Belk College of Business recognized for success in graduating African Americans

Jeremiah Canty ’19 found the right fit at UNC Charlotte. The Belk College of Business marketing major wanted to attend college in a metropolitan area that not only offered his major but that had a diverse population.

“I wanted the school I attended to resemble the real-world workforce,” said Canty, who is now pursuing a master’s degree in analytics.

The Belk College of Business was recently recognized for its commitment to helping minority students succeed by Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, which ranks the Belk College’s finance and marketing programs among the top 10 in the nation for African Americans.

Diverse Issues in Higher Education’s top 100 Degree Producers 2019 rankings listed the Belk College of Business fifth for its finance program, up from eighth in 2018, and seventh for its marketing program, up from 24 in 2018. The programs are two of the college’s largest undergraduate degree programs. The rankings are based on U.S. Department of Education 2017-18 graduation data.

The rankings also found that among all disciplines, UNC Charlotte ranks No. 2 in North Carolina—and no. 24 in the nation—as the largest producer of bachelor’s degrees for African American students; this is up from No. 30 in 2018.

Canty said the marketing program’s strong rankings are indicative of the college’s recruitment efforts.

“From getting perspective from different students of other backgrounds to getting insight into how the real workforce will operate when you’re working with people that don’t look like you, it makes all the difference,” said Canty.

Ahmad Hill, who graduates in May, said the University’s high rankings for bachelor’s degrees for African American students supports “UNC Charlotte’s seemingly natural diversity, which is evident when walking around the campus.

“This means you will see more people who look like you that are pursuing the same or similar goals as you, which provides that extra sense of comfort and belief that you are where you belong,” Hill said.

A complete list of the rankings is online.

Photo: Jeremiah Canty and Ahmad Hill.