The Best Online MBA Programs Of 2023
To top our 2022 ranking of Best Online MBA Programs, the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business came in third. This marks the fifth ranking of Online MBA Programs since our 2018 inaugural ranking. USC Marshall participated in the rankings for four years. They have finished first two times (2019 and 2022), and third twice (2020, 2021).
The second place finisher was Carnegie Mellon University’s Tepper School of Business. Marshall and Tepper, both of which offer the most expensive Online MBA Programs options available, were the only two schools that topped our ranking multiple times. Tepper was No. 1, in 2018 and 2020. In its five-year history, only three schools have topped our ranking — Marshall, Tepper and Indiana University’s Kelley Direct MBA. This was the first year of this ranking. Tepper’s full-time MBA program costs just over $140,000. USC Marshall’s online MBA is $112,346.
The surprises started after Carnegie Mellon and USC. The Santa Clara University Leavey School of Business jumped from tenth to third place. The Leavey School offers one of the most innovative online MBA programs and has only graduated two classes. The University of Washington’s Foster School of Business follows Leavey, which saw major improvements from being ninth to fourth last year. The Kelley Direct program at Indiana University rounds out the top five. It fell from first to fifth last year.
POETS & QUANTS’ TOP ONLINE MBA PROGRAMS FOR 2022
- University of Southern California (Marshall), £111,663
- Carnegie Mellon University (Tepper), 141,760
- Santa Clara University (Leavey), $83,510
- University of Washington (Foster), $78,000
- Indiana University (Kelley), $78,246
- University of North Carolina Chapel Hill (Kenan-Flagler), $125 589
- Rice University (Jones), $109 930
- Baylor University (Hankamer), $51,264
- Lehigh University $41,595
- Jack Welch Management Institute, $48,695
ONLY ONE Online MBA Programs HAS BEEN RANKED IN TOP FIVE EVERY YEAR
In spite of ranking online MBA programs five years ago, Indiana Kelley has been the only business school to make it into the Top Five every year. This is an impressive record of quality in long-distance learning experiences that Poets&Quants has named MBA Program of Year. Only two other online MBA programs at Carnegie Mellon University and Lehigh University made it into the Top 10 each year.
Three schools made it into the Top Ten in this year’s Top Ten. The Jones Graduate School of Business at Rice University debuted its new program in seventh position. Baylor University’s Hankamer School placed eighth, while the Jack Welch Management Institute jumped ten places to tenth.
What is the program with the greatest decline? The online MBA at George Washington University costs $106,000. After losing ground in academic experience, admission standards and career outcomes, the program fell 34 places to place 41st in our ranking.
Read Also
- 2023 MBA Jobs: Record Pay & Placement At Michigan Ross
INTEREST IN THE ONLINE MASTERBACH MANAGER REMAINS STRONG
Online MBA Programs are still very popular. There are more and more business schools offering online MBAs. Many schools have reported record enrollments in the wake of the pandemic. Indiana Kelley now has 100 faculty members teaching online courses across 140 courses. It received just under 3000 applications and enrolled 732 long distance students in its fall and spring intakes. This is an increase of 535 students a year ago. In August, 700 Kelley online MBA students gathered on campus for the school’s “Kelley On Campus” immersion.
Six years ago, 116 students enrolled in University of Illinois Gies College of Business Long-Distance iMBA. Today, there are 4,608 students enrolled. The college has expectations of reaching 5,000 students by the end of 2019. As Gies processed a record 1,577 online MBA students, 3,280 applications were received from around the globe during the 2020 iMBA intake. From more than 2,600 applicants, the iMBA program attracted 4,388 new students.
This year’s ranking included 52 schools, an increase of 47 from last year and 35 from the previous two years. It is also a record that all schools met the minimum 10% alumni response rate to be included in our ranking calculations. Our ranking is still limited in comparison to the approximately 350 accredited online MBA programs in the U.S. Some schools, such as the University of Illinois’ disruptive iMBA program at $22,500, do not want to be ranked. (See Online MBA Rankings). Gies says no, thank you. Other schools, such as the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business or Boston University’s Questrom School of Business are still new and have yet to graduate a complete class. (see A New Milestone for Michigan Ross’ Online MBA: Its Very first Graduate).
TWO SLIGHT METHODOLOGICAL CHANGES
Our ranking was based from the beginning on three equally weighted categories: admissions standards and academic experience. See our full explanation of our methodology. Admission standards data is collected directly from schools, while data on academic experience and career outcomes is gathered through alumni surveys. Both surveys were conducted between May 2021 and September 2021. We surveyed graduates who graduated between July 1, 2020, and June 30, 2021.
This year, there were two major changes in the methodology. The first was that we reduced the weight of the average GMAT score, dispersing it equally across all other admission data points (average undergraduate GPA and average years of work experience, as well as the acceptance rate for a program). Most online MBA programs do not require GMATs or GREs. This year, the majority of schools waived test scores because of the pandemic. (see Average GMATs, GREs & GPAs for the 2022 Top Online MBA Programs). Second, alumni data was introduced from last and this year’s surveys. The weight of this year’s alumni data was 70%, while that from last year was 30%.
It’s a combination of three categories so a school can win overall but not in any one of the other categories. This is exactly what happened to USC Marshall this year, who finished third in each category. Santa Clara’s Leavey School was the winner in both categories of alumni surveys — academic experience as well as career outcomes. Indiana Kelley was the first to be selected in the admissions standards category.
USC MARSHALL HAS INTEGRATED, THEMATIC CURICULUM
Marshall’s program is a success because of the creativity and resources it has. With an acceptance rate only 26%, the school’s online program is also the most selective of the ranked schools (see Acceptance Rates at The Top MBA Programs of 2022).
Phil Griego, assistant dean of online education and program director for the Marshall OMBA, says that “the Marshall OMBA experience” is defined by its thematic content, faculty who are fully connected with the Marshall experience, as well as — of course — its strength in the Trojan Network. Our courses use a thematic approach to six courses spread over five semesters. Faculty often collaborate across departments and disciplines on projects and assignments. Each course is taught by two to four faculty.
The USC Online MBA Programs begins with a week-long residential intensive during which students complete their first course with their cohort. The students then take the required five courses together. Griego states that the cohort model and a week-long residential experience have proven to be a great way to build community, even though the program is virtually entirely online. Marshall uses the flipped classroom method, which combines prerecorded asynchronous content and synchronous courses.
Griego mentions that one of the most recent aspects of Marshall’s OMBA program is the addition a capstone project. This project is based on a single case and students will analyze it throughout the program. Griego says that the case was co-written and edited by one of our faculty members. It examines the many difficulties that a company can face when expanding internationally.
An optional international trip is part of the capstone, which was launched in 2019. Griego states that the annual international trip was originally planned to be held annually but has been canceled due to the pandemic. She says she plans to resume the trip as soon as possible.
CARNEGIE MELLON’S MBA ‘ONE PROGRAM.’
Carnegie Mellon University’s blended online MBA programs is unique among other online programs in that it offers the most in-person coursework via half-dozen Access Weekends, which are scheduled between program mini-semesters. Cindy McCauley, Tepper’s Executive Director of Online Programs, says that it is a major component of the program. “We believe it’s important for our students to have an in-person component.”
Tepper is also different from other top programs in terms of the experience and age of its students. Santa Clara’s most recent class had an average of 11 year work experience while USC’s has nine years. Carnegie Mellon’s newest incoming class had less experience than seven years. McCauley notes that many of these students were trying to decide between our program or a full-time program on campus.
Students can also switch between the programs, and can spend a year studying with full-time MBA students. McCauley says that the CMU MBA is one program. McCauley also notes that at other business schools, there is often a wall between different MBA programs. We don’t see the wall, because everything is the exact same. Admissions standards and coursework are identical. It’s the same, just delivered differently.
The OMBA program is designed to allow students to spend the first year as a student, before they move on to the full-time program for the second year. Students may then do internships. McCauley says that they might return to online learning during the third and fourth years. This kind of interchangeability — and access to career service — is something that few business schools offer.