The University of Alabama’s Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration was named the No. 33 public business program in the Bloomberg Businessweek rankings released March 17.

Overall, after private institutions were included, the college itself ranked No. 75 in the nation on the list of the top 111 undergraduate business schools. The spot was a major jump for UA, which did not place anywhere on the list in 2010. The prestige was a source of pride, but the dean of the Culverhouse College said he was not willing to stop striving for excellence.

“Are we satisfied overall? The answer is no,” said J. Barry Mason, dean of business administration. “We should continue to improve and get better at what we do. To be the 33rd best public college overall is an indication that we are very strong. That’s the top 3 or 4 percent in the nation. Our goal, though, is to become one of the top 25 public schools in the nation. I’d say that our ranking was a fair assessment, but we’re not satisfied. We should never be satisfied, and never stop improving.”

Mason said pride aside, the high ranking was practically useful as well, and that it would feed on itself to continue improvement. The prestige would draw better faculty and recruit more and better students, which would boost rankings in the future and restart the cycle in the college’s continuous quest for excellence.

Mason added that his college is not the only one that deserves recognition.

“The reality is that it’s not just this school,” Mason said. “This entire University is taking great strides and moving up in overall quality. Our students and faculty should take pride, and they do take pride in how hard they work, and to be affirmed externally like this is a real boost.”

Notre Dame took the No. 1 spot on the list for its second consecutive year, but Businessweek’s figures also showed that the average starting salary for a graduate of Notre Dame is $55,000, which is $2,000 less than the same figure for UA graduates.