Emerging Business Leaders Hero

Preparing tomorrow’s leaders – today

The Emerging Business Leaders (EBL) program at Gies College of Business is a summer program designed for high-achieving Black, African-American, Hispanic, Latinx/a/o, and Native American students entering their senior year of high school.

Program Dates: June 23 - 28, 2024

Apply Now ›

Program Activities

  • Interactive discussions featuring Gies Business staff, students, and alumni around career possibilities in business and the Gies student experience 
  • Work in groups to solve business problems
  • Learn about college admissions
  • Have fun and make new friends

Application Criteria

The EBL Program is open to underrepresented students entering their senior year of high school. You must have:

  • 3.2/4.0 GPA or higher
  • Demonstrated leadership through extracurricular, volunteer, or work experiences
  • Ability to attend the entire program (June 23 - 28, 2024)


Program Benefits 

All students who successfully complete the Emerging Business Leaders Program will receive a University of Illinois application fee waiver. Students who apply, are admitted, and enroll into Gies Business will qualify for a renewable scholarship up to $5000 to help cover their academic costs.

Admission to the Emerging Business Leaders program does not guarantee admission to Gies Business and/or the University of Illinois.

Gies News and Events

FindMBA: The latest teaching innovations in online MBAs

Jun 15, 2022, 09:00 by Aaron Bennett
As the number of online MBA students surpass residential MBAs the first time, advances in teaching technologies are greatly improving the learner experience.

As the number of online MBA students surpass residential MBAs the first time, advances in teaching technologies are greatly improving the learner experience. Gies College of Business has employed dedicated teams of instructional designers and data scientists working in concert to collect data and track learning outcomes. Tawnya Means, assistant dean for educational innovation and chief learning officer at Gies recently told FindMBA.com that important to resist the urge to use technology for technology's sake and that the objectives need to be clear.

“A challenge is that technology evolves at a rapid pace," said Means. "It’s important to base technology decisions on existing learner research within our industry, but sometimes that research is not yet available for cutting-edge technologies.”   

READ MORE - The Latest Teaching Innovations in Online MBAs