The Financial Times recently released its 2020 Global MBA Rankings. Harvard Business School took the #1 spot from Stanford Graduate School of Business. This represents a one spot jump from 2019 and a four spot jump from its #5 place in 2018.
Wharton rose in 2020 from #4 to #2 while Stanford Graduate School of Business fell to #3. INSEAD was pushed to #4.
MIT Sloan rose two places this year, to #6. London Business School fell slightly to #7 and Columbia Business School rose one spot to #8.
New to the top 10 this year was HEC Paris, up considerably from its 19th place finish in 2019. Finally, Chicago Booth rounded out the top 10, a three position drop from 2019 while Berkeley Haas was pushed to #12, changing not just the order but the composition of the top 10 list this year.
While US MBA programs again dominated the top 10, there are an increasing number of strong options for students looking to earn an MBA outside of the US, with four international programs ranked in the top 10.
As you review these rankings, keep the following advice in mind. Remember, rankings can aid in the school selection process but are not the be all end all!
Personal MBA Coach is a full-service admissions consulting firm and school selection is a crucial part of the process that we help with!
1) Use rankings to get the lay of the land. MBA rankings provide a great overview of the business school landscape: what schools exist, where they are located and how they generally stack up.
2) Statistics such as acceptance rate and average GPA and GMAT/GRE/EA of enrolled students will give you some good benchmarking data, however, use these numbers as an initial guide only. The whole applicant package matters and plenty of candidates with a lower than average GPA or GMAT/GRE/EA score will get in each year while many with higher scores will be rejected.
3) Average ranking over time is important. When you are courting that investor 10 years from now, she will not know what the ranking was when you applied but may look at the current ranking. This is why it is important to pay attention to general ranking trends.
4) Nearly every ranking scale will give different results. Of course, certain schools will be in the top 10 in nearly every ranking, but the general list varies considerably from source to source. As with historical data, the general trend is most important.
5) Rankings vary by industry! While all business schools focus on providing strong general management education, each school has a specific area of expertise. Pay attention to how the schools stack up in the industry specific rankings as well. Need help?
Personal MBA Coach is willing to be your guide. Founded by a Wharton and MIT graduate, we regularly help applicants navigate their applications each year. We also conduct mock interviews with former M7 interviewers on our team.
Personal MBA Coach has been guiding candidates through all aspects of the MBA application process for over 13 years with a 96% success rate. Call us today at +1 617-645-2424 or email
scott@personalmbacoach.com for a free consultation on your profile along with how we can help make your MBA dreams a reality!