Bloomberg Releases Additional Data From MBA Alumni Survey
Bloomberg Businessweek has released additional data from the alumni survey used to compile its 2018 business school rankings. The new data shows how MBA graduates rated their schools on a variety of measures, including networking potential and academic quality.
One of the key questions Bloomberg asked graduates of various schools was whether they agreed with the statement that “my school’s alumni network has helped me build my career.” On this measure, the five schools with the most satisfied MBA grads were:
1. Stanford Graduate School of Business
3. Dartmouth College Tuck School of Business
4. University of Southern California Marshall School of Business
5. University of Pennsylvania Wharton School
Three of those schools ranked in the top five overall in Bloomberg’s 2018 rankings, while USC Marshall came in at 14 and Tuck at 20.
Stanford GSB’s first place finish seems to be a running theme in the new Bloomberg data. For example, consider the top five when graduates were asked whether they agreed with the statement that “my school’s name and prestige have been beneficial to me”:
1. Stanford Graduate School of Business
2. Harvard Business School
3. University of Pennsylvania Wharton School
4. MIT Sloan School of Management
5. University of Chicago Booth School of Business
Stanford also received the highest ratings when graduates were asked whether their education “emphasized innovation and creativity” and whether they would recommend their program on the basis of entrepreneurship.
Interestingly, though, two other schools made surprise showings in the top five for these latter two questions.
Babson College’s Olin Graduate School of Business clocked in at third and fourth on the entrepreneurship and creativity questions respectively, despite an overall ranking of 68.
And the MBA program at Imperial College London pulled in at fourth and second on these measures, despite an overall ranking of 99.
In the new set of five questions released by Bloomberg, only one question saw Stanford GSB miss first place – and here the school still achieved a respectable ninth-place score.
This was the question that asked alumni whether they would “recommend my school to a friend because of the quality of its academic programs.” The top five schools for that measure were:
1. University of Chicago Booth School of Business
3. Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management
4. University of Virginia Darden School of Business
5. University of Michigan Ross School of Business
Taken together, this data certainly confirms that Stanford GSB produces a lot of satisfied alumni. However, the diversity of schools in the top five for different questions highlights how different MBA programs shine in different areas.
That’s why an important first step in the MBA application process is figuring out what schools line up with your profile and goals – as well as how you can tailor each application to the school you’re applying to.
We’re happy to help you answer those questions. Feel free to get in touch with us and we’ll do a free MBA application assessment!