Gies College of Business

Agritourism hub Agrivoy claims Voitik Prize at Cozad New Venture Competition

May 28, 2026

Jeff and Forough Haskel, two University of Illinois iMBA students from Texas, turned a frustrating search for a Wyoming ranch vacation into a startup idea called Agrivoy — an “Airbnb for agritourism.” After developing the idea through the Cozad New Venture Competition, Agrivoy won the $3,000 Voitik Prize for online MBA-led teams.

Business Administration Entrepreneurship iMBA Student

Healthcare Innovation: How one iMBA student is improving the birthing experience

May 27, 2026

Galina Mihalkina, a Gies iMBA student, helped develop PeriAssist, a medical device aimed at reducing trauma during difficult childbirths by filling a gap between existing tools. As the project’s business lead, she handled strategy, stakeholder mapping, and commercialization, helping the team win awards and move toward funding and patents.

Business Administration Entrepreneurship iMBA Student

What the MBA "Fire Sale" conversation is missing – and what we've learned from doing this differently

May 26, 2026

What we hope is that affordability becomes a permanent feature of more programs, not a temporary response to enrollment pressure.

Accountancy Alumni Business Administration Faculty Finance Student

From AI tutors to simulations, Gies Business faculty reimagining how business skills are taught

May 20, 2026

Gies College of Business is using AI tutors and simulations to personalize learning, improve teaching, and shift focus from technical skills to communication and decision-making.

Business Administration Faculty Finance Student

The future of business education with Dean Brooke Elliott & Poets&Quants Founder John Byrne

May 13, 2026

What’s next for business education in the age of AI? In this unique conversation, Gies College of Business Dean Brooke Elliott sits down with Poets&Quants Founder John Byrne to discuss affordability and innovation in higher education, the future of MBA programs, online learning, artificial intelligence, global talent.

Accountancy Alumni Business Administration Faculty Finance Student

Driven by Experience, United by Purpose: Gies Business seniors launch lasting scholarship initiative

May 13, 2026

Four Gies Business seniors, whose friendships formed through case competitions, consulting organizations, and business fraternities, raised more than $33,000 to establish a need-based scholarship for incoming students.

Accountancy Alumni Business Administration Finance Student

Through Disruption Lab, clients are seeing AI projects come to life

May 11, 2026

Students gain hands-on experience building things like AI tools, 3D modeling systems, and chatbots, while clients get useful research and prototypes. The program has grown rapidly, especially in AI, and gives students practical skills, leadership opportunities, and strong career outcomes.

Accountancy Business Administration Finance Student

Richard Crandall receives Deloitte Foundation Doctoral Fellowship

May 06, 2026

Each year, students from over 100 universities are invited to apply, but only 10 are selected to receive the distinction and the $25,000 grant that comes with it.

Accountancy Research Student

The Economics of AI Anxiety

May 05, 2026

Anxiety about AI-driven job cuts is everywhere – but badly misdiagnosed – says Robert Brunner, Chief Disruption Officer at Gies College of Business.

Accountancy Alumni Business Administration Faculty Finance Student

Reichard Real Estate Academy students win award in national real estate challenge

May 04, 2026

Students from the Reichard Real Estate Academy competed in a national real estate development challenge and won a Financial Feasibility Award for their proposal to turn part of Chicago’s “The 78” into a soccer-anchored entertainment district with housing, retail, and cultural spaces.

Finance Student

Gies Business launches AI-native, human-centered Master’s in Business Analytics

May 01, 2026

Gies Business' newest fully online program builds AI into every course so students learn to use emerging technology throughout real analytics workflows. The program is project-based, with each course contributing to a portfolio of practical work.

Business Administration Faculty Student

Gies Business senior is tackling cybersecurity efficiency through research and entrepreneurship

Apr 30, 2026

Gies Business senior Atharv Vasisht is developing Legion SDI, a prototype platform designed to integrate and optimize enterprise cybersecurity tools, potentially reducing threat detection and response times by over 80%.

Entrepreneurship Finance Student

NexLoop could bring delivery robots to campus sidewalks

Apr 29, 2026

A University of Illinois student co-founded NexLoop, a startup building autonomous delivery robots designed for campuses. Their multi-compartment robots can carry different types of items at once and use AI for efficient routing.

Entrepreneurship Finance Student

Gies Business grad student earns place in prestigious FASB post-graduate program

Apr 28, 2026

Gies accounting grad Jake Kanter was selected for a highly competitive post-graduate technical assistant role at the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), where only 15–20 candidates are chosen nationwide each year.

Accountancy Student

New data shows strong outcomes, salaries for Gies Business graduates

Apr 27, 2026

Gies Business graduates are seeing strong career outcomes with high salaries (around $81K average) and record signing bonuses. Their success is driven by hands-on learning, career support, and skills like AI fluency. Programs like real-world projects, internships, and study abroad help students build confidence and land roles across industries like finance, consulting, and tech.

Accountancy Alumni Business Administration Finance Student

Sol brings added safety and empowerment to wheelchair operators

Apr 24, 2026

Carter Schott developed Sol, a USB-powered lighting system for wheelchairs that improves visibility and allows users to signal for attention. Supported by the University of Illinois’ entrepreneurial ecosystem, he is refining the product through user feedback and pilot testing while working toward bringing it to market and expanding adaptive technology solutions.

Business Administration Entrepreneurship Student

MailWand hopes to revolutionize digital conversation management, starting with rebuilding email for the AI era

Apr 22, 2026

MailWand is an AI-powered email client founded by Gies Business student Runzhao Hu that transforms cluttered inboxes into structured, actionable workflows. Instead of treating emails as messages, it organizes them into prioritized tasks, categorized workflows, and key insights using AI.

Business Administration Entrepreneurship Student

PODCAST: Gies Business Dean Brooke Elliott

Apr 20, 2026

Nearly two years into her tenure as Gies Business Dean, Brooke Elliott shares her vision to dramatically increase the number of students who can benefit from a Gies education, driven by her belief in education’s power to change lives and create lasting impact.

Accountancy Alumni Business Administration Faculty Finance Podcasts Student

Gies Business grad students earn runner-up honors in major agentic AI hackathon

Apr 16, 2026

In January, two Gies Business MSBA students placed second in the most competitive track at the AgentX-AgentBeats Competition, hosted by the UC Berkeley Center for Responsible, Decentralized Intelligence

Business Administration Student

How AI chatbots streamline Gies Business student experience

Apr 09, 2026

Gies Business is integrating AI chatbots into courses to provide students with instant, reliable answers to questions, reducing repetitive inquiries and freeing faculty to focus on deeper teaching and mentorship.

Accountancy Business Administration Faculty Finance Student

Gies College of Business
515 East Gregory Drive
Champaign, IL 61820
Phone: 217-300-7327