About the Beedie School of Business

A Heritage of Innovation

Simon Fraser University

Simon Fraser University and the Beedie School of Business have a relatively short but very busy history characterized by innovative people, research and programs. From its inception, the University has chosen not to follow traditional paths. Its history is characterized by the development of new programs and new structures that respond and adapt to changes in knowledge and the academic and broader environment. It is not afraid to try new ideas within a governance framework that emphasizes consultation, consensus and quality.

Since 1965, SFU has grown from a small newly established institution with a fresh mission and a local student base to a major Canadian university with an expanding presence in the global arena. SFU has campuses in Vancouver, Burnaby and Surrey with a total student enrollment of more than 30,000; six faculties (eight in September 2009), 60 departments and schools, and 63 institutes and centres; and partnerships with more than 100 leading universities in 39 countries, including our first international dual-degree program in China.

Beedie School of Business

Since the creation of Canada's first Executive MBA in 1968, the Beedie School of Business has championed lifelong learning, productive change and the need to be innovative as we deliver research and teaching that makes an impact. That we have achieved some measure of success is confirmed by our accreditation by the AACSB (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business), and by receiving the EQUIS Quality award from the EFMD (European Federation for Management Development), globally recognized accrediting agencies for business schools. Less than 1% of business schools worldwide have earned both of these international accreditations.

Undergraduate, graduate and Ph.D. programs demonstrate a spirit of innovation, flexibility and relevance.  Supported by extensive partnerships with public, private and not-for-profit organizations, our goal is to produce broadly educated, enterprising and socially responsible managers capable of making lasting contributions to their communities.

The Beedie School of Business operates on all three SFU campuses, with:

• over 3100 undergraduate BBA students in Burnaby and Surrey
• over 250 MBA and graduate students in the new Segal Graduate School of Business
• non-credit programs at the director, executive and management levels
• a thriving Ph.D.program

>> Overview of the Beedie School of Business (PDF)

Our History

1965. When SFU opened its doors, the school of Business was housed in the Department of Economics and Business in the Faculty of Arts. Graduates were awarded a Bachelor of Arts in Business.

1968. The inaugural year of SFU’s Executive MBA saw Vancouver business people making the trek up the mountain to classes.

1982. The business discipline had grown to sufficient size to become its own distinct faculty, creating the Faculty of Business Administration, and the Bachelor of Business Administration degree.

1984. The establishment of the Specialist MBA served post-graduate students with BBA or Commerce degrees. This program was withdrawn in 2005, when a strategic program review and market conditions led to the development of an innovative new MBA program.

1989. SFU opened a downtown campus in the heart of Vancouver’s financial district, and a natural location to move the Executive MBA program.

1999. SFU Business established the Learning Strategies Group, an entrepreneurial group focused specifically on corporate education and management development. LSG’s mission is the creation and delivery of customized non-credit and credit programs designed to build competencies in particular industries and organizations, tailored to meet strategic learning objectives within the sector or group.

1999. the Graduate Diploma in Business Administration was created. This program, which evolved into an online program, created to provide a graduate level core for non-business undergraduates.

2000. The Management of Technology (MOT) MBA was launched. It was focused specifically on candidates from engineering and science backgrounds with experience in the technology sector in the Vancouver area. This program was developed with the financial and advisory support of a core group of technology sector representatives.

2002. The launch of the Global Asset and Wealth Management (GAWM) MBA (which is targeted at the financial sector. This program was also developed with the financial support and guidance of an industry business council representing top tier Canadian financial services organizations. In 2009, elements of this program were added as a new stream to the Master of Financial Risk Management program.

2002. The undergraduate BBA program opened a second location at the SFU Surrey campus, with the regular concentrations in marketing and finance, plus two new concentrations in entrepreneurship and (now) innovation management.

2004. Permission was received from the Ministry of Advanced Education of the Province of BC to launch a PhD in Business Administration program.

2005. The opening of the new Segal Graduate School of Business building in the SFU Vancouver campus. This brought all the graduate business programs together with a dedicated Career Management Center for MBA’s under one roof.

2005. The Masters in Financial Risk Management program was launched.

2006. After a rigorous review by an external panel of Deans, SFU Business was accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.

2007. SFU Business created its innovative MBA program. Targeted at early career, younger graduates, with 2-3 years experience, and a non-business undergraduate degree, this MBA is an intense 12-month boot camp with extensive career management resources and a paid internship at the end of the program.

2009. SFU Business received the coveted EFMD “EQUIS” Quality accreditation M

February 9, 2011. In recognition of alumnus Ryan Beedie's donation, the business school is named the Beedie School of Business.