Times Higher Education (THE) in partnership with the Wall Street Journal recently released its analyzed reams of data about graduate management education and produced a ranking of “high-achieving global MBA programs.”
The study ranked the programs in 20 separate performance indicators, leading to an aggregate score indicating the strength of each program and school. These scores were then combined into the following 4 scores, called pillars, shown below with their weights:
- Resources – Faculty per student: 11%; Teaching qualifications: 6%; Career support staff per student: 4%; Career support effectiveness: 4%
- Engagement – Learning engagement: 5%; Interaction with teachers and students: 5%; Student recommendation: 5%; Real-world relevance: 5%; Research in teaching: 5%
- Outcomes – Salary difference: 12%; Network: 12%; Social good: 5%; Entrepreneurship: 5%; Opportunities: 5%; Worth: 5%
- Environment – International students: 4%; Female students: 3%; International staff: 2%; Economic diversity: 2%
Top 10 Two-Year MBA Programs
| Rank | University | Country | Resources | Engagement | Outcomes | Environment | Overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stanford Graduate School of Business | United States | 79.1 | 94.1 | 91 | 40.4 | 82.7 |
| 2 | Cornell University: Johnson | United States | 85.6 | 92.1 | 83.3 | 39.8 | 80.9 |
| 3 | Vanderbilt University: Owen | United States | 85.4 | 93.1 | 89.1 | 18.6 | 80.7 |
| 4 | University of Chicago: Booth | United States | 74.4 | 94.2 | 86.9 | 37 | 79.6 |
| 5 | Duke University: Fuqua | United States | 71.5 | 92.7 | 85 | 34.1 | 77.5 |
| 6 | University of Virginia: Darden | United States | 67.1 | 93.5 | 88.6 | 28.7 | 77.3 |
| 6 | Yale School of Management | United States | 67.1 | 93 | 85.1 | 40.9 | 77.3 |
| 8 | Carnegie Mellon: Tepper | United States | 73.3 | 91.9 | 77.9 | 26.7 | 74.1 |
| 9 | Purdue University: Krannert | United States | 53.1 | 89.8 | 82.2 | 54.7 | 73.5 |
| 10 | China Europe International Business School (CEIBS) | China | 67.5 | 86.9 | 76.7 | 45.7 | 73.2 |
Analysis of the Rankings
You probably noticed that there are prominent names missing from the THE/WSJ top 20: Harvard, Wharton, Kellogg, MIT, INSEAD, LBS, and UCLA to name a few. These schools declined to participate. In fact, the global MBA rankings only include 54 schools, which reduces its value automatically.
In addition, the THE/WSJ ranking produces results that make me question their credibility. (The basic problem with rankings is that if they don’t match our preconceived notions, credibility is lacking. And if they are credible and congruent with common knowledge and opinion, what’s the value in the rankings? Strengthening confirmation bias?)
However, for a scathing and thorough critique of these rankings, I will point you to Poets and Quants’ John’s Byrne, who wrote “The Wall Street Journal’s ‘Where’s Waldo?’ MBA Ranking.”
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• Navigate the MBA Application Maze: 9 Tips to Acceptance, a free guide
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• 3 Ways to Determine Which B-Schools Are a Good Fit for You
