Business school news hub ranks the top 47 online business programs based on admissions standards, academic experience & employment outcomes

OAKLAND, CA, November 09, 2020 /Neptune100/ — Poets&Quants, the definitive online publication for business education news, has unveiled its 2021 ranking of The Best Online MBA Programs. Topping this year’s list as the #1 online MBA in the country is Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business.

In an extremely tight ranking, the delta between many ranked schools was small: The separation between 6th place and 10th place was less than 2 points, says Nathan Allen, Poets&Quants special projects editor, who manages the annual ranking.

“This years’ ranking was our most competitive online MBA ranking, with participation from 47 schools,” Allen says. “This is an increase from 35 schools in 2020 and 2019, and 25 in 2018.”

Key findings from surveys conducted to inform the ranking include a wide range of tuition prices, from Rogers State at $10,888 to Carnegie Mellon Tepper at $141,320. The 2021 ranking also includes the first non-U.S. online MBA program: Imperial College Business School.

The top 10 online MBA programs are:

1. Indiana University (Kelley)

2. Carnegie Mellon University (Tepper)

3. University of Southern California (Marshall)

4. George Washington University

5. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Kenan-Flagler)

6. Lehigh University

7. Villanova University

8. Auburn University (Harbert)

9. University of Washington (Foster)

10. Santa Clara University (Leavey)

Poets&Quants based its rankings on three core dimensions on online MBA programs:

1) The quality of the incoming students;

2) An assessment by graduates of the MBA experience, both the academic and the extracurricular activities; and

3) Career outcomes of a program’s graduates.

Methodology

Data for the fourth annual Poets&Quants ranking of online MBA programs was gathered from both school and alumni surveys. The school survey asked for a wide variety of data points, from admission standards to global immersion trips. The alumni survey sought recent graduates’ impressions on a range of topics, as well as whether the program fulfilled their expectations and whether they would recommend it to others. Alumni were surveyed between May and October of this year. In all, 5,880 alumni were surveyed and 1,143 responded for an average response rate of 19.44%. Read more about the methodology here.

The ranking is a central feature of Poets&Quants’ comprehensive Online MBA Hub. A one-of-a-kind resource, the Online MBA Hub offers advice, rankings analysis, in-depth school profiles, and other tools to help prospective students navigate the complex online MBA landscape. Visit the Hub at https://poetsandquants.com/online-mba-hub/.

Visit here to learn more about the 2021 Rankings, the methodology and to locate a specific school.

About Poets&Quants:
Poets&Quants is the leading resource for complete coverage of graduate business education. We feature multiple tools and authoritative content, including: consolidated B-school rankings, news and in-depth features, videos, podcasts, two searchable directories and events, empowering our community with information needed to make decisions along their journey from pre- to post-MBA.