[2] The business school is privately run, works in close co-operation with other universities,[3][independent source needed] and is state recognized.

[5][independent source needed] The university was founded in Essen in 1990 in order to cater to working people.

There are 35 other schools in Germany, located in Aachen, Arnsberg, Augsburg, Berlin, Bochum, Bonn, Bremen, Dortmund, Duisburg, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Freiburg, Gütersloh, Hagen, Hamburg, Hannover, Herne, Karlsruhe, Kassel, Koblenz, Köln, Leipzig, Mainz, Mannheim, Marl, München, Münster, Neuss, Nürnberg, Oberhausen, Saarbrücken, Siegen, Stuttgart, Wesel and Wuppertal.

Since 2003 FOM has had two faculties in China, one near Beijing and the other in the Shandong province in co-operation with the Shanghai University of Finance and Economics.

[9] The university maintains a total of 11 research institutes[10] and 15 "competence centers":[11] The FOM is member of the Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft.