The College of Business first offered economics courses since Washington State University started operating in 1892. The Department of Economic Science and History was created in 1917 as part of the College of Sciences and Arts, and in 1926, it became the Department of Business Administration. The department started offering programs in Secretarial Science, apart from the normal offering of economics courses, which is at that time composed of only five faculty members.[1]
In 1928, the Department of Business Administration was elevated to school status and the faculty grew to fifteen members. However, it was incorporated with the College of Sciences and Arts until it received independent status in 1940.
In 1948, the Economics department from the College of Sciences and Arts and the School of Business Administration merged, becoming the School of Economics and Business with the help of Dr. M. W. Lee.
In 1963, the school was granted college status and became the College of Business and Economics. The first functioning dean was Dr. Eugene Clark. The college first offered business courses with the establishment of three branch campuses of Washington State University in Tri-Cities, Spokane and Vancouver in 1989. The School of Economics Sciences is now part of College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences which offers courses in economics.
In 2006, the Washington State University Regents voted to change the college's name to the College of Business.
The College of Business offers undergraduate and graduate programs at three Washington State University campuses in Pullman, Tri-Cities and Vancouver.The college is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB).
In addition, the College of Business provides degree programs, internships, study abroad and faculty-led programs in Australia, China, Greece, Italy, Korea, Spain, Turkey, Tanzania, Switzerland, and Thailand.[5]
Partnership with Cesar Ritz Colleges Switzerland[edit]
The WSU College of Business and the Cesar Ritz CollegesSwitzerland have a partnership that confer two degrees from both institutions, a bachelor's degree in Hospitality Business Management from WSU College of Business and a bachelor's degree in International Business from Cesar Ritz Colleges. The three-year program allows students to earn two degrees with an extensive global business position and two six-month internships in Switzerland. Nearly 1,000 students have earned a Washington State University degree through César Ritz Colleges since its inception in 1984.[6]
