WiSo Nuremberg can look back on a history of more than 100 years. The roots of the institution lie in the Nuremberg Commercial College (Nürnberger Handelshochschule), which began teaching in the winter semester of 1919/20. One of the first students (matriculation number 9) was the future German Chancellor Ludwig Erhard, who graduated from the Handelshochschule in 1923. From 1925, the Commercial College operated under the name of Hochschule für Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaften (University of Economics and Social Sciences) and soon gained the right to award doctorates and habilitations, which meant equivalence with universities (Universitäten).

After the School merged with FAU Nuremberg-Erlangen in 1961, WiSo Nuremberg quickly became the university's largest faculty. The school distinguished itself by its particularly high degree of innovation and internationality. Among other things, WiSo introduced the interdisciplinary diploma program "Business Information Systems" as early as 1991 and created Germany's first degree program in International Business Administration (1997/98).

Today, with over 6000 students, 45 chairs in more than 20 study programs, a worldwide network of connections and one of the broadest range of subjects in the German-speaking world, the School of Business, Economics and Society is one of the most reputable institutions of its kind.

The department maintains over 140 partnerships around the world, enabling student exchanges, faculty mobility, and joint research. In addition, a handful of English-language master's degrees and dual degrees are offered with foreign partner universities.