After pre-business students find out if they are accepted into the prestigious Neeley School of Business, the real work begins.

TCU’s Neeley School of Business is ranked No. 27 in the Top 50 Best Undergraduate Business Schools, according to Bloomberg Businessweek magazine.

Before getting accepted into Neeley, students must pass a four-part Microsoft Office certification test and maintain a 3.0 GPA.

This spring TCU admitted 415 students to the business school. The students were admitted contingent upon successful completion of courses in progress and successful completion of other admission requirements due by July 24, Assistant Dean Lynn Muller said.

Then the group projects begin.

Three out of the four required classes include a group project.

Sophomore business student Selina Rodriguez said the supply chain class analyzes the step-by-step process concerning how to get ingredients from the manufacturer to the retailer.

In the marketing class, groups get together and create promotional strategies that a business can implement to increase their marketing and brand awareness, Rodriguez said.

In the foundations of business class, students have to work in their group and run a company against competitors, which forces them to make strategic decisions on how they want to handle their products due to the adapting market.

“In these classes we learn how to deal with real life scenarios,” Rodriguez said. “We have to analyze and dissect what we have learned in lectures and apply our knowledge to the situation and project.”

Not only do students have to complete and present the projects, but they also have to find a time that works for everyone’s schedule to meet and plan.

“It takes a lot of coordinating with busy schedules when you are preparing for a group presentation, seeing as everyone is involved in multiple groups at TCU. But being the students we are, we always seem to make it work,” sophomore Neeley Fellow Jordan Sheppard said.

As deadlines quickly approach, students vent about their rising stress levels.

“My stress level is typically a three [out of 10]. Currently I’m at an eight because I have two projects to present tomorrow, a meeting and a test,” sophomore business student Kristy Charron said. “Basically I just feel like I am constantly going and preparing for the next thing and I don’t have time to take a breather.”

Rodriguez said she spends five out of her 10 free hours after class working on business homework.

Since the end of the semester is approaching and group project deadlines are the week before finals, she spends approximately eight hours a night working on homework for the major.

“I only take a break from studying when I eat lunch and dinner,” Rodriguez said.

Neeley School undergraduates have a 91 percent job placement rate and make an average starting annual salary of $55,000 after graduating, according to the Neeley website.