Our history

Since our inception in 1972, Waikato Management School has always been a trailblazer in tertiary education. We place a strong emphasis on experiential learning, research-led teaching that incorporates best business practice, and close links with industry.

That same year, we introduced New Zealand's first four-year business degree, the Bachelor of Management Studies, in line with North American benchmarks of business education excellence.

Likewise, we were the first business school in New Zealand to respond to the emerging opportunities of electronic commerce by introducing a specialist bachelor's degree in this field in 2000. This was followed by a masters degree in 2005, renamed the Master of Digital Business in 2017.

Our mission is to produce graduates who are equipped not only with strong commercial know-how, but who also possess the personal leadership qualities required to make their mark on the business world from day one, and go on to help shape their organisation’s future success in remarkable ways.