Smith School of Business

Smith School of Business (formerly Queen's School of Business) is a business school affiliated with Queen's University at Kingston. It is located at the university's Goodes Hall. Since July 2021, the school's dean has been Wanda Costen.

Smith School of Business
Former name
Queen's School of Business
TypeBusiness school
Established1919 (1919)
AffiliationQueen's University
DeanWanda Costen
Academic staff
155
Undergraduates1,950
Postgraduates1,163
52
Location, ,
Canada
ColoursBlue and gold[1]
   
Websitesmith.queensu.ca

The School awards Bachelor of Commerce (BCom), Master of Business Administration (MBA), Executive MBA (EMBA), Accelerated MBA (AMBA), Master of Science in Management, (MSc) Master of Finance (MFin), Master of International Business (MIB), Master of Management Innovation and Entrepreneurship (MMIE), Master of Management in Artificial Intelligence (MMAI), Master of Management Analytics (MMA), Master of Digital Product Management (MDPM) and Ph.D. in Management degrees, as well as graduate diplomas in business (GDB)and accounting (GDA). The School also offers the Smith-Peking Double Degree in partnership with the Guanghua School of Management at Peking University and the Executive MBA Americas in partnership with the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University.

Smith School of Business is fully accredited by the AACSB (United States) and the EFMD (EQUIS) (Europe).

Naming

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On October 1, 2015, the Queen's School of Business was renamed the Stephen J.R. Smith School of Business in recognition of a $50-million donation from Stephen J. R. Smith, a graduate of the Queen's University's Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science. The donation is the largest gift ever made to a Canadian business school, growing the school's endowment from $54 million to $104 million.[2] As of 2015, this will result in Smith being a close second in total endowment among Canadian business schools, next to only the Rotman School of Management.

History

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Queen's University launched its undergraduate business program in 1919, making it the oldest Bachelor of Commerce in Canada. The first woman to earn an undergraduate business degree, Beatrice Eakins, graduated from the program in 1922 alongside six other students.[3] The MBA program was launched in 1960. Queen's School of Business became its own faculty in 1963, with Lawrence MacPherson as the first dean. The school was accredited by the AACSB in 1998, and it was the first program in Ontario to be accredited by the AACSB. [4]

Location

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The majority of business classes are held in Goodes Hall. Opened in 2002, the building is named in honour of the family of Melvin Goodes, a Commerce ‘57 alumnus and former Chairman and CEO of Warner–Lambert. In September 2012, a significant expansion of Goodes Hall was completed, increasing the size of the building by 75,000 ft2 to a total of 188,000 ft2. The expansion included new classrooms, breakout rooms, and 51 additional faculty offices.

The Smith School of Business opened its first foreign campus in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, at the DIFC on May 25, 2007. Classes started in October 2007. The campus mainly hosts Queen's executive development programs.[5]

SmithToronto is a teaching centre of the Smith School of Business outside of the Queen's University Campus, occupying the entire 30th floor of Simcoe Place at 200 Front Street West, in downtown Toronto. Established 24 years after the initiation of the school’s EMBA program in Toronto, SmithToronto encompasses 25,000 square feet of space, featuring classrooms, meeting rooms, staff offices, and special events spaces. It runs a range of programs including the Master of Finance, Master of Financial Innovation & Technology, Master of Management Analytics, and Master of Management in Artificial Intelligence. Additionally, three Boardroom Learning Centres, complete with interactive videoconference capabilities, serve the Executive and Accelerated MBA programs.[6][7]

Reputation and rankings

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Business School
International Rankings
Global MBA Ranking
QS (2025)[8]94
Financial Times (2024)[9]62


The Smith School of Business ranked 1st nationally and 38th globally in highest number of graduates employed as Chief Executive Officers or equivalent in a Fortune Global 500 corporation.[10] The MBA Class of 2019 had the highest total starting pay of any Canadian MBA program.[11] Additionally, Smith has placed in national and international business school rankings.

Canadian MBA Alliance

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The school is also a founding member of the Canadian MBA Alliance which was created in 2013. All six members of the alliance rank among the world’s top 100 schools, according to their participation in key rankings – Financial Times, Business Week, and The Economist.[14]

Research

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During the 2018–2019 academic year, Smith faculty published 44 articles in academic journals, 14 of which were ranked in the Financial Times’ 50 top-tier journals.[15]

Notable alumni

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Undergraduate

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Bachelor of Commerce

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Graduate

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Executive MBA

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MMIE

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References

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  1. ^ "Queen's University Visual Identity Guide" (PDF). Queen's University. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 April 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2012.
  2. ^ "NEWS RELEASE - Queen's University names the Stephen J. R. Smith School of Business in recognition of historic $50-million gift - Queen's Gazette - Queen's University". www.queensu.ca.
  3. ^ Austin, Barbara (January 2000). Capitalizing Knowledge: Essays on the History of Business Education in Canada. University of Toronto Press. p. 117. ISBN 0-8020-4234-1.
  4. ^ "Smith School of Business". Queen's Encyclopedia. Queen’s University. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  5. ^ "(Press Release) Queen's School of Business - Media and News - 2007 News - Queen's School of Business Opens Dubai Campus". Business.queensu.ca. Retrieved 2010-06-10.
  6. ^ "About Our School - Learning Environment". smith.queensu.ca. Retrieved 2023-10-24.
  7. ^ "Get to know SmithToronto | Smith Magazine". smith.queensu.ca. Retrieved 2023-10-24.
  8. ^ "QS Global MBA Rankings 2025". Quacquarelli Symonds.
  9. ^ "Global MBA Ranking 2023". Financial Times.
  10. ^ "International Professional Ranking of Higher Education Institutions" (PDF). MINES ParisTech. 2011. Retrieved 2 March 2012.
  11. ^ Schmitt, Jeff (2020-03-16). "Poets&Quants | Meet Queen's University's Smith MBA Class Of 2021". Poets&Quants. Retrieved 2020-08-15.
  12. ^ "These Are Canada's Best Business Schools". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2023-07-25.
  13. ^ Maclean's (2022-10-07). "Canada's Best Business Programs: University Rankings 2023". Maclean's Education. Retrieved 2023-07-25.
  14. ^ Lawrence, Daina (2013-11-05). "They're rivals at home, but allies abroad". The Globe and Mail.
  15. ^ "2018-2019 Year in Review" (PDF). Smith School of Business.
  16. ^ John Stackhouse - The Globe and Mail Archived 2014-03-20 at the Wayback Machine

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