Our 2013 Ranking Of The Best EMBA Programs

The World’s Best Executive MBA Programs of 2013

2013 Rank & School Index 2012 Rank 2011 Rank BW US FT WSJ
28. Arizona State (Carey) 43.5 25 24 NR NR 21 13
29. London Business School 41.8 27 NR 25 NR 15 NR
29. Boston University 41.8 36 16 2T NR 66 20
31. Rutgers University 40.6 28 23 2T NR 70 21
32. IMD 39.7 29 NR 28 NR 20 NR
33. Georgetown (McDonough) 36.9 31 17 24 NR 35 NR
34. Oxford (Said) 35.8 30 NR 26 NR 38 NR
34. Cornell/Queen’s 35.8 32 30 NR NR 45 18
36. Chinese Univ. Hong Kong 33.9 33 NR 2T NR 17 NR
37. Western Ontario (Ivey) 32.2 35 27 34 NR 43 NR
38. Texas-Dallas 24.8 45 32 38 NR 66 NR
39. Minnesota (Carlson) 23.4 NR NR 30 NR 80 NR
40. Texas A&M (Mays) 23.2 43 35 2T NR 58 NR
41. Fordham 22.9 42 27 39 NR 73 NR
42. Pittsburgh (Katz) 22.2 37 31 2T NR 62 NR
43. Georgia (Terry) 21.8 38 NR 22 NR 95 NR
44. Temple (Fox) 21.7 40 50 2T NR 63 NR
45. Queen’s 20.6 44 33 29 NR 92 NR
46. Villanova 19.5 39 NR 2T NR 73 NR
47. Rochester (Simon) 17.8 53 NR 2T NR 62 NR
48. Baylor (Hankamer) 17.4 50 NR 37 NR 96 NR
49. Tulane (Freeman) 17.3 51 37 2T NR 80 NR
50. Georgia Tech (Scheller) 15.3 46 NR 2T NR 88 NR
51. SUNY-Buffalo 14.7 NR NR 2T NR 91 NR
52. Denver (Daniels) 13.1 55 NR 2T NR 96 NR

Notes: The P&Q ranking equally weights the latest rankings by the Financial Times (2012), U.S. News & World Report (2013), BusinessWeek (2011), and The Wall Street Journal (2010). Three of these four rankings are global, mixing U.S. and non-U.S. schools. Only the U.S. News’ ranking is based solely on U.S. programs. Only EMBA programs that won recognition from at least two of the four ranking systems are included in our ranking. That eliminates programs that are more likely to get on a single list as a result of an anomaly or of flawed methodology. NR — Not rated. ST — Second tier rank.

Methodology: The guidelines different organizations use to compile their rankings can affect which schools and programs get on their lists. The Financial Times, for example, will not include any program that has fewer than five graduating classes. That seems like a smart rule because a program that has been in existence for less than five years shouldn’t be ranked as one of the best in the world.

BusinessWeek, meanwhile, excludes all partnership programs on the basis that comparing a one-school program with another that has multiple partners is like comparing apples and oranges. While that keeps some very good programs, such as NYU/London School of Economics/HEC Paris’ TRIUM program off their list, the biggest concern over such partnerships is quality control.

Such guidelines obviously put both newer and partnership programs at a disadvantage not only in those rankings, but in this composite ranking as well.