Foster Master of Science in Entrepreneurship ranks #6 in U.S.
Leadership instructor Ken Myer (second from right) and students from the 2020 Master of Science in Entrepreneurship program in PACCAR Hall. Photo taken in 2019.
Foster’s Master of Science in Entrepreneurship program was recognized in the highest tier — #6 in the nation by MIM-Guide, a global resource for graduate school candidates. MIM-Guide’s top Master’s of Entrepreneurship programs are selected based on interest in the program by prospective graduate students worldwide. The U.S. ranking of high-demand programs includes UW among top peer entrepreneurship schools: University of Southern California, Indiana University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and Babson College.
Foster’s innovative entrepreneurship curriculum, startup resources, and hundreds of companies launched also earned accolades from the Princeton Review and Entrepreneur Magazine, which ranked the Foster School #8 in the nation for Graduate Entrepreneurship.
Hundreds of student companies have participated in University of Washington startup competitions. Seattle molecular coffee company Atomo won the $10,000 Herbert B. Jones Prize in the 2019 Alaska Airlines Environmental Innovation Challenge. Led by Cara LeDuc (right), a ’19 graduate of the Master of Science in Entrepreneurship program, and other founders, the company recently raised $9 million to expand operations. Photo taken in 2019.
A master’s degree designed by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs
The top-ranked, one-year Master of Science in Entrepreneurship program provides access to one of the top startup ecosystems in the world. The program draws on the knowledge and experience of Foster faculty as well as alumni founders, local entrepreneurs, investors, and practitioners. This fully immersive master’s degree coaches founders through the four-stage startup experience – ideate, test, refine, and prepare to scale. The hands-on format with guidance from experienced mentors supports an extensive community of founders working together to build and lead their companies.
There is nowhere I’d rather be than Seattle. The supporting ecosystem is strong. The entrepreneurship scene and resources are woven into the fabric of the city and only growing stronger.”
— Korion Morris, unybrands, MS in Entrepreneurship graduate
Ranked #8 of more than 300 schools for Graduate Entrepreneurship
Princeton Review and Entrepreneur Magazine surveyed more than 300 schools for its in-depth entrepreneurship rankings of the top 50 schools. Foster ranks #8 for Graduate Entrepreneurship and #26 for Undergraduate Entrepreneurship.
Over the past ten years, graduate alumni have launched more than 540 ventures independent of the school and brought in over $270 million in fundraising and investment. During the same timeframe, undergraduate alumni launched more than 468 independent ventures and raised over $85 million. Today, UW spinoffs employ more than 4,000 people in the state of Washington.
The Buerk Center for Entrepreneurship, the hub of entrepreneurial activities at the UW and Foster School, hosts three student innovation and startup competitions open to colleges and universities across the Pacific Northwest, as well as the non-academic Jones + Foster Accelerator program. Since 2010, more than 85% of those who received seed funding from the Accelerator are still in business today.
Ryan Yousefian, Master of Science in Entrepreneurship ’20 graduate and founder of ApnoMed, won the 2020 Holloman Health Innovation Challenge and Dempsey Startup Competition
Access to resources at the Foster School and University of Washington
“They give you access to the Co-Motion labs and 3D printers where, if you really don’t even have a product yet, you can prototype them” said Ryan Yousefian, founder of medical device company ApnoMed and 2020 Master of Science in Entrepreneurship graduate. “The other big thing was the startup competitions… they probably gave us the most traction.”
Yousefian and ApnoMed went on to win the Holloman Health Innovation Challenge and the Dempsey Startup competitions in 2020, securing more than $42,000 in funding. He also completed the six-month Jones + Foster Accelerator, and met all the startup milestones, earning an additional $25,000.
Most innovative public university in the world according to Reuters
University of Washington is consistently ranked the most innovative public university in the world. UW receives more federal research funding than any other U.S. public university, and its total research funding has nearly tripled over the past 20 years to more than $1.35 billion in fiscal year 2018.
Learn more about the one-year Master of Science in Entrepreneurship program at the Foster School of Business.
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