Wake Forest University School of Business

What Wake Forest University School of Business does

Wake Forest University School of Business (WFUSB) is a private, AACSB-accredited business school operating as an academic unit within Wake Forest University, headquartered in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, with a secondary presence in Charlotte. Founded in 1948, the school delivers undergraduate BS degrees in Finance, Business & Enterprise Management, Accountancy, and Decision Analytics, alongside four graduate programs: the MBA (offered in full-time, part-time, online, and Charlotte hybrid formats), the Master of Science in Accountancy (MSA), the Master of Science in Business Analytics (MSBA), and the 10-month Master of Science in Management (MSM). Three of the four graduate programs (MSA, MSBA, MSM) are STEM-certified, making international graduates eligible for up to 36 months of OPT work authorization. Combined 2026 hooding cohort totaled 438 students across the four graduate programs.

The school's core technology and platform assets are concentrated in three areas: (1) the AI@WFUSB initiative, which integrates artificial intelligence across teaching and learning and earned the inaugural AACSB Global Impact Award; (2) Retail Learning Labs, a partnership with Lowes Foods, WestRock, Inmar, and Bellomy Research deploying real-time in-store shopper analytics across 10 Lowes Foods stores in North Carolina; and (3) the Wake Forest Online MBA platform, providing asynchronous coursework with optional synchronous sessions, 24/7 tech support, and Student Success Managers. The school operates four academic centers — Allegacy Center for Leadership & Character, Center for Analytics Impact, Center for Private Business, and Center for the Study of Capitalism — and supports student career placement through the Center for Market Readiness & Employment.

WFUSB's business model is tuition-driven nonprofit education. Detailed tuition is not publicly disclosed; prospective students must request information. Revenue streams include graduate tuition (MBA, MSA, MSBA, MSM), undergraduate tuition across four BS degrees plus two new Fall 2026 minors, executive education through the Center for Analytics Impact, and endowment/donation income. Go-to-market is multi-channel: ranked business school publications (U.S. News & World Report, Poets & Quants, The Economist, Tech Guide), the business.wfu.edu website, organic social (LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, X, Flickr), alumni engagement events, and twice-yearly "Meet the Firms" corporate recruiting events. Customer segments include working professionals seeking MBAs, graduate students seeking specialized master's degrees, undergraduates, international students (26% of MSA cohorts), and corporate employers — notably Big 4 accounting firms (Deloitte, EY, PwC, KPMG) and a concentrated set of Fortune 500 financial services and consulting employers that anchor recruiting outcomes.

Name

Wake Forest University School of Business

Legal name

Wake Forest University School of Business

Website

https://business.wfu.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1948

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Wake Forest University School of Business is a private nonprofit AACSB-accredited business school within Wake Forest University, offering undergraduate and graduate business degrees (MBA, MSA, MSBA, MSM) in Winston-Salem and Charlotte, serving working professionals and recent graduates seeking career advancement in accounting, analytics, and management.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Business Education

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Business and Secretarial Schools (611410), Professional and Management Development Training (61143)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Business & Management Research Universities (EDAHABAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Online Professional Schools (MBA/MPA/MPH/Etc.) (EDAHALAE), Executive Education & Corporate Programs (Non-degree) (EDAHAHAN)

Keywords

• Graduate business education
• Undergraduate business degrees
• MBA programs
• Executive education
• Business school

Headquarters

HQ city

Winston Salem

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Graduate Business Degree Tuition: Wake Forest School of Business generates revenue primarily through tuition for graduate programs including the Master of Science in Accountancy (MSA), Master of Science in Business Analytics (MSBA), Master of Science in Management (MSM), and Master of Business Administration (MBA) offered in multiple formats (full-time, part-time evening, online, Charlotte hybrid).
2. Undergraduate Business Degree Tuition: Revenue from undergraduate Bachelor of Science degree programs in Accountancy, Business and Enterprise Management, Finance, and Decision Analytics. New minors for Fall 2026 include Minor in Business and Minor in Accountancy.
3. Executive Education and Summer Programs: Summer Management Program and continuing education offerings through the Center for Analytics Impact provide additional revenue streams.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

Wake Forest University School of Business is an AACSB-accredited private business school delivering graduate and undergraduate business degree programs. It offers the MBA (in-person, hybrid, and online formats), Master of Science in Accountancy (MSA), Master of Science in Business Analytics (MSBA), Master of Science in Management (MSM), and four undergraduate Bachelor of Science degrees (Finance, Business & Enterprise Management, Accountancy, Decision Analytics), along with new minors launching Fall 2026. The school also operates four academic research centers and the Retail Learning Labs experiential partnership.

Product overview

Wake Forest University School of Business offers a comprehensive portfolio of undergraduate and graduate business degree programs delivered across multiple formats (on-campus, hybrid, and online) primarily in Winston-Salem, NC, and Charlotte, NC. The undergraduate portfolio includes four Bachelor of Science degrees (Finance, Business & Enterprise Management, Accountancy, and Decision Analytics) plus two new minors launching Fall 2026. Graduate offerings encompass the Master of Business Administration (MBA) as the #1 part-time MBA in North Carolina; the STEM-certified Master of Science in Accountancy (MSA) with the #1 CPA pass rate in the past 25 years; the STEM-certified Master of Science in Business Analytics (MSBA) ranked #2 nationally; and the 10-month STEM-certified Master of Science in Management (MSM) for non-business majors ranked #5 in the U.S. Specialized pathways include sports analytics, pre-Wall Street careers, and an International Leaders Program combining MSA and MSBA degrees. The school operates four academic centers (Leadership & Character, Analytics Impact, Private Business, and Study of Capitalism) and experiential learning resources including Retail Learning Labs with partner Lowes Foods. Alumni engagement is supported through the Wake Network platform and The Heart of Business magazine.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Allegacy Center for Leadership & Character: Academic center developing future leaders who prioritize integrity, resilience, and service
• Center for Analytics Impact
• Center for Private Business
• Center for the Study of Capitalism
• Retail Learning Labs
• Center for Market Readiness & Employment

Products and services

• Master of Business Administration (MBA)

Quantifiable outcome

• 99% employment rate at 6 months for MSA Class of 2025
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers21 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Lowes FoodscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLowes Foods hosts Retail Learning Labs in 10 stores across North Carolina. State-of-the-art technology tracks shopper movements and behaviors, providing real-time in-store analytics data. Partnership enables Wake Forest students and faculty to research consumer behavior, gather real-time data, and analyze results to provide actionable consumer insights. Lowes Foods CMO Michael Moore noted the technology augments guest insights to create differentiated shopping experiences.
• WestRockcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate partner in Retail Learning Labs initiative providing in-store analytics research environment. WestRock collaborates with Wake Forest students and faculty on shopper behavior research.
• InmarcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate partner in Retail Learning Labs initiative providing in-store analytics technology and research capabilities for shopper behavior analysis.
• Bellomy ResearchcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMarket research partner in Retail Learning Labs contributing expertise in consumer insights and data analytics research methodologies.
• Second Harvest Food BankminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPelin Pekgun (Thomas H. Davis Professor in Business, Professor of Analytics) joined Second Harvest Food Bank's advisory council to support strategic thinking and planning related to operations. Partnership aligns with Pro Humanitate mission.
• A Bed and A BookminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partnership supporting families displaced by Hurricane Helene flooding in Western North Carolina. Wake Forest faculty, staff, and students gathered to build beds for families in need at shelters. A Bed and A Book delivers beds, mattresses, and books to children in need (2-3% of American children sleep on the floor).

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves2 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Duke University Fuqua School of Business: Top-tier business school also located in North Carolina (Durham), competing with WFUSB for the same regional applicant pool, Big 4 recruiters, and southeastern corporate partnerships. Directly comparable across MBA, MMS, and specialized master's programs.
• UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School: In-state competitor based in Chapel Hill, NC, offering MBA (full-time, evening, online) and specialized master's (MAC, MSA, MBA@NC) that overlap directly with WFUSB's program mix. Competes head-to-head for North Carolina applicants and corporate recruiting relationships.
• Emory University Goizueta Business School: Private Southeastern business school of comparable size and program portfolio (full-time MBA, evening MBA, MS in Business Analytics, MS in Finance). Competes with WFUSB for similar applicants, rankings positioning, and corporate recruiter attention in the Southeast.
• Georgetown University McDonough School of Business: Private values-driven Jesuit business school with comparable full-time MBA, online MBA, MS in Business Analytics, and MS in Finance portfolio. Competes directly for working-professional MBA applicants and ranks in a similar tier across major publications.
• University of Notre Dame Mendoza College of Business: Private mission-driven Catholic business school with similar values-based positioning, comparable program mix (MBA, MS in Accountancy, MS in Business Analytics, MS in Finance), and similar institutional scale. Overlaps on rankings and on Catholic-affiliated applicant segments.
• Boston College Carroll School of Management: Private Jesuit-affiliated business school with comparable program portfolio (MBA, MS in Accounting, MS in Finance, MS in Business Analytics) and a similar values-driven mission. Directly comparable on cohort sizes, ranking tier, and applicant demographic.
• Indiana University Kelley School of Business: Large public/private business school with one of the strongest online MBA programs in the U.S. (consistently #1 or top 5), directly competing with WFUSB's top-ranked online MBA in the same prospective-student pool.
• Carnegie Mellon University Tepper School of Business: Tech-and-analytics-focused business school with a top-ranked MS in Business Analytics that competes with WFUSB's MSBA (#2 by Tech Guide) for analytics-minded applicants. Direct overlap on STEM-certified specialized master's programs.
• BYU Marriott School of Business: Values-driven private business school with comparable undergraduate and graduate program portfolio (MBA, MAcc, MS in Business Analytics, MSM). Similar ranking tier and competes for mission-aligned applicants seeking character-focused leadership development.
• Villanova University School of Business: Private Augustinian business school of comparable scale and values orientation, with overlapping program portfolio (MBA, MS in Accounting, MS in Business Analytics, undergraduate BS programs) and a similar regional-recruitment-to-national-brand trajectory.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/wakeforest
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCEIM9mWp77V1z9hP-T5tVlg
• Facebookfacebook.com/wfuniversity
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wake-forest-university
• Instagraminstagram.com/wakeforestbiz

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Wake Forest University School of Business