Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business

What Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business does

Rice Business is the business school of Rice University, operating as a private nonprofit academic institution in Houston, Texas, and offering degree and non-degree programs across graduate, undergraduate, and executive audiences. Its portfolio spans five MBA formats (Full-Time STEM-designated, Professional part-time, Hybrid, Executive, and Online MBA@Rice with an Early Career Track), a 10-month Master of Accounting (MAcc), a Ph.D. in Business with five specializations, the Virani Undergraduate School of Business (founded 2021, named 2024), a Graduate Certificate in Healthcare Management, and a coordinated MD/MBA dual degree with Baylor College of Medicine. Executive education includes open-enrollment programs such as the Rice Advanced Management Program, Customer-Centric Strategy, and AI-themed offerings, as well as custom corporate programs.

The school's underlying platform combines curriculum architecture (core first-year plus 100+ second-year electives, integrated Global Field Experience, Team Learning Labs, Leader as Coach program), specialized facilities (Rice Business Finance Center with Bloomberg, FactSet, Pitchbook; Liu Idea Lab innovation hub), and an entrepreneurship ecosystem anchored by the Rice Alliance (3,300+ companies, 220+ programs over 23 years) and the annual Rice Business Plan Competition ($1M+ prizes, 300+ investors). Revenue is generated through per-program tuition (annual billing across MBA, MAcc, PhD, undergraduate, and certificate programs), professional services fees for executive education, and ecosystem-sponsoring events.

Go-to-market is sales-led through admissions recruiting, MBA admissions events, student ambassador referrals, career treks, and digital content (Rice Business Wisdom, Owl Have You Know podcast, social channels), with brand reputation reinforced by the #1 Graduate Entrepreneurship ranking (Princeton Review, 2020-2026) and #3 Best MBA for Finance. Rice Business is currently in a leadership transition, with Dean Peter Rodriguez departing in May 2026 to become president of Wake Forest University after a tenure in which MBA enrollment doubled and tenure-track faculty grew by more than 40%.

Name

Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business

Legal name

Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business

Website

https://business.rice.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Rice Business is the private nonprofit graduate business school of Rice University in Houston, offering five MBA formats, MAcc, PhD, undergraduate, and executive education programs to career professionals and aspiring leaders, with strength in entrepreneurship, finance, and Houston industry access.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Business Higher Education

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Business and Secretarial Schools (61141), Professional and Management Development Training (61143)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAHAHAB

MBA & Executive MBA Programs

Education/Higher Education (Colleges & Universities)/Business Schools & Management Institutes

SECONDARYEDAHAHAA

Undergraduate Business Schools (BBA/BSBA Programs)

Education/Higher Education (Colleges & Universities)/Business Schools & Management Institutes

SECONDARYEDAHAHAC

Specialized Master’s in Management (MiM) & Business Analytics

Education/Higher Education (Colleges & Universities)/Business Schools & Management Institutes

SECONDARYEDAHAHAJ

International Business & Global Management Schools

Education/Higher Education (Colleges & Universities)/Business Schools & Management Institutes

SECONDARYEDAIAIAH

Professional & Executive Short Courses (Non-Degree, International)

Education/International Education & Study Abroad/International Summer/Winter Schools & Short-Term Academic Programs

SECONDARYEDAIAIAI

Short-Term Certificate & Micro-Credential Programs (International)

Education/International Education & Study Abroad/International Summer/Winter Schools & Short-Term Academic Programs

Keywords

• Graduate business education
• MBA degree programs
• Executive education
• Master of accounting
• Doctoral business programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Houston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. MBA Tuition: Full-time, Professional, Hybrid, Executive, and Online MBA programs generate revenue through tuition fees. Each program has distinct tuition and fee structures as documented on program-specific pages.
2. Master of Accounting (MAcc): 10-month accounting program preparing students for CPA exam, generating revenue through program tuition
3. Executive Education: Open enrollment and custom executive programs including Rice Advanced Management Program, Customer-Centric Strategy, Leadership programs, and specialized industry training generate professional education revenue
4. Undergraduate Programs: Business major and minor programs under Virani Undergraduate School of Business
5. Ph.D. Programs: Doctoral programs in Business providing financial assistance to selected candidates

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels14 records

Core offering

Rice Business (Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business and Virani Undergraduate School of Business) offers graduate and undergraduate business degree programs including Full-Time MBA, Professional MBA, Hybrid MBA, Executive MBA, Online MBA, Master of Accounting (MAcc), Ph.D. in Business, and an undergraduate business major/minor. It also delivers executive education programs, dual-degree programs such as MD/MBA with Baylor College of Medicine, and a Graduate Certificate in Healthcare Management. Programs are delivered on the Rice University campus in Houston, Texas, with online and hybrid options.

Product overview

Rice Business (Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business and Virani Undergraduate School of Business) offers a portfolio of graduate and undergraduate degree programs including the Full-Time MBA (STEM-designated), Professional MBA, Hybrid MBA, Executive MBA, Online MBA (MBA@Rice with a new Early Career Track), Master of Accounting (MAcc), Ph.D. in Business, and a Virani Undergraduate Business program. It also offers coordinated dual degrees (e.g., MD/MBA) and a Graduate Certificate in Healthcare Management. Executive Education includes programs such as the Rice Advanced Management Program, Driving Growth through AI and Digital Transformation, and From Business Intelligence to Artificial Intelligence. Supporting infrastructure includes the Liu Idea Lab (entrepreneurship hub), Rice Alliance (tech venture catalyst), Center for Customer-Based Execution & Strategy (C-CUBES), Rice Business Finance Center, and the Gilbert & Ruth Whitaker Business Information Center. The school also produces Rice Business Wisdom (faculty insights platform) and the Owl Have You Know podcast. The institution hosts the annual Rice Business Plan Competition and supports 30+ student clubs. Programs are delivered on the Rice University campus in Houston, Texas.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Full-Time MBA A STEM-designated, two-year full-time residential MBA program with a core first-year curriculum, over 100 second-year electives, and an integrated Global Field Experience. Targets career-focused professionals seeking full-time immersive MBA study.
• Professional MBA A part-time MBA program for working professionals offering evening classes with the same top-ranked faculty and curriculum as the full-time program, with employer sponsorship support.
• Hybrid MBA

Quantifiable outcome

• #1 Graduate Entrepreneurship Program - Princeton Review & Entrepreneurship Magazine 2020-2026
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments10 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Service to School (S2S)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 February 2026Rice Business partnered with Service to School (S2S), a national nonprofit that helps veterans and service members access higher education. This partnership adds a new admissions and outreach partner to the school's growing ecosystem of support for military-affiliated students.
• Liu Idea Lab for Innovation and EntrepreneurshipcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOn-campus hub for innovation and entrepreneurship - a flexible, modern learning center and workspace where Rice Business students prepare to become innovators across industries including tech startups, government agencies, civic groups, nonprofits, small businesses, and large corporations.
• Rice Alliance for Technology and EntrepreneurshipcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCatalyst for building successful tech ventures, linking the Rice Business community to Houston's vibrant startup scene. Over 23 years, more than 3,300 companies have participated in over 220 Rice Alliance programs.
• The Ion (Houston Innovation District)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner266,000-square foot structure in the center of Houston Innovation District that fosters a community where corporate innovators, academic partners, community partners, startups, and entrepreneurs come together. Rice Business Plan Competition and other events take place here.
• Baylor College of MedicinecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDual degree MD/MBA program partnership allowing students to combine medical education with business expertise, located in the Texas Medical Center.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• University of Virginia Darden School of Business: Darden is the most directly comparable peer: Peter Rodriguez served as senior associate dean for MBA programs and CDO at Darden before becoming dean at Rice Business, and the schools share a STEM-designated full-time MBA, executive education portfolio, and similar tier of selectivity and rankings. Both emphasize case-based/experiential learning and serve similar career-switcher MBA candidates.
• University of Texas at Austin McCombs School of Business: McCombs is the leading Texas-based MBA peer and the most direct head-to-head competitor for in-state MBA talent, Houston-recruiting energy/finance employers, and Texas-resident executive education dollars. Both schools offer Full-Time, Professional, Executive, and Online MBAs and compete for rankings in finance and entrepreneurship.
• Carnegie Mellon Tepper School of Business: Tepper shares Rice Business's STEM-designated MBA positioning, quant/analytics focus, and relatively smaller-cohort format. Both compete for analytically inclined MBA candidates and emphasize technology and operations rigor, making Tepper a strong same-tier peer for benchmarking program structure and STEM-driven enrollment strategy.
• Georgetown University McDonough School of Business: McDonough competes with Rice Business for full-time and executive MBA candidates drawn to industry specialization and a tight-knit culture. Both schools offer Full-Time, Professional/Evening, Executive, and Online MBAs and emphasize ethics, leadership development, and access to specific industry clusters (Georgetown: government/policy; Rice: energy/healthcare).
• Emory University Goizueta Business School: Goizueta is a similarly sized private-school competitor offering Full-Time, Evening (Professional), Executive, and Online MBAs with comparable enrollment scale and ranking tier. Both schools emphasize experiential learning, leadership coaching, and a tight community, making Goizueta a direct competitive peer for the same career-switcher MBA candidate pool.
• University of Washington Foster School of Business: Foster offers a STEM-designated Full-Time MBA with technology/analytics emphasis comparable to Rice Business, plus Professional and Executive MBAs. Both compete for STEM-eligible international candidates and place emphasis on tech industry connections, with Foster anchored in Seattle tech and Rice anchored in Houston energy/healthcare.

Regional players

• Texas A&M University Mays Business School: Mays is a Texas-region competitor for MBA talent, particularly in energy and working-professional segments. Both schools draw on Texas-based employer networks, offer Executive and Professional MBAs, and compete for the same Houston-based corporate training and recruiting relationships, though Mays has a larger undergrad footprint.
• SMU Cox School of Business: SMU Cox is a Dallas-based regional competitor that overlaps with Rice Business in energy industry recruiting, Professional/Executive MBA offerings, and Texas-based employer relationships. Both serve working professionals in Texas and compete for the same pool of in-state MBA candidates seeking part-time programs.

Broad incumbents

• University of Michigan Ross School of Business: Ross is a larger, broader incumbent offering Full-Time, Part-Time, Executive, and Online MBAs with a significantly larger alumni base and ranking profile. Ross competes with Rice Business for the same ambitious career-switcher MBA candidates and provides a benchmark for where Rice Business could grow in scale and brand reach.
• Duke University Fuqua School of Business: Fuqua is a higher-ranked incumbent with similar team-based learning culture and a comparable full-time + executive + online program portfolio. Both schools emphasize team coaching, leadership development, and tight-knit cohorts, positioning Fuqua as a benchmark competitor for the same MBA candidate segment Rice Business targets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Rice_Biz
• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/ricebusiness
• Facebookfacebook.com/BusinessRice
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/edu/rice-business---jones-graduate-school-of-business-19473
• Instagraminstagram.com/rice_business

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business