US West

Ranked #10 Nationally Undergraduate Entrepreneurship Programs

 Ranked #9 Nationally Graduate Entrepreneurship Programs

Program Overview

The Top Ten Nationally Ranked* entrepreneurship program at Chapman University was founded in 1996 with the establishment of the Ralph W. Leatherby Center for Entrepreneurship and Business Ethics within the George L. Argyros School of Business and Economics.  Undergraduate and Graduate courses in Entrepreneurship are offered within the Argyros School of Business and Economics.  (*out of 2300 schools surveyed in 2008 by Entrepreneur Magazine and The Princeton Review) 

Ralph W. Leatherby Center for Entrepreneurship and Business Ethics

For students, alumni and Orange County businesses, the Leatherby Center for Entrepreneurship and Business Ethics provides resources for succeeding with both individual and corporate entrepreneurial pursuits.  Nationally ranked in entrepreneurship by Entrepreneur Magazine and The Princeton Review, the center provides advice in start-up strategies, business and marketing plans, strategies for growing firms, and guidance in securing angel or venture capital funding.  Students are provided opportunities for participation in student organizations, entrepreneurial internships, business plan contests, consulting team projects, and mentorship programs. The Leatherby Center sponsors the Issues in Ethics Forum lectures, in addition to entrepreneurship speakers and SCORE Small Business Administration business start-up/growth workshops held on campus.

Recent Recognitions of Student, Alumni, Faculty, and Program Success

•    Mike Brown, ‘2006 Alumni, 1st Place Award Global Student Entrepreneur Award from Entrepreneur’s Organization.  Received national and global college student magazine print and website exposure.

•    Dr. P. K. Shukla, 1st Place Best Faculty Advisor Award out of all CEO (Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization) Chapters, 2006. Our CEO Chapter received a 2006 Best Chapter Award.

•    SIFE (Students in Free Enterprise) Team, 1st Place Award in 2007 EntrepreneurshipWeek USA Post-It Challenge, in the Social Value Generated Category. Our SIFE teams have won several awards.

•    Kona Girl Coffee Soda Team (Desiree Farden, Kim Tran, Arash Sayedi, Nick Brutoco), Semi-Finalist, Jungle Media, MBA Jungle Magazine 2007 Business Plan Competition; one of 24 semi-finalist teams out of over 150 international business plan submissions.  Competed against: Harvard; UPenn, Wharton; MIT; UC Berkeley; U Chicago; Duke; Johns Hopkins, …

•    Kona Girl Coffee Soda Team, Semi-Finalist, University of San Francisco 2007 International Business Plan Contest; one of 19 semi-finalist teams out of several international business plan submissions.

Competed against: Stanford, Yale, Carnegie Mellon, UC Berkeley, U of South Africa, Honk Kong U of Science and Technology,…

•    Led the Nation in Launch of 2007 EntrepreneurshipWeek USA with Countdown to Midnight EST Friday February 23, 2007 at our Orange, California campus.  Chapman University given the label of “Times Square of the Entrepreneurship World.” Led the Nation Again in Launch of 2008 National Entrepreneurship Week celebration with countdown and film marathon.

•    Held 1st Entrepreneurial Film Marathon on Friday February 23rd to Saturday February 24th, 2007. Chapman University is listed on entrepreneur.com website with their Entrepreneurial Films Slide Show.

•    Hosted 2007 Western Region Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization Conference.  Keynote speaker, Paul Orfalea, founder of Kinko’s, September 20, 2007.

•    Ranked #6 Among Undergraduate Programs; Ranked #8 Among Graduate Programs out of 900 entrepreneurship programs surveyed in 2007 by The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur Magazine. Chapman University Cited in article “America’s Entrepreneurship Programs Continue to Grow,” October 10, 2007 posted on CNN.Money.com and posted on the internet homes of : Fortune magazine, Money magazine, Business 2.0 magazine, and Fortune Small Business magazine.

•    Invited to Share Creative Ways of Promoting Entrepreneurship at 2007 National Consortium of Entrepreneurship Center Directors Conference October 4-6, 2007 Syracuse, New York

•    Selected as “Model Chapter” to Mentor Start-up/Growing Chapters” at 2007 National CEO Conference November 1-3, Chicago

•    Partnership with Harvard Business School Entrepreneurship Students as West Coast Hub for StudentBusinesses.com start-up business network to link student entrepreneurs and investors nationally. P. K. Shukla is serving on Board of Advisors.

•    One of the Top 100 Most Innovative MBA Teams in the World Chapman University MBA Team has been recognized with the 5th Annual Innovation Challenge. This year's contest involved 1236 MBA Contestants from 57 Countries.  Our Chapman MBA Team consisted of Greg Fiske, Crandall Kermott, Clayton Liggitt, and Nicole Provansal.

•    Top 50 MBA Programs in Entrepreneurship Listed in Spring, 2008 MBA Guide by Women 3.0 Magazine

•    P. K. Shukla Winner of a 2008 Teaching Excellence Award from the Acton Foundation for Entrepreneurial Excellence (FEE)

•    Jonathan Strietzel, BSBA ’04 (entrepreneurship), part of Intel CEO Paul Otellini Keynote Address at 2008 International Consumer Electronics Show. At 27, past CEO of BigStage.com and now Chief Creativity Officer, explained and demonstrated revolutionary technology (12 minutes out of 50 minute keynote address by the Intel Corporation CEO Paul Otellini. Articles on BigStage written in Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, Forbes, and several other business publications.

•    2008 USASBE Excellence in Education Award for Innovative Pedagogy. Received 1st place national excellence award from United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship.

•    Chapman University Team Invited by Stanford University to Compete in Innovation Tournament. Chapman University team of Shy Lesser and Yatri Shukla developed Bands of Love/Locks of Love (development of personalized rubber bands by children with cancer seeking hair donations).

•    2007 National Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winner Keynote Talk, at Chapman Alumni Entrepreneurs’ Mixer February 26, 2008. Manu Shah, CEO of M S International and Ernst & Young National Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winner for Distribution, Keynote speaker.

•    2008 1st Runner-Up Award SIFE Regional Competitions Los Angeles April 7, 2008. SIFE Team Award.

•    2008 Virtual Competition for Global Student Entrepreneur Award Hosted May 23, 2008.  In the search for the world’s top undergraduate student entrepreneur, Chapman University hosted one of 8 regional competitions in collaboration with Entrepreneurs’ Organization.

Curriculum ~ The Entrepreneurship Program:

Undergraduate Program (B.Sc.Bus.Admin. with an Emphasis in Entrepreneurship)

Entrepreneurship, corporate entrepreneurship, and entrepreneurial thinking are stressed throughout our 60 semester unit Business Administration major that focuses upon “reality-based education”.  Students are provided extra-curricular opportunities to supplement their classroom learning.

Graduate Program (MBA, MBA/JD, MBA/MFA, MBA/MScFSN)

Our MBA programs offer courses on entrepreneurship and value creation; new courses such as entrepreneurship in emerging markets are being developed.  In addition to these courses, we stress corporate entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial thinking throughout our MBA programs.  Chapman University has collaborations between the Argyros School, Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, and our School of Law--- joint degree students can focus upon entertainment entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial law.  We also encourage graduate students to participate in our student organizations and to enter on-campus and off-campus business plan contests.   

Research, Service, and Partnerships:

Publications, presentations, and consulting engagements have been completed by our faculty in entrepreneurship.  Our faculty are involved with local, regional, and national organizations that promote research and the practice of entrepreneurship.  We have received grants from foundations, financial and mentoring support from our many successful entrepreneurial Alumni, and support from the Orange County business community. We have partnered with SBA/SCORE/SBDC, Tech Coast Angels (the largest angel investor group in the nation), Entrepreneurs’ Organization,  along with local Chambers of Commerce as Orange County, California is one of the most dynamic and entrepreneurial regions in the United States. We are seeking to partner and collaborate on research, grants, and program sponsorship with both local and nationally recognized entrepreneurship programs.

For More Information:

The Leatherby Center for Entrepreneurship and Business Ethics,  Argyros School of Business and Economics, Chapman University, 1 University Drive, Orange, CA 92866              Dr. P. K. Shukla, Director: (714) 997-6817  

Fax: (714) 628-7253   Email: shukla@chapman.edu            Website:  www.chapman.edu/argyros/innovate