When it comes to the top 10 executive MBA programs in the world, the top rankings will depend on whose list you’re reading. That’s why we’ve taken two lists of top tier executive MBA programs – one from Businessweek, the other from CCN Money – and compared them against each other. The Businessweek list covers the top 10 executive MBA programs in the world whereas the CNN list is specific to the US. Let’s take a look at these two top 10 listings, where they overlap, where they differ, and why they came up with their results.
The Businessweek Top 10 Executive MBA Programs in the World
According to Businessweek’s rankings, the top 10 executive MBA programs in the world are:
1. University of Chicago (Booth)
2. Columbia University
3. Northwestern University (Kellogg)
4. IE Business School
5. University of California, Los Angeles (Anderson)
6. University of Michigan (Ross)
7. Southern Methodist University (Cox)
8. University of Southern California (Marshall)
9. University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)
10. Duke University (Fuqua)
The only major surprise from the top 3 is the absence of Wharton, which ends up all the way down at Number 9. The Kellogg School Executive MBA Programs has always received favorable ratings from Businessweek. The Northwestern program attracts a lot of students from general management roles as well as the marketing sector, with these two career backgrounds accounting for almost half of the total enrollment.
As you can see, the only non-US school that made it into Businessweek’s top 10 is IMD (the International Institute for Management Development), based in Switzerland. The program is accredited by the three most important international accreditation agencies: AACSB, EQUIS and the AMBA. It has a fairly small number of Master’s of Business Administration students, but offers a culturally diverse student experience with professionals from all over the world choosing to study there.
It’s worthy of note that Duke University actually has two different EMBA programs, both of which made the list – the Global EMBA Program at Number 9, and the Weekend EMBA at Number 11. The UNC Chapel-Hill program at Number 5 is also a weekend program.
The CNN Money Top 10 Executive MBA Programs in the US
And now for a different perspective – CNN’s top 10 list, with a few twists and surprises:
1. University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)
2. University of Chicago (Booth)
3. Northwestern (Kellogg)
4. Columbia University
5. New York University (Stern)
6. University of Michigan (Ross)
7. UCLA (Anderson)
8. Cornell University (Johnson)
9. University of Texas, Austin (McCombs)
10. University of Southern California (Marshall)
Top 10 Executive MBA Programs in the World vs US
As you can see, the top 3 executive MBA colleges in this list are similar to the Businessweek list, with the major difference being Wharton. Wharton comes in at the top this time, but it’s also the most expensive program in the top 3 with $162,300 on average in fees and tuition, almost $10,000 more than Northwestern.
Although this is a US list of executive MBAs, some of these business schools, such as Booth, have international campuses (in Booth’s case, one in London and one in Singapore in addition to the main Chicago campus).
There are a few that made the top 10 which appear in fairly different positions on the Businessweek top 10 executive MBA programs in the world list. Columbia, at Number 4 for CNN, is Number 2 on Businessweek’s list (although in 2005 in wasn’t even in the top 25 – quite a jump over a 6 year period). Stern, CNN’s Number 5, comes in at Number 13 on Businessweek’s listings. CNN’s Number 7, UCLA, is slightly higher on the Businessweek rankings at Number 5 – an upwards move compared to past rankings (UCLA was Businessweek’s Number 14 back in 2005).
Why the differences between the two lists? It comes down to rankings criteria – how each publication ‘scores’ the schools they’re looking at. It can also come down to factors as some schools not responding to a survey or not providing adequate information. CNN praises Wharton’s huge range of choice when it comes to electives, allowing for a high degree of specialization, as well as the travel opportunities that give students an incredible advantage in terms of global business experience.
As for a few conspicuous names which are missing from both top 10 executive MBA programs in the world vs US lists, like Harvard and Stanford, these schools don’t offer dedicated executive MBA programs.