Bloomberg Businessweek Names Harvard #1 U.S. Business School In 2015 MBA Ranking

NEW YORK, Oct. 20, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Bloomberg Businessweek today released its 2015 global rankings of best business schools. Harvard claims the number one spot among 74 full-time U.S. programs. Chicago's Booth is number two, and Northwestern's Kellogg is number three. Bloomberg Businessweek's top school of 2014, Duke University's Fuqua, fell to number eight.

Internationally, of 29 MBA programs, Western University's Ivey Business School in Ontario, Canada is number one (retaining its top spot in 2014's ranking), London Business School is number two and INSEAD in Fontainebleau, France is number three. Among the 74 part-time U.S. MBA programs evaluated, Northwestern's Kellogg ranks number one, Carnegie Mellon's Tepper ranks number two, and Rice University's Jones ranks number three.

For the first time, Bloomberg Businessweek placed a sharper focus on what people most hope to find after business school—career growth and job satisfaction—and how well MBA programs promote both. Businessweek compiled its deepest and broadest set of data ever from over 13,150 current students, 18,540 alumni, and 1,460 recruiters across 177 business school programs.

"By refining our focus and updating our methodology, we've created the most effective ranking yet for helping career-oriented students choose an MBA program," said Ellen Pollock, editor, Bloomberg Businessweek.

Below are Bloomberg Businessweek's 2015 top 20 U.S. full-time MBA programs (with their 2014 rank):

Below are Bloomberg Businessweek's 2015 top 20 U.S. part-time MBA programs (with their 2014 rank):

Below are Bloomberg Businessweek's 2015 top 10 international full-time MBA programs (with their 2014 rank):

The complete rankings of full-time U.S., full-time international, and part-time U.S. MBA programs are available at Bloomberg.com at http://www.bloomberg.com/bestbschools2015. Interactive tables allow readers to dig into data points for each school, ranging from compensation and debt load to first jobs post-MBA. Another interactive chart shows exactly where each school ranked on each part of the ranking.

Methodology

The rankings are based on five measures: 1. Employer Survey (35 percent of total score): Recruiter feedback on the skills they look for in MBAs, and which programs best equip their students with those skills; 2. Alumni Survey (30 percent of total score): Feedback from the Classes of 2007, 2008, and 2009 on how their MBAs have affected their careers, their compensation change over time, and their mid-career job satisfaction; 3. Student Survey (15 percent of total score): The Class of 2015's take on academics, career services, campus climate, and more; 4. Job Placement Rate (10 percent of total score): The most recent data on how many MBAs seeking full-time jobs get them within three months of graduation; 5. Starting Salary (10 percent of total score): The most recent data on how much MBAs make in their first jobs after graduation, adjusted for industry and regional variation.

"New data culled from thousands of MBA students and alumni illuminate what kind of career an MBA will get you," said Jonathan Rodkin, research and rankings coordinator, Bloomberg Businessweek. "Most MBAs have no trouble landing jobs: Three months after graduation, 88 percent of MBAs have been hired—and offered a nice pay bump. Graduates saw an 81 percent jump over their median compensation before B-School. After six to eight years, pay typically increased another 64 percent to around $169,000 a year."

Alumni Survey Analysis Reveals Women Earn Less Than Men Post-MBA

Data from Bloomberg Businessweek's survey of over 12,700 alumni who graduated from full-time programs between six to eight years ago is examined in a separate story written by Natalie Kitroeff and Jonathan Rodkin. They found that overall women earn lower salaries, manage fewer people, and are less satisfied with their careers than men. Women and men started their post-MBA careers making almost the same pay -- $98,000 for female alumni and $105,000 for men who graduated between 2007-2009. But their professional fates diverged dramatically years later. By 2014, men hauled in a median of $175,000 and women $140,000. That gap means that employers paid women 80 percent of what men with the same degrees earned. Much of the pay gap is driven by the heftier year-end bonuses that men win from their companies. When Businessweek examined base salaries of alumni, and excluded all other forms of compensation, the disparity between men and women shrank significantly. Read the story here: http://buswk.co/PostMBAPay

"An MBA appears to be the graduate degree with the quickest return on investment in the United States," said Francesca Levy, business education editor, Bloomberg Businessweek. "It just happens to be more lucrative if you're a man."

The top 30 full-time U.S. MBA programs and top 10 international programs will be highlighted in the October 26-November 1, 2015 print issue of Bloomberg Businessweek.

To join the conversation on Twitter use #bestbschools.

About Bloomberg Businessweek
Bloomberg Businessweek offers a global perspective, timely insights, and unique stories to a new breed of business leader who has an original vision for the future and a willingness to think differently. Founded in 1929, the magazine is a trusted market leader with a global circulation of over 980,000 each week and is available in more than 150 countries. Bloomberg Businessweek covers the business world like no one else can by drawing on more than 2,400 journalists in 150 bureaus across 73 countries. The award-winning Bloomberg Businessweek+ app is available on the iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, and Samsung devices.

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SOURCE Bloomberg Businessweek