For the fourth year in a row, the University of Delaware’s Horn Entrepreneurship program is one of the best in the nation, according to The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur magazine. The joint ranking places UD at No. 33 in its 2023 list of the top 50 undergraduate schools for entrepreneurial studies and No. 4 in the Mid-Atlantic, a significant jump from 2022.
This recognition also places UD among the top 10% of programs nationwide out of more than 500 colleges and universities that offer entrepreneurship. Since its founding in 2012, Horn Entrepreneurship has provided dynamic programming uniquely tailored to empower aspiring entrepreneurs.
“For over 10 years, our team of faculty, staff, student interns, alumni and business and community leaders has repeatedly demonstrated its dedication and excellence in delivering transformative learning opportunities across campus and in the broader community,” said Dan Freeman, Horn Entrepreneurship’s Founding Director and associate professor of marketing. “We’ve differentiated our approach by combining insights from successful entrepreneurs with evidence-based best practices to create curricula that go beyond traditional classroom learning.”
Horn provides a platform for UD students, eager to make a difference, to gain experience by launching their own businesses with support from faculty, staff and business experts. They also receive mentoring and development assistance in addition to industry connections and access to funding opportunities. Since 2012, Horn-supported startups have obtained over $100 million in funding.
Horn, a part of UD’s accredited Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics, offers an entrepreneurship major and several cross-disciplinary minors. Despite falling overall engagement in higher education post-Covid, enrollment in entrepreneurship degree programs and courses reached record numbers in the last academic year. Almost 1,600 Blue Hens participated in a Horn offering last year with 108 majors from across UD represented.
“At UD, entrepreneurial learning is designed with a comprehensive approach to give students the resources they need to create and innovate, no matter the way they intend to apply them,” Lerner College Dean Bruce Weber said. “Students are equipped with the mindset, capabilities and networks necessary to initiate new ideas, pivot as needed and find success in today’s constantly shifting market. Graduates may apply their forward-thinking mindsets in established organizations and corporate entities, as well as pursue their own independent startups.”
Experiencing remarkable growth in the last 10 years, Horn’s impact has been felt by many inside and outside of UD. UD alumni and current students are making a social impact. such as Garry Johnson, Class of ‘18, of Bison Venture Partners and Sierra RyanWallick, Class of ‘22, of UP Cycle Design. Some are also disrupting industries like Adam Stager, Class of ‘18, founder of TRIC Robotics. Still others are revolutionizing industries like Mac Macleod and Greg Star, Class of ‘13, co-founders of Carvertise, America’s largest rideshare advertising company. Our youth initiative, which features programs like EntreX Lab, our dual enrollment curriculum, and Diamond Challenge, our global pitch competition, boasts a local and global ecosystem and network of more than 10,000 alumni, 1800 educators and 60 organizations spread across 70 countries.
The top ranking by The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur magazine adds to the Horn’s growing list of accolades which includes the Global Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centers (GCEC) Excellence in Specialty Entrepreneurship Education Finalist for Youth award (2019), GCEC Award for Exceptional Activities in Entrepreneurship Across Disciplines (2020), U.S. Small Business Association (SBA) Growth Accelerator Fund Award (2020, 2021), and USASBE 2021 Model Emerging Program Award finalist place.
About Horn Entrepreneurship
Horn Entrepreneurship serves as the creative engine for entrepreneurship education and advancement at the University of Delaware. Currently ranked among the best entrepreneurship programs in the U.S., Horn Entrepreneurship was built and is actively supported by successful entrepreneurs, empowering aspiring innovators as they pursue new ideas for a better world.
About the Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics
For more than 100 years, the UD’s Lerner College has invested in its students and communities, giving back philanthropically and with its valuable skills. A top-ranked business school, the Lerner College creates impactful initiatives that advocate for diversity and inclusion across industries. Its 150-plus faculty conduct research on meaningful topics like economic development in developing nations, cybersecurity, women’s leadership, corporate social responsibility and more. Through collaborations with students and alumni, the Lerner College creates businesses that work to solve society’s greatest problems.