The McDonough School of Business received national recognition this week when BusinessWeek’s inaugural ranking of the nation’s top undergraduate business schools placed it at 13th in the nation.

The rankings, which appear in the magazine’s May 8 issue, considered 84 undergraduate business programs and whittled the list to the nation’s top 50 business schools based on information gathered from recruiters, faculty and students.

The University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business earned the top spot, followed by University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce and the Mendoza College of Business at Notre Dame.

The magazine’s review said that while the MSB has high quality teaching, many recruiters believe that the school focuses on placing graduating students in financial firms, as opposed to management or marketing positions.

Yet student perception of national business programs dramatically differs from that of the business magazine. According to the BusinessWeek survey, students ranked the MSB 33rd in the country. Recruiters ranked the MSB 26th out of the 84 schools under consideration, while its curriculum was ranked 12th by the magazine.

MSB graduates placed among the highest paid graduates in terms of starting salary, according to the BusinessWeek survey. MSB students averaged a starting salary of $50,000, compared with first-ranked Wharton’s $55,000.

George Daly, the MSB’s dean, said that he was satisfied with the results of the survey, and that the MSB is working hard to bolster ratings.

“I think we’re in the right group of schools,” he said. “But we’re eager to move up.”

Daly said he was skeptical of the BusinessWeek results, pointing to the magazine’s focus on “quantitative elements of a business education, rather than taking a school’s atmosphere and nuance into consideration.” Daly acknowledged the significance of the poll, however, in terms of student and public perception of business schools.

“[The rankings] are real and are important to the students and recruiters,” he said. “So we will continue to work to move up the list.”

Daly also said that the new business school center, which officials hope will be completed by 2008, would also play an important role in the future of the MSB. The MSB received a “C” rating for facilities and services in the BusinessWeek survey.

“The new building will certainly help that,” Daly said.

Daly said that the MSB is undertaking new improvements as well, including a plan that calls for a major restructuring of the business school, for which he said he has been meeting with student groups and faculty to get input on school improvements.

“By focusing more on leadership, international business, quantitative skills and stronger academics we will be able to make this a stronger school,” he said. “We hope to be on top or near the top of that list in the years to come,” he said.