University of Virginia Darden School of Business


The Darden School of Business is the graduate business school associated with the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia. The Darden School offers MBA, Ph.D. and Executive Education programs. The School was founded in 1955 and is named after Colgate Whitehead Darden, Jr., a former Democratic congressman, governor of Virginia, and former president of the University of Virginia. Darden is on the grounds of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. The School is famous for being one of the most prominent business schools to use the case method as its sole method of teaching. The Dean of the school is former McKinsey & Company executive, Scott C. Beardsley.

History

The Darden School was the first graduate school of business of the Southern United States when it was originally founded in 1955. The original business school was nestled in the central grounds of the University of Virginia, before being moved its current location at the North Grounds. Designed by the Driehaus Prize winner Robert A. M. Stern, the Darden school's buildings feature sand-struck Virginia brick, Chippendale balustrades and red-metal standing seam roofs. In 2018, the Sands Family Grounds was inaugurated by the Darden School, in Arlington County, Virginia, in proximity to Washington D.C.'s central business district. The Sands Family Grounds occupy the top two floor of a 31-story skyscraper emblazoned with the UVA Darden Logo, and provides extensive facilities for students and event guests.

Locations

The full-time MBA program is located in Charlottesville, Virginia at the UVA Darden Goodwin Family Grounds, which is roughly two hours from Washington, D.C.
In 2017, it was announced that Darden would establish dedicated facilities in Rosslyn, formerly introduced as the UVA Darden Sands Family Grounds in February 2019, as the new home base for the Executive MBA formats and new M.S. in Business Analytics degree launched with the McIntire School of Commerce.

MBA

Designed for students who seek to strengthen their leadership, business and communication skills, Darden's two-year MBA program — ranked #1 in educational experience by Economist — combines core and elective courses in Charlottesville, Virginia with opportunities for every student to study abroad.

Admissions

Admission requirements for the MBA include an earned four-year bachelor's degree from an accredited U.S. institution or the international equivalent, completion of application forms and essays, GMAT or GRE score, academic transcripts, two professional recommendations, and the payment of a fee. The MBA Class of 2021 has an average GMAT score of 713 and an average GPA of 3.48, and an average age of 27 years old. Of the 335 students enrolled, 33% are international students, 40% are women and 21% are domestic minority students. The School had an acceptance rate of 36.5% as of 2019.

Curriculum

The required curriculum in the First Year is designed to provide students with an integrated perspective on general management. Beginning in the final term of the First Year, the curriculum is made up entirely of electives to allow students to develop more depth in chosen areas of interest. Students may choose two from among the following optional concentrations:
In addition to the above academic concentrations, Darden offers a specialization in management science that is which is especially useful for students interested in the tech sector and/or international students who wish to find employment in the United States after graduation by allowing better chances of receiving an H-1B work visa if they qualify for Optional Practical Training extension.

Employment statistics

A total of 97% of MBA graduates from the class of 2019 received full-time offers within three months of graduation, the median starting salary and sign-on bonus upon graduation was $162,000. Among the graduates, 36% entered consulting positions, 24% obtained investment banking and financial services roles, and 15% entered careers in technologies. Top employers include McKinsey & Co., Boston Consulting Group, Amazon, Microsoft, Danaher Corporation, JP Morgan Chase, and Credit Suisse.

Study abroad

Students are offered study abroad programs as well as Darden Worldwide Courses which offer international immersion courses which are funded by a $15 million gift from philanthropist and donor, Frank Batten.
The following schools participate in Darden's exchange program:
Designed with a hybrid structure of online learning with in-person residences at the new UVA Darden Sands Family Grounds in the Washington, D.C., area, two formats of the MBA are offered which provide the same degree as the MBA. The EMBA is designed for working professionals and the GEMBA is an option that provides additional global residences compared to the EMBA. Both formats have the same core curriculum over a period of twenty-one months with all students entering in the same cohort each academic year. Global residencies include Brazil, Chile, China, Germany, Japan, Ghana, Israel, India, Estonia and Cuba with changes in locations possible each year.

Darden Executive Education

The inaugural Executive Education program was offered in 1955. Darden Executive Education offers both short courses and custom solutions, as well as consortia, corporate university design and development, and industry specific partnerships. Short course focus areas include leadership, general management, strategy and decision-making, negotiation, growth and innovation, project management, sales and marketing, financial management and corporate aviation. These programs are ranked in the top five of the Financial Times annual survey.

Rankings

Darden is regularly ranked as being among the Top 15 business schools in the U.S. and Top 30 in the world. Its current rankings are as follows:

MBA Rankings

Darden's list of alumni includes: