Wharton History
In 1881, American entrepreneur and industrialist Joseph Wharton established the world’s first collegiate school of business at the University of Pennsylvania.
Joseph Wharton’s pioneering vision for the School was to produce graduates who would become "pillars of the state, whether in private or in public life." The Wharton School maintains a long tradition of educating visionary business leaders in academe, business, government, and not-for-profit organizations. Today, Wharton has expanded the scope of this vision to become the most comprehensive source of business knowledge in the world — with 225+ faculty members, 91,000 alumni, 5,000 students in academic programs, and more than 9,000 executive education participants annually.
A History of Leadership
Tracing the School's progress alongside business history, from Wharton's founding in 1881 to the opening of Jon M. Huntsman Hall in 2002. More »
A Century of Innovation
Commemorating Wharton's centennial anniversary and chronicling innovations in different industries and sectors throughout its first hundred years. More »
125 Influential People & Ideas
A special 125th anniversary issue of the Wharton Magazine featuring stories of influential people and ideas. More »
Past Leaders
Short biographical sketches of Wharton's leaders since our founding more than 125 years ago. More »
Wharton Innovations in Business
| 1881 | First business school at a university |
| 1881-1901 | School name: Wharton School of Finance and Economy |
| 1902-1971 | School name: Wharton School of Finance and Commerce |
| 1881-1910 | First business textbooks |
| 1921 | First research center at a business school, Industrial Research Unit |
| 1953-present | First and longest-running custom executive education program, Securities Industries Institute |
| 1970 | First MBA program in health care management |
| 1972-present | School name: Wharton School |
| 1973 | First center for entrepreneurship |
| 1978 | First joint-degree program in management & technology |
| 1983 | First joint-degree MBA/MA program in international management, Joseph H. Lauder Institute |
| 1994 | First joint-degree undergraduate program in international studies at a business school, Huntsman Program in International Studies & Business |
| 1988 - 1994 | First executive advisory boards in Europe, Asia, and Latin America |
| 1999 | Knowledge@Wharton, the School's biweekly online business journal, is launched. |
| 2001 | Established West Coast MBA Program for Executives — Wharton | San Francisco |
| 2001 | Established an Alliance with INSEAD in the global development and delivery of management education |
| 2003 | First doctoral program in ethics and legal studies |
| 2010 | Knowledge@Wharton reaches 1.8 million subscribers worldwide. |
