What are media rankings?
Media rankings are conducted by the editorial staff of newspapers and magazines. Although the methodology may vary depending on the publication, they generally involve some combination of data collected from student/alumni surveys, recruiter surveys, dean/director surveys, and data supplied by schools. The data collected from these surveys are weighted to determine an ordinal ranking of programs. More …

What is AACSB International’s position on media rankings?
AACSB International’s position regarding rankings is outlined in its report “The Business School Rankings Dilemma.” In addition to troubling aspects of media rankings methodology, AACSB believes that media rankings have had several unintended negative impacts on business education. The report also describes the role of AACSB International in helping to address the issues created by media rankings. Download report ...

Why is my school not included in media rankings?
There could be many reasons why a school’s program is not included in a ranking. First, despite that fact that they are promoted as “b-school rankings” the media generally look only at specific programs. For example, schools without full-time MBA programs are not included in media rankings. Second, most media rankings invite only a limited set of schools to participate in the rankings based on factors such as accreditation. Third, sometimes schools are not included in rankings because they choose not to participate. If your school is accredited by AACSB International, you can be assured of its overall high quality.

Is it important to attend a highly-ranked business program?
The right program for you depends on your goals and objectives. Students interested in a career transition and full-time programs are more likely to view media rankings as important, for example. However,  less that 25 percent of MBA students are enrolled full-time. Prospective students may also be constrained geographically or financially, for example. What is most important is to select programs that are the best fit for your goals, regardless of the rank attributed to the program by any publication. To do this, you should understand yourself, conduct detailed research, and ask lots of questions. Do not rely exclusively on media rankings regardless of your goals.

What is the relationship between AACSB-accreditation and the rankings?
The relationship depends on the particular media ranking and other factors, such as geography. U.S. based programs usually must be delivered by an AACSB accredited institution to be included in rankings. Outside the U.S., where AACSB has only recently begun to accredit schools, ranked programs can sometimes be delivered by institutions that are not accredited by AACSB. It is important to note that AACSB accreditation reviews include all the business and management programs of an institution, not just the MBA programs that are usually the focus on media rankings. Also, accreditation is much more complete in that it examines the mission, strategy, students, faculty, staff, curriculum, and educational outcomes through a comprehensive peer review process. This is in contrast to the media rankings focus on collecting opinions about the programs.

What are other sources of information besides rankings?
There are numerous alternative sources of information about programs. To check whether a program is delivered by an AACSB accredited institution, go to http://www.aacsb.edu/accreditation/accreditedmembers.asp. The website also provides links to each school’s website and an AACSB profile of the school.  www.MBA.com, the Graduate Management Admission Council's website also has information about MBA programs.

Am I required to participate in surveys by media?
You are not required to participate in any survey by a media organization, regardless if you are representative of a school, graduating student, alumnus, or recruiter. AACSB International does not encourage or discourage schools or individuals to participate if invited to complete a survey by the media.

What does it mean if my program drops in a media ranking?
You must understand the methodology to know why a program’s rank drops. Media organizations generally do not publish the raw data used to tabulate ranks, but will sometimes interpret the information to offer explanations for changes. Note that major changes in the rank of program should be viewed with skepticism simply because quality normally does not change drastically over a short period of time. Therefore a drop in media rankings does not imply that a program has diminished in quality. It could be the result of many other reasons that do not reflect the overall quality of the program.