Pathways to Board Leadership: Women in Governance

UCLA Anderson

Los Angeles, United States

The UCLA Anderson School of Management is the graduate business school of the University of California, Los Angeles, a public research university founded in 1919. Anderson itself was established in 1935 and received its current name in 1987 following a landmark $15 million gift from real estate entrepreneur John E. Anderson — at the time, the largest single donation ever made to a business school. Located in Westwood, Los Angeles, the school operates within one of the world's leading public university systems, combining the rigor of a top-tier research institution with a culture that explicitly prizes entrepreneurial thinking and applied problem-solving. Anderson's academic philosophy is grounded in its "Think in the Next" ethos — a genuine orientation toward future-facing business challenges rather than the codification of past practice.Accreditations and RankingsAccreditations:AACSB accreditedEQUIS accreditedAMBA accreditedTriple Crown accredited (held by fewer than 1% of business schools worldwide)Rankings:Financial Times Global MBA Ranking: #27 globally (2024)Bloomberg Businessweek Full-Time MBA: #17 in the U.S. (2023)QS Global MBA Rankings: #34 globally (2024)U.S. News & World Report Best Business Schools: #15 in the U.S. (2024)Executive Education at a GlanceUCLA Anderson Executive Education is particularly well-regarded for programs at the intersection of leadership, strategy, and innovation — topics where Los Angeles's industry ecosystem provides a live laboratory that few campuses can replicate. The portfolio spans both open-enrollment programs and custom corporate programs, with custom engagements representing a significant and growing share of activity, serving clients across technology, healthcare, entertainment, and financial services. Open programs tend to run between two days and several weeks, and are offered in in-person, online, and blended formats, giving senior professionals flexibility without sacrificing peer interaction. Flagship open programs include the Executive Program in Management, designed for senior leaders stepping into broader organizational responsibility, and specialized offerings in finance, marketing analytics, and data-driven decision-making. Fees for open-enrollment programs generally range from approximately $3,000 for shorter workshops to $15,000 or more for multi-module leadership programs, and the school periodically offers alumni pricing for UCLA graduates returning to update their skills.Campus and FacilitiesAnderson's campus occupies the southeastern corner of UCLA's expansive Westwood campus — a 419-acre site that frequently ranks among the most beautiful university grounds in the United States. The school's facilities include the recently renovated Marion Anderson Hall and the Cornell Hall for the Social Sciences, with modern classrooms, breakout spaces, and a dedicated executive suite designed for cohort-style learning. Executive participants benefit from the broader UCLA campus infrastructure, including world-class libraries and recreational facilities. Beyond campus, Westwood's position — equidistant between Silicon Beach's tech cluster in Santa Monica and the media studios of Burbank and Culver City — means that site visits, guest speakers, and industry immersion sessions carry genuine strategic weight rather than functioning as set-dressing.Faculty and ResearchAnderson's faculty numbers approximately 240 academics, drawing from institutions and research traditions across North America, Europe, and Asia, with a strong emphasis on cross-disciplinary work that bridges economics, behavioral science, and organizational theory. The school is home to several research centers directly relevant to executive education participants, including the Harold and Pauline Price Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation, the Fink Center for Finance, and the UCLA Anderson Forecast — one of the most closely watched economic forecasting units in the United States, regularly cited in policy and investment discussions. Faculty are notable for maintaining active consulting and advisory relationships with major corporations, which means classroom material tends to reflect current organizational reality rather than lagging it. Researchers like Sanjay Sood (consumer behavior), Nico Voigtlaender (economic history and inequality), and Dick Rumelt — whose foundational work on corporate strategy is taught in business schools worldwide — have shaped the school's intellectual character.Student Body, Alumni, and Career OutcomesExecutive education cohorts at Anderson tend to be professionally diverse, drawing participants from across the United States and internationally, with particularly strong representation from the technology, entertainment, healthcare, and real estate sectors that define Southern California's economy. The broader Anderson alumni network spans more than 47,000 graduates in over 100 countries, with notable concentrations in Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, and major financial centers in Asia and Europe. Alumni include figures such as William Gross (co-founder of PIMCO), Andrea Jung (former CEO of Avon), and a significant number of senior executives across the entertainment and media industries — a reflection of the school's geographic identity. For participants in open and custom programs, the alumni affiliation opens doors to Anderson's extensive industry speaker series and regional alumni chapters, both of which serve as active professional networks rather than passive mailing lists.