as it is also accredited by AMBA (Association of MBAs) and AACSB (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business). In 2021, the School of Management was also named Business School of the Year by the Times Higher Education supplement.

Dean of the School of Management, Professor Sankar Sivarajah, said: “EQUIS re-accreditation means we are positioned amongst some of the world-leading business schools globally. We have always been committed to a progressive approach to business education with social responsibility. EQUIS has helped us develop a robust strategy, benchmarking ourselves amongst top-tier business schools and following best practices that meet sector expectations.

He added: “This means that we are providing very high quality management education and that our programmes are academically rigorous in terms of being applicable to the modern world, for example, by focusing on areas such as the digital economy and sustainable business. 

“It also means our research is of a very high calibre having a global impact, and that all of this is guided by an overarching strategy driven by our commitment to be relevant to the needs of business in the 21st century. As such, we’re all extremely proud to have achieved this and credit goes to all our colleagues, students, alumni and business community who have played their part in helping the School securing this three-year re-accreditation.”

Alfons Sauquet, Quality Services & EQUIS Director, said: “The University of Bradford School of Management was first accredited by EQUIS in 2000 and has now achieved a three-year re-accreditation. This accomplishment reaffirms its commitment to continuous quality improvement and innovation in business education.

“EQUIS is an internationally recognised quality assurance system. Its broad and continuously updated standards allow schools to challenge their strategies across curricula design, research and impact agenda. We look forward to seeing the University’s continued growth in the coming years.”

Vice-Chancellor Professor Shirley Congdon said: “Our School of Management provides exceptionally high-quality education that ultimately means graduates are more employable. Part of our vision at Bradford is to increase opportunity and make a difference - here is direct evidence we are the place to be to make that difference.”

Deputy-Vice-Chancellor Professor Zahir Irani said: “This re-accreditation recognises the hard work that has gone into making our School of Management one of the leading business schools in the world. It means our research, our links to business, our ability to apply knowledge and our teaching, are of an exceptionally high standard - and that’s why students want to study here.”

Factfile 

• The School was awarded the Times Higher Education UK Business School of the Year 2021 for its contribution to the local and regional economic and social regeneration, making a significant impact on people’s lives. 
• The School was awarded the Educate North Awards Business School of the Year 2020 in recognition of the School’s outstanding performance in the areas of financial performance, teaching, research, student experience, innovation and economic impact 
• Bradford’s Online MBA has been ranked 1st globally for value for money, 4th highest for the number of international students, and 4th highest for international mobility in the Financial Times Online MBA Rankings 2022 (consistently within the top 10 for over a decade). 
• As a UN PRME Advanced Signatory Ethics, Responsibility and Sustainability is embedded across its programme portfolio – an objective that sits close to the heart of the School’s ethos. 
• The quality and internationalisation of faculty members (24 different nationalities, 50% of the faculty has international professional experience).  
• The impact of research, with international research leadership and impact evidenced through the Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021) is excellent and performing above the national average.  
• Engagement of staff and students with the wider community through a wide variety of outreach activities and public service initiatives, such as Bradford Business Challenge, Rolls-Royce - NatWest Innovation Hub for Entrepreneurship development, and Barclays’ sponsored Knowledge Transfer Network for small and medium-size enterprises in the region. 
• The provision of student career and employability support to students and alumni for up to five years after your studies (on-campus and off-campus) 
• The provision of free and confidential counselling, mental health advice, a 24-hour helpline, self-help resources, and workshops for students and staff.  

About EQUIS

EQUIS is the leading international system of quality assessment, improvement and accreditation of higher education institutions in management and business administration. EQUIS is managed and run by the European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) and its fundamental objective, linked to the mission of the EFMD, is to raise the standard of management education worldwide.

EQUIS was created in 1997 by a mandate of EFMD’s member business schools and with the specific active support of a number of them among which were the top ones in Europe: Bocconi, HEC Paris, Aalto University School of Business, IESE, IMD, INSEAD, IE Business School, London Business School, Rotterdam School of Management, etc.

The creation of EQUIS was prompted by the need to develop an accreditation system targeted to those business schools anywhere in the world that were trying to make an impact beyond their domestic frontiers. At the time of its creation, there were no established international accreditation systems in the field of management or business administration. EQUIS is European in its inspiration and global in its scope. 

Institutions that are accredited by EQUIS must demonstrate not only high general quality in all dimensions of their activities, but also a high degree of internationalisation. With companies recruiting worldwide, with students choosing to get their education outside their home countries, and with schools building alliances across borders and continents, there is a rapidly growing need for them to be able to identify those institutions in other countries that deliver high quality education in international management. EFMD accreditation guarantees this recognition. 

EQUIS also firmly believes that Business Schools should be as closely connected to the real world of business as medical schools are to working hospitals. There must be a balance between high academic quality and the professional relevance provided by close interaction with the corporate world. EFMD’s accreditations attach particular importance to the development of managerial and entrepreneurial skills, together with a student’s sense of global responsibility