RICHARDSON, Texas (Jan. 30, 2003) - The University of Texas at Dallas' School of Management ranked sixth worldwide in research productivity in certain critical areas over the last six years in a study published in the most recent issue of OR/MS Today, a publication of the Institute for Operations Research and Management Sciences (INFORMS).

The study compares the amount of research published in quantitative and technical fields, such as operations management and management information systems, in schools of business during two six-year periods, 1990 to 1996 and 1997 to the present.

The study's authors, James Marsden and Ravi Bapna, both faculty members at the University of Connecticut, said that they wanted to measure the performance of business schools that have organized departments to address management issues created by the information technology revolution.

The researchers drew their conclusions by tallying the amount of academic research published in the last 12 years in four top journals that frequently publish research on operations management and management information systems: Management Science, Information Systems Research, Operations Research and INFORMS Journal on Computing. All four are published by the 12,000-member INFORMS, a widely respected organization that represents professionals and academicians in the operations management, management sciences, and management information systems fields.

UTD School of Management Dean Dr. Hasan Pirkul stressed the importance of the study's findings for his school. "This is the first time in our history that someone has looked at what we've done and placed us alongside the best in the nation and world."

Pirkul noted that the UTD School of Management placed 43rd in the study's first six-year-period. "The leap we made - from 43rd to sixth - is a real measure of the progress we've made as we've grown over the last six years. It's particularly gratifying because it indicates that we're making significant progress toward our goal of creating a nationally recognized, top-quality management school here at UTD," he said.

Enrollment in the UTD School of Management has increased 80 per cent over the last six years. For the current academic year, the school's enrollment totals 4,373. UTD's total enrollment is more than 13,000 students.

Only two other Texas schools made it into the rankings in the study's most recent six-year period: The McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin placed fifth, and the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University placed 35th. The top-ranked school in the same period was The Wharton School at The University of Pennsylvania.

About UTD
The University of Texas at Dallas, located at the convergence of Richardson, Plano and Dallas in the heart of the complex of major multinational technology corporations known as the Telecom Corridor, enrolls more than 13,000 students. The school's freshman class traditionally stands at the forefront of Texas state universities in terms of average SAT scores. The university offers a broad assortment of bachelor's, master's and doctoral degree programs. For additional information about UTD, please visit the university's web site at http://www.utdallas.edu.