Discover Accredited Business Schools

Table of Contents

Welcome to the Discover Business School guide. Below you will find information on accredited business schools in the US. Tips on how to choose a business schools that fits your needs. Breakdown of popular business school rankings, and how to best use that information. And lastly, you will find more in-depth business school information by state. You can use our site with confidence because we only feature accredited business programs from not-for-profit or public schools.

Business Schools by State

List of Accredited Business Schools

Below we have compiled a full list of 521 AACSB accredited business schools.

School	City	State	Avg. GMAT	Student/ Faculty Ratio	MBA Tuition (out-state)
University of Alaska Anchorage, College of Business and Public Policy	Anchorage	AK
University of Alaska Fairbanks, School of Management	Fairbanks	AK	430		$17,237
Auburn University, Raymond J. Harbert College of Business	Auburn	AL	566	2.22	$24,549
Auburn University at Montgomery, College of Business	Montgomery	AL	520	3.37	$12,689
Jacksonville State University, College of Commerce and Business Administration	Jacksonville	AL		0.8	$12,910
Samford University, Brock School of Business	Birmingham	AL
Tuskegee University, Brimmer College of Business and Information Science	Tuskegee	AL
The University of Alabama, Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration	Tuscaloosa	AL	599.3	2.9	$28,120
University of Alabama at Birmingham, Collat School of Business	Birmingham	AL		1.22	$15,406
University of Alabama in Huntsville, College of Business	Huntsville	AL	467.5	2.8	$19,251
University of Montevallo, Michael E. Stephens College of Business	Montevallo	AL			$13,530
University of North Alabama, College of Business	Florence	AL	461.5	3.98	$12,932
University of South Alabama, Mitchell College of Business	Mobile	AL	560	1.16	$13,290
Arkansas State University, College of Business	State University	AR	555	1.79	$12,507
Arkansas Tech University, College of Business	Russellville	AR
Henderson State University, School of Business	Arkadelphia	AR		0.39	$9,710
Ouachita Baptist University, Frank D. Hickingbotham School of Business	Arkadelphia	AR
Southern Arkansas University, College of Business	Magnolia	AR	422	3.36	$19,710
University of Arkansas, Sam M. Walton College of Business	Fayetteville	AR	592	1.42	$29,186
University of Arkansas at Fort Smith, College of Business	Fort Smith	AR
University of Arkansas at Little Rock, College of Business	Little Rock	AR	502.5	0.92	$13,971
University of Central Arkansas, College of Business Administration	Conway	AR	500	1.91	$9,525
Arizona State University, W. P. Carey School of Business	Tempe	AZ	608.1	1.99	$53,552
Northern Arizona University, The W. A. Franke College of Business	Flagstaff	AZ	526	0.44	$18,428
Thunderbird School of Global Management	Glendale	AZ		7.56	$70,000
The University of Arizona, Eller College of Management	Tucson	AZ	604.6	2.62	$54,287
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Orfalea College of Business	San Luis Obispo	CA
California State Polytechnic University Pomona, College of Business Administration	Pomona	CA		0.07
California State University, Bakersfield, School of Business	Bakersfield	CA
California State University, Chico, College of Business	Chico	CA	557	0.92	$16,392
California State University, East Bay, College of Business and Economics	Hayward	CA	538	4.53	$31,696
California State University, Fresno, The Craig School of Business	Fresno	CA	540	1.01	$24,300
California State University, Fullerton, Steven G. Mihaylo College of Business and Economics	Fullerton	CA	575.7
California State University, Long Beach, College of Business Administration	Long Beach	CA	552	1.09	$32,664
California State University, Los Angeles, College of Business and Economics	Los Angeles	CA
California State University, Northridge, College of Business and Economics	Northridge	CA		1.06
California State University, Sacramento, College of Business Administration	Sacramento	CA
California State University, San Bernardino, Jack H. Brown College of Business and Public Administration	San Bernardino	CA	533
California State University, Stanislaus, College of Business Administration	Turlock	CA	424	1.91	$22,200
Chapman University, The George L. Argyros School of Business and Economics	Orange	CA
Claremont Graduate University, The Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management	Claremont	CA	611	7.16	$108,780
Loyola Marymount University, College of Business Administration	Los Angeles	CA
Menlo College	Atherton	CA
Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey	Monterey	CA
Naval Postgraduate School, Graduate School of Business and Public Policy	Monterey	CA
Graziadio School of Business and Management, Pepperdine University	Malibu	CA	615	8.77	$96,640
Saint Mary’s College of California, School of Economics and Business Administration	Moraga	CA
San Diego State University, Fowler College of Business	San Diego	CA	600.2	3.64
San Francisco State University, College of Business	San Francisco	CA		1.59	$28,685
San JosÃ© State University, Lucas College and Graduate School of Business	San Jose	CA	588	1.15	$29,558
Santa Clara University, Leavey School of Business	Santa Clara	CA
Sonoma State University, School of Business and Economics	Rohnert Park	CA		4.12	$14,750
Stanford University, Graduate School of Business	Stanford	CA
University of California, Berkeley, Haas School of Business	Berkeley	CA
University of California, Davis, Graduate School of Management	Davis	CA	630.5	3.14	$76,958
University of California, Irvine, The Paul Merage School of Business	Irvine	CA	639.7	3.75	$84,447
University of California, Los Angeles, UCLA Anderson School of Management	Los Angeles	CA
University of California, Riverside, School of Business	Riverside	CA	611	4.08	$81,312
University of California, San Diego, Rady School of Management	La Jolla	CA	714	5.48	$88,454
University of San Diego, School of Business Administration	San Diego	CA	598.3	1.18	$80,737
University of San Francisco, School of Management	San Francisco	CA	547.5	2.47	$77,280
University of Southern California, Marshall School of Business	Los Angeles	CA	662.1	6.89	$119,629
University of the Pacific, Eberhardt School of Business	Stockton	CA	582.7	1.37	$68,679
Woodbury University, School of Business	Burbank	CA	377		$43,065
Colorado State University, College of Business	Fort Collins	CO
Colorado State University-Pueblo, Malik and Seeme Hasan School of Business	Pueblo	CO	466	0.97	$17,594
Fort Lewis College, School of Business Administration	Durango	CO
Metropolitan State University of Denver, School of Business	Denver	CO	497
University of Colorado at Boulder, Leeds School of Business	Boulder	CO	602	2.29	$39,704
University of Colorado Colorado Springs, College of Business and Administration	Colorado Springs	CO	558.5	2.34
University of Colorado Denver, Business School	Denver	CO	564.5	12.7	$40,250
University of Denver, Daniels College of Business	Denver	CO
University of Northern Colorado, Kenneth W. Monfort College of Business	Greeley	CO		0.47
U.S. Air Force Academy	USAF Academy	CO
Central Connecticut State University, School of Business	New Britain	CT		0.34
Fairfield University, Charles F. Dolan School of Business	Fairfield	CT	506.8	1.83	$47,250
Quinnipiac University, School of Business	Hamden	CT	518.5	2.75	$46,035
Sacred Heart University, Jack Welch College of Business	Fairfield	CT	461	0.91
University of Connecticut, School of Business	Storrs	CT	603.5	6.52	$30,736
University of Hartford, Barney School of Business	West Hartford	CT	532.5
University of New Haven, College of Business	West Haven	CT	466.3	4.16	$42,660
U.S. Coast Guard Academy	New London	CT
Yale University, School of Management	New Haven	CT
American University, Kogod School of Business	Washington	DC	588	5.24	$79,449
The George Washington University, School of Business	Washington	DC	671.7	8.73	$100,904
Georgetown University, The McDonough School of Business	Washington	DC	669	4.17	$112,440
Howard University, School of Business	Washington	DC
Delaware State University, College of Business	Dover	DE
University of Delaware, Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics	Newark	DE	602.8	2.32	$34,600
Barry University, D. Inez Andreas School of Business	Miami Shores	FL	544	0.65	$35,640
Florida Atlantic University, College of Business	Boca Raton	FL	500.4	3.08	$17,751
Florida Gulf Coast University, Lutgert College of Business	Fort Myers	FL		0.54	$13,442
Florida International University, College of Business	Miami	FL	562	0.23	$35,000
Florida Southern College, Barney Barnett School of Business and Free Enterprise	Lakeland	FL		3.63	$33,400
Florida State University, College of Business	Tallahassee	FL	566.8	1.88	$18,768
Jacksonville University, Davis College of Business	Jacksonville	FL		2.63	$26,640
Rollins College, College of Arts and Sciences and College of Professional Studies	Winter Park	FL
Roy E. Crummer Graduate School of Business, Rollins College	Winter Park	FL		5.04	$73,500
Stetson University, School of Business Administration	DeLand	FL	513	1.79	$29,430
University of Central Florida, College of Business Administration	Orlando	FL	570	1.89	$17,743
University of Florida, Warrington College of Business Administration	Gainesville	FL	604	8.11	$26,473
University of Miami, School of Business Administration	Coral Gables	FL	565.5	3.65	$92,148
University of North Florida, Coggin College of Business	Jacksonville	FL	542.5	1.54	$17,772
University of South Florida, Muma College of Business	Tampa	FL
University of South Florida St. Petersburg, Kate Tiedemann College of Business	St. Petersburg	FL	553	1.1
University of South Florida, Sarasota-Manatee, College of Business	Sarasota	FL	485
The University of Tampa, John H. Sykes College of Business	Tampa	FL	540	3.91	$24,240
University of West Florida, College of Business	Pensacola	FL	497.5	0.44	$12,461
Augusta University, James M. Hull College of Business	Augusta	GA			$9,022
Berry College, Campbell School of Business	Mount Berry	GA
Clark Atlanta University, School of Business	Atlanta	GA
Clayton State University, School of Business	Morrow	GA		2.39
Columbus State University, D. Abbott Turner College of Business	Columbus	GA	460		$10,011
Dalton State College, School of Business	Dalton	GA
Emory University, Goizueta Business School	Atlanta	GA	636.7	5.59	$115,360
Georgia College & State University, J. Whitney Bunting School of Business	Milledgeville	GA
Georgia Institute of Technology, Ernest Scheller Jr. College of Business	Atlanta	GA		2.13	$62,192
Georgia Southern University, College of Business Administration	Statesboro	GA	496	0.96	$17,530
Georgia Southwestern State University, School of Business Administration	Americus	GA		2.4	$8,580
Georgia State University, J. Mack Robinson College of Business	Atlanta	GA	564.6	4.43
Kennesaw State University, Coles College of Business	Kennesaw	GA	559	0.3
Mercer University-Macon, Eugene W. Stetson School of Business and Economics	Macon	GA	525	0.61	$32,098
Morehouse College, Division of Business Administration and Economics	Atlanta	GA
Savannah State University, College of Business Administration	Savannah	GA	415
The University of Georgia, Terry College of Business	Athens	GA	626.3	1.86	$31,534
University of North Georgia, Mike Cottrell School of Business	Dahlonega	GA	483
University of West Georgia, Richards College of Business	Carrollton	GA	486	0.84	$13,027
Valdosta State University, Harley Langdale, Jr. College of Business Administration	Valdosta	GA		1.64	$10,450
University of Hawaii at Hilo, College of Business and Economics	Hilo	HI
University of Hawaii at Manoa, Shidler College of Business	Honolulu	HI	540	4.06	$42,576
Drake University, College of Business and Public Administration	Des Moines	IA	550	1.46
Iowa State University, College of Business	Ames	IA	551.5	1.75	$22,807
The University of Iowa, Tippie College of Business	Iowa City	IA		0.93	$46,468
University of Northern Iowa, College of Business Administration	Cedar Falls	IA	579	0.26	$28,658
Boise State University, College of Business and Economics	Boise	ID		2.72	$18,026
Idaho State University, College of Business	Pocatello	ID
University of Idaho, College of Business and Economics	Moscow	ID		1.33
Bradley University, Foster College of Business	Peoria	IL	567.5	1.25	$28,050
DePaul University, Richard H. Driehaus College of Business	Chicago	IL	559	0.23	$73,440
Dominican University, Brennan School of Business	River Forest	IL	414	2.84
Eastern Illinois University, Lumpkin College of Business and Applied Sciences	Charleston	IL	484	1.04	$13,358
Governors State University, College of Business	University Park	IL		1.79	$12,207
Illinois Institute of Technology, Stuart School of Business	Chicago	IL	554.3	6.86	$87,435
Illinois State University, College of Business	Normal	IL	559.7	1.71	$21,820
Loyola University Chicago, Quinlan School of Business	Chicago	IL	568.5	5.13	$86,592
Northeastern Illinois University, College of Business and Management	Chicago	IL
Northern Illinois University, College of Business	DeKalb	IL	545	4.55	$42,000
Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management	Evanston	IL
Saint Xavier University, Graham School of Management	Chicago	IL		12.29
Southern Illinois University Carbondale, College of Business	Carbondale	IL	574	5.24	$25,823
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, School of Business	Edwardsville	IL	594
The University of Chicago, Booth School of Business	Chicago	IL
University of Illinois at Chicago, College of Business Administration	Chicago	IL	605.8	5.54	$49,824
University of Illinois at Springfield, College of Business and Management	Springfield	IL	510	14.91	$18,055
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Gies College of Business	Champaign	IL		5.79	$53,824
Western Illinois University, College of Business and Technology	Macomb	IL
Ball State University, The Miller College of Business	Muncie	IN		0.73	$17,147
Butler University, College of Business Administration	Indianapolis	IN	579	0.6
Indiana State University, Scott College of Business	Terre Haute	IN
Indiana University Kokomo, School of Business	Kokomo	IN	370	3.93	$10,590
Indiana University Northwest, School of Business and Economics	Gary	IN	449	2.42
Indiana University South Bend, Judd Leighton School of Business and Economics	South Bend	IN	505	0.74
Indiana University Southeast, School of Business	New Albany	IN	525	0.45	$14,886
Indiana University Bloomington/Indianapolis, Kelley School of Business	Bloomington	IN	611.9	4.67	$55,202
Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne, Richard T. Doermer School of Business and Management	Fort Wayne	IN	650
Purdue University, Krannert School of Management	West Lafayette	IN	647.3	3.49	$44,836
Purdue University Northwest	Hammond	IN		2.01	$48,000
University of Evansville, The Schroeder Family School of Business Administration	Evansville	IN
University of Notre Dame, Mendoza College of Business	Notre Dame	IN	638.3	5.47	$103,164
University of Southern Indiana, Romain College of Business	Evansville	IN		0.07	$10,696
Valparaiso University, College of Business	Valparaiso	IN	543	0.22	$30,000
Emporia State University, School of Business	Emporia	KS	472	1.87	$11,583
Kansas State University, College of Business Administration	Manhattan	KS	510	1.49	$24,914
Pittsburg State University, Gladys A. Kelce College of Business	Pittsburg	KS	490.5	1.35	$11,598
University of Kansas, School of Business	Lawrence	KS		2.14	$33,988
Washburn University, Washburn School of Business	Topeka	KS		1.39
Wichita State University, W. Frank Barton School of Business	Wichita	KS	485
Bellarmine University, W. Fielding Rubel School of Business	Louisville	KY	433	3.7
Eastern Kentucky University, College of Business and Technology	Richmond	KY	475	0.38	$15,750
Morehead State University, College of Business and Public Affairs	Morehead	KY		3.34	$17,370
Murray State University, The Arthur J. Bauernfeind College of Business	Murray	KY	499	2.19	$15,090
Northern Kentucky University, Haile/US Bank College of Business	Highland Heights	KY
University of Kentucky, Carol Martin Gatton College of Business and Economics	Lexington	KY		1.57	$33,486
University of Louisville, College of Business	Louisville	KY		0.86	$32,000
Western Kentucky University, Gordon Ford College of Business	Bowling Green	KY	550	0.35	$18,900
Grambling State University, College of Business	Grambling	LA
Louisiana State University, E. J. Ourso College of Business	Baton Rouge	LA	580.8	2.9	$34,400
Louisiana State University in Shreveport, College of Business, Education and Human Development	Shreveport	LA		10.63
Louisiana Tech University, College of Business	Ruston	LA	506.5	2.51	$14,640
Loyola University New Orleans, College of Business	New Orleans	LA		0.77	$41,897
McNeese State University, College of Business	Lake Charles	LA		2.13	$17,745
Nicholls State University, College of Business Administration	Thibodaux	LA	504	0.37
Northwestern State University of Louisiana, School of Business	Natchitoches	LA
Southeastern Louisiana University, College of Business	Hammond	LA	452	1.79	$18,008
Southern University and A&M College, College of Business	Baton Rouge	LA	400
Southern University at New Orleans, College of Business and Public Administration	New Orleans	LA		3.66
Tulane University, A. B. Freeman School of Business	New Orleans	LA	653	7.61	$109,378
University of Louisiana at Lafayette, B. I. Moody, III College of Business Administration	Lafayette	LA
University of Louisiana at Monroe, College of Business and Social Sciences	Monroe	LA	540	0.72	$16,915
University of New Orleans, College of Business Administration	New Orleans	LA	431.5	2.87	$21,438
Babson College, F.W. Olin Graduate School	Babson Park	MA	624.3	2.74	$106,510
Bentley University	Waltham	MA	604.1	3.44	$76,945
Boston College, Wallace E. Carroll School of Management	Chestnut Hill	MA	690	2.41	$91,974
Boston University, Questrom School of Business	Boston	MA	691	2.98	$103,837
Brandeis University, International Business School	Waltham	MA	714	9.07	$98,962
Clark University, Graduate School of Management	Worcester	MA	599.5	8.88	$67,568
Harvard University, Harvard Business School	Boston	MA
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT Sloan School of Management	Cambridge	MA
Northeastern University, D’Amore-McKim School of Business	Boston	MA	587.7	1.59	$90,090
Simmons College, School of Management	Boston	MA
Stonehill College, Leo J. Meehan School of Business	Easton	MA
Suffolk University, Sawyer Business School	Boston	MA	573.3	2.09	$68,149
University of Massachusetts Amherst, Isenberg School of Management	Amherst	MA		0.84	$31,226
University of Massachusetts Boston, College of Management	Boston	MA	533.6	3.21	$68,872
University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, Charlton College of Business	North Dartmouth	MA
University of Massachusetts Lowell, Manning School of Business	Lowell	MA		1.3	$29,358
Western New England University, College of Business	Springfield	MA
Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Robert A. Foisie School of Business	Worcester	MA	579	5.54	$67,584
Frostburg State University, College of Business	Frostburg	MD		0.69	$18,180
Johns Hopkins Carey Business School	Baltimore	MD	664.5	9.29	$112,700
Loyola University Maryland, Sellinger School of Business and Management	Baltimore	MD		1.22	$58,000
Morgan State University, Earl G. Graves School of Business and Management	Baltimore	MD
Salisbury University, Franklin P. Perdue School of Business	Salisbury	MD		0.6	$13,440
Towson University, College of Business and Economics	Towson	MD	492	0.29
University of Baltimore, Robert G. Merrick School of Business	Baltimore	MD	499	1.58
University of Maryland Eastern Shore, School of Business and Technology	Princess Anne	MD
University of Maryland, Robert H. Smith School of Business	College Park	MD	660.8	7.64	$91,852
University of Maine, The Maine Business School	Orono	ME	546	1.57	$11,732
University of Southern Maine, College of Management and Human Service	Portland	ME	555	0.67
Central Michigan University, College of Business Administration	Mount Pleasant	MI		2.29	$19,728
Eastern Michigan University, College of Business	Ypsilanti	MI	494.7	1.23
Grand Valley State University, Seidman College of Business	Grand Rapids	MI	545.3	1.2
Michigan State University, The Eli Broad College of Business	East Lansing	MI	608	2.88	$60,038
Michigan Technological University, School of Business and Economics	Houghton	MI	521	1.58	$32,838
Northern Michigan University, College of Business	Marquette	MI	505	0.83	$23,818
Oakland University, School of Business Administration	Rochester	MI		1.65	$32,676
Saginaw Valley State University, College of Business and Management	University Center	MI		0.76	$21,144
University of Detroit Mercy, College of Business Administration	Detroit	MI		2.03	$55,332
The University of Michigan, Stephen M. Ross School of Business	Ann Arbor	MI	695.3	6.47	$119,357
The University of Michigan-Dearborn, College of Business	Dearborn	MI	573.8	1.94	$41,136
The University of Michigan-Flint, School of Management	Flint	MI	524.6	0.67	$29,559
Wayne State University, Mike Ilitch School of Business	Detroit	MI	508.7	3.05	$28,593
Western Michigan University, Haworth College of Business	Kalamazoo	MI	525	0.69	$21,814
Minnesota State University Moorhead, College of Business and Innovation	Moorhead	MN
Minnesota State University, Mankato, College of Business	Mankato	MN		0.32
St. Cloud State University, Herberger Business School	Saint Cloud	MN		0.35	$22,560
University of Minnesota Duluth, Labovitz School of Business and Economics	Duluth	MN
University of Minnesota, Carlson School of Management	Minneapolis	MN		3.42	$76,817
University of St. Thomas-Minnesota, Opus College of Business	Minneapolis	MN	505	0.63	$68,720
Winona State University, College of Business	Winona	MN
Drury University, Breech School of Business Administration and Economics	Springfield	MO	520	1.8	$22,045
Missouri State University, College of Business Administration	Springfield	MO	565	3.74	$11,819
Missouri University of Science and Technology	Rolla	MO	622.5	3.2	$25,766
Missouri Western State University, Steven L. Craig School of Business	St. Joseph	MO		0.99
Rockhurst University, Helzberg School of Management	Kansas City	MO	531.3	3.79
Saint Louis University, John Cook School of Business	St. Louis	MO	566.8	3.55	$56,660
Southeast Missouri State University, Donald L. Harrison College of Business	Cape Girardeau	MO
Truman State University, School of Business	Kirksville	MO	590	1.24
University of Central Missouri, Harmon College of Business and Professional Studies	Warrensburg	MO		14.19	$21,000
University of Missouri, Robert J. Trulaske, Sr. College of Business	Columbia	MO	645	3.86	$29,630
University of Missouri-Kansas City, Henry W. Bloch School of Management	Kansas City	MO		2.34	$61,500
University of Missouri-St. Louis, College of Business Administration	St. Louis	MO	482.5	2.16	$24,608
Washington University in St. Louis, Olin Business School	St. Louis	MO		5.48	$110,800
Jackson State University, College of Business	Jackson	MS
Millsaps College, Else School of Management	Jackson	MS		3.9	$29,940
Mississippi State University, College of Business	Mississippi State	MS		3.36	$10,909
The University of Mississippi, School of Business Administration	Oxford	MS	576	0.69	$19,163
University of Southern Mississippi, College of Business	Hattiesburg	MS	439.3	1.63	$14,008
Montana State University, College of Business	Bozeman	MT	439	0.56
Montana State University-Billings, College of Business	Billings	MT
University of Montana, College of Business	Missoula	MT	531.7	4.45	$9,271
Appalachian State University, Walker College of Business	Boone	NC	510	1.28	$19,981
Duke University, The Fuqua School of Business	Durham	NC	660.3	13.79	$126,032
East Carolina University, College of Business	Greenville	NC	514	1.98	$23,718
Elizabeth City State University, Walter R. Davis School of Business and Economics	Elizabeth City	NC
Elon University, Martha and Spencer Love School of Business	Elon	NC	587.5
Fayetteville State University, School of Business and Economics	Fayetteville	NC
Meredith College, School of Business	Raleigh	NC		4.62	$31,185
North Carolina A&T State University, College of Business and Economics	Greensboro	NC
North Carolina Central University, School of Business	Durham	NC		1.84	$21,192
North Carolina State University, Poole College of Management	Raleigh	NC	557	2.72	$50,303
Queens University of Charlotte, McColl School of Business	Charlotte	NC
The University of North Carolina at Asheville, Department of Management and Accountancy	Asheville	NC
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Kenan-Flagler Business School	Chapel Hill	NC	673.5	5.6	$86,212
University of North Carolina at Charlotte, The Belk College of Business	Charlotte	NC	610	5.99	$19,917
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Joseph M. Bryan School of Business and Economics	Greensboro	NC	576	1.36	$25,521
The University of North Carolina at Pembroke, School of Business	Pembroke	NC		0.82	$14,730
University of North Carolina Wilmington, Cameron School of Business	Wilmington	NC		1.5	$15,284
Wake Forest University, Schools of Business	Winston-Salem	NC	638	9.15	$76,830
Western Carolina University, College of Business	Cullowhee	NC	438.7	1.07	$15,930
Winston-Salem State University, School of Business and Economics	Winston-Salem	NC	334	1.32
North Dakota State University, College of Business	Fargo	ND		2.21	$13,270
The University of North Dakota, College of Business and Public Administration	Grand Forks	ND	586	0.5	$12,296
Creighton University, Heider College of Business	Omaha	NE	522.6
University of Nebraska at Kearney, College of Business and Technology	Kearney	NE		0.23	$8,725
University of Nebraska at Omaha, College of Business Administration	Omaha	NE	617	1.22
University of Nebraska-Lincoln, College of Business	Lincoln	NE	585.7	0.91
Dartmouth College, Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth	Hanover	NH
University of New Hampshire, Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics	Durham	NH	552	0.47	$33,080
The College of New Jersey, School of Business	Ewing	NJ
Fairleigh Dickinson University, Silberman College of Business	Teaneck	NJ		5.52	$62,648
Monmouth University, Leon Hess Business School	West Long Branch	NJ	463	1.43	$51,920
Montclair State University, School of Business	Montclair	NJ
New Jersey Institute of Technology, School of Management	Newark	NJ	511.5	2.6	$43,628
Ramapo College of New Jersey, Anisfield School of Business	Mahwah	NJ		1.57	$46,137
Rider University, College of Business Administration	Lawrenceville	NJ	458	0.96	$35,190
Rowan University, Rohrer College of Business	Glassboro	NJ
Rutgers-The State University of New Jersey-Camden, Rutgers School of Business	Camden	NJ	545.7	7.34	$45,852
Rutgers-The State University of New Jersey-Newark/New Brunswick, Rutgers Business School	Newark	NJ	596.7	2.64	$56,987
Seton Hall University, Stillman School of Business	South Orange	NJ	522.7	1.76
Stevens Institute of Technology, School of Business	Hoboken	NJ	604.3	12.45	$69,028
Stockton University, School of Business	Galloway	NJ	460
William Paterson University, Cotsakos College of Business	Wayne	NJ		0.87	$33,024
New Mexico State University, College of Business	Las Cruces	NM		2.95	$9,882
The University of New Mexico, The Robert O. Anderson School of Management	Albuquerque	NM
University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Lee Business School	Las Vegas	NV
University of Nevada, Reno, College of Business Administration	Reno	NV	503	1.67
Adelphi University, Robert B. Willumstad School of Business	Garden City	NY	450	2.99	$60,040
Alfred University, College of Business	Alfred	NY		2.59	$38,020
Baruch College-The City University of New York, The Zicklin School of Business	New York	NY	628.9	0.52	$34,518
Binghamton University, State University of New York, School of Management	Binghamton	NY
Canisius College, Richard J. Wehle School of Business	Buffalo	NY	480	3.55	$40,668
Clarkson University, David D. Reh School of Business	Potsdam	NY	537	3.19	$50,050
Columbia University, Columbia Business School	New York	NY
Cornell University, College of Business	Ithaca	NY
Fordham University, Gabelli School of Business	Bronx	NY	609.6	5.93	$82,344
Hofstra University, Frank G. Zarb School of Business	Hempstead	NY	551.5	1.39	$58,415
Iona College, Hagan School of Business	New Rochelle	NY		2.42	$63,154
Ithaca College, School of Business	Ithaca	NY		0.57	$34,236
Le Moyne College, Madden School of Business at LeMoyne	Syracuse	NY	473.3	1.56	$34,134
Long Island University-Post Campus, College of Management	Brookville	NY
Manhattan College, School of Business	Riverdale	NY		1.57	$40,630
Marist College, School of Management	Poughkeepsie	NY
New York Institute of Technology, School of Management	Old Westbury	NY
New York University, Leonard N. Stern School of Business	New York	NY
Niagara University, College of Business Administration	Niagara University	NY		5.64	$48,330
Pace University, Lubin School of Business	New York	NY	521.3	3.84	$48,590
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Lally School of Management	Troy	NY	669	6.05	$75,951
Rochester Institute of Technology, Saunders College of Business	Rochester	NY	565	4.28	$85,918
Siena College, School of Business	Loudonville	NY		0.78
St. Bonaventure University, School of Business	St. Bonaventure	NY		2.29	$26,388
St. John Fisher College, School of Business	Rochester	NY	500	1.78	$31,800
St. John’s University, The Peter J. Tobin College of Business	Queens	NY	548.1	3.32	$43,160
State University of New York at Geneseo, School of Business	Geneseo	NY	560	0.67
State University of New York at New Paltz, School of Business	New Paltz	NY	498	2.19	$21,702
State University of New York at Oswego, School of Business	Oswego	NY		2.04	$25,297
State University of New York College at Brockport, School of Business and Management	Brockport	NY		0.42
State University of New York College at Oneonta, School of Economics and Business	Oneonta	NY
State University of New York College at Plattsburgh, School of Business and Economics	Plattsburgh	NY
State University of New York Polytechnic Institute, College of Business Management	Utica	NY		2.92	$31,434
Syracuse University, The Martin J. Whitman School of Management	Syracuse	NY
University at Albany, State University of New York, School of Business	Albany	NY	527.5	3.39	$32,034
University at Buffalo, State University of New York, School of Management	Buffalo	NY	583.2	5.83	$35,631
University of Rochester, William E. Simon Graduate School of Business	Rochester	NY	680.8	9.18	$108,551
Yeshiva University, Sy Syms School of Business	New York	NY		2.12
Bowling Green State University, College of Business Administration	Bowling Green	OH	494	1.5	$17,493
Case Western Reserve University, Weatherhead School of Management	Cleveland	OH	677.8	10.03	$76,500
Cleveland State University, Ahuja College of Business	Cleveland	OH	488	3.2	$18,328
John Carroll University, John M. and Mary Jo Boler School of Business	University Heights	OH	607.5	1.56	$28,215
Kent State University, College of Business Administration	Kent	OH	530	1.23	$30,680
Farmer School of Business, Miami University	Oxford	OH	606.5	0.21
Ohio Northern University, College of Business Administration	Ada	OH	565	1.55
The Ohio State University, Max M. Fisher College of Business	Columbus	OH	647	3.41	$62,278
Ohio University, College of Business	Athens	OH
The University of Akron, College of Business Administration & School of Accountancy	Akron	OH	525.3	0.29	$33,000
University of Cincinnati, Carl H. Lindner College of Business	Cincinnati	OH	588	2.72	$31,437
University of Dayton, School of Business Administration	Dayton	OH	540
University of Toledo, College of Business and Innovation	Toledo	OH	492	6.18	$21,823
Wright State University, Raj Soin College of Business	Dayton	OH		5.86	$20,214
Xavier University, Williams College of Business	Cincinnati	OH	556.7	1.99	$31,161
Youngstown State University, The Warren P. Williamson, Jr. College of Business Administration	Youngstown	OH
Oklahoma City University, Meinders School of Business	Oklahoma City	OK		1.01	$25,380
Oklahoma State University, Spears School of Business	Stillwater	OK	561	2.16	$16,921
Southeastern Oklahoma State University, John Massey School of Business	Durant	OK		2.56	$11,880
University of Oklahoma, Michael F. Price College of Business	Norman	OK	606.4	2.06	$22,844
The University of Tulsa, Collins College of Business	Tulsa	OK	595.5	3.75	$44,978
Oregon State University, College of Business	Corvallis	OR	605.5	2.08	$21,063
Portland State University, School of Business Administration	Portland	OR	504.7	0.54	$45,120
University of Oregon, Charles H. Lundquist College of Business	Eugene	OR	593	3.08	$61,933
University of Portland, Dr. Robert B. Pamplin, Jr. School of Business Administration	Portland	OR	680	1.24	$51,630
Willamette University, Atkinson Graduate School of Management	Salem	OR	547	7.08	$80,210
Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, College of Business	Bloomsburg	PA		0.73	$21,248
Bucknell University, College of Management	Lewisburg	PA
Carnegie Mellon University, Tepper School of Business	Pittsburgh	PA	704	8.85	$124,460
Clarion University of Pennsylvania, College of Business Administration and Information Sciences	Clarion	PA	455	7.13	$22,946
Drexel University, Bennett S. LeBow College of Business	Philadelphia	PA	562.3	2.75	$64,000
Duquesne University, A.J. Palumbo School of Business Administration	Pittsburgh	PA	536.7	1.44	$54,831
Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Eberly College of Business and Information Technology	Indiana	PA
King’s College, The William G. McGowan School of Business	Wilkes-Barre	PA
Kutztown University, College of Business	Kutztown	PA	451	0.43	$17,229
La Salle University, School of Business	Philadelphia	PA		7.06	$45,000
Lehigh University, College of Business and Economics	Bethlehem	PA	690.3	1.66	$40,535
The Pennsylvania State University, Smeal College of Business	University Park	PA	616.5	5.31	$25,436
The Pennsylvania State University at Erie The Behrend College, Sam and Irene Black School of Business	Erie	PA	530	0.52	$26,220
The Pennsylvania State University at Harrisburg, School of Business Administration	Middletown	PA	600	1.09	$41,312
The Pennsylvania State University Great Valley School of Graduate Professional Studies	Malvern	PA	587	1.53	$44,580
Robert Morris University, School of Business	Moon Township	PA	509
Saint Joseph’s University, Erivan K. Haub School of Business	Philadelphia	PA		3.03	$33,099
Shippensburg University, John L. Grove College of Business	Shippensburg	PA		5.44	$18,720
Susquehanna University, Sigmund Weis School of Business	Selinsgrove	PA
Temple University, The Fox School of Business	Philadelphia	PA	562	3.28	$65,116
University of Pennsylvania, The Wharton School	Philadelphia	PA
University of Pittsburgh, The Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business	Pittsburgh	PA	626.1	3.41	$51,028
University of Scranton, The Arthur J. Kania School of Management	Scranton	PA	535	1.6	$34,940
Villanova University, Villanova School of Business	Villanova	PA	610.5	0.72
West Chester University, College of Business and Public Affairs	West Chester	PA	535		$16,719
Widener University, School of Business Administration	Chester	PA		5.09	$33,056
Universidad del Turabo, School of Business and Entrepreneurship	Turabo	PR
University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras, College of Business Administration	San Juan	PR	525	2.18	$7,611
Bryant University, School of Business	Smithfield	RI
Providence College, School of Business	Providence	RI
Roger Williams University, Gabelli School of Business	Bristol	RI
The University of Rhode Island, College of Business Administration	Kingston	RI
The Citadel, Tommy and Victoria Baker School of Business	Charleston	SC	489	0.66	$27,312
Clemson University, College of Business and Behavioral Science	Clemson	SC	544.5	3.02	$37,332
Coastal Carolina University, E. Craig Wall Sr. College of Business Administration	Conway	SC	397.5	0.84	$16,800
College of Charleston, School of Business	Charleston	SC	558.5	0.97	$29,945
Francis Marion University, School of Business	Florence	SC		1.87	$16,407
Lander University, College of Business	Greenwood	SC
South Carolina State University, College of Business and Applied Professional Sciences	Orangeburg	SC
University of South Carolina, Darla Moore School of Business	Columbia	SC	616	1.51	$43,342
University of South Carolina Aiken, School of Business Administration	Aiken	SC	635	0.83
University of South Carolina Upstate, George Dean Johnson, Jr. College of Business and Economics	Spartanburg	SC
Winthrop University, College of Business Administration	Rock Hill	SC	484		$23,265
Black Hills State University, College of Business and Natural Sciences	Spearfish	SD
University of South Dakota, Beacom School of Business	Vermillion	SD	531.1	2.11	$13,462
Belmont University, College of Business Administration	Nashville	TN
East Tennessee State University, College of Business and Technology	Johnson City	TN	530	1.37	$19,822
Middle Tennessee State University, Jennings A. Jones College of Business	Murfreesboro	TN		3.1	$11,420
Tennessee State University, College of Business	Nashville	TN		2.58	$17,424
Tennessee Technological University, College of Business	Cookeville	TN	479	1.29	$18,660
Union University, McAfee School of Business Administration	Jackson	TN	500	8.72	$20,700
The University of Memphis, Fogelman College of Business and Economics	Memphis	TN		2.28	$22,924
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, School of Business	Chattanooga	TN	522.3		$19,752
University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Haslam College of Business	Knoxville	TN	588.6	3.97	$39,787
University of Tennessee at Martin, College of Business and Global Affairs	Martin	TN	494	0.78	$20,976
Vanderbilt University, Owen Graduate School of Management	Nashville	TN	647.8	8.34	$112,902
Abilene Christian University, College of Business Administration	Abilene	TX		3.46	$25,200
Baylor University, Hankamer School of Business	Waco	TX	594.8	2.32	$72,650
Lamar University, College of Business	Beaumont	TX	510	1.15	$17,816
Midwestern State University, Dillard College of Business Administration	Wichita Falls	TX	511	0.52	$11,298
Prairie View A&M University, College of Business	Prairie View	TX		5.29
Rice University, Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business	Houston	TX	654	8.54	$114,891
Sam Houston State University, College of Business Administration	Huntsville	TX	526	0.82	$14,271
Southern Methodist University, Edwin L. Cox School of Business	Dallas	TX
St. Mary’s University, Greehey School of Business	San Antonio	TX	521	1.63	$32,014
Stephen F. Austin State University, Nelson Rusche College of Business	Nacogdoches	TX		1.87	$12,854
Texas A&M International University, A.R. Sanchez, Jr. School of Business	Laredo	TX	418	6.32	$9,700
Texas A&M University, Mays Business School	College Station	TX	636.9	5.49	$40,638
Texas A&M University-Commerce, College of Business and Entrepreneurship	Commerce	TX		23.55	$9,742
Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, College of Business	Corpus Christi	TX
Texas Christian University, Neeley School of Business	Fort Worth	TX	601.3	1.53	$98,370
Texas Southern University, Jesse H. Jones School of Business	Houston	TX	334	4.35	$7,556
Texas State University, McCoy College of Business	San Marcos	TX	489.8	1.36	$23,894
Texas Tech University, Rawls College of Business Administration	Lubbock	TX	573.3	5.13	$18,928
Texas Wesleyan University, School of Business Administration and Professional Programs	Fort Worth	TX	465	1.66
Trinity University, School of Business	San Antonio	TX	594	0.43
University of Dallas, Satish & Yasmin Gupta College of Business	Irving	TX		12.35	$37,500
University of Houston, C.T. Bauer College of Business	Houston	TX	566.8	3.15	$40,000
University of Houston-Clear Lake, College of Business	Houston	TX	465		$19,342
University of Houston-Downtown, Davies College of Business	Houston	TX		0.06	$18,088
University of Houston-Victoria, School of Business Administration	Victoria	TX		3.05	$21,484
University of North Texas, College of Business	Denton	TX	533.7	3.16	$16,331
University of St. Thomas-Houston, Cameron School of Business	Houston	TX	421.5
The University of Texas at Arlington, College of Business	Arlington	TX	353		$18,436
The University of Texas at Austin, Red McCombs School of Business	Austin	TX	651.1	8.22	$70,648
The University of Texas at Dallas, Naveen Jindal School of Management	Richardson	TX	599.2	11.77	$39,383
The University of Texas at El Paso, College of Business Administration	El Paso	TX	475.5	4.16	$25,526
The University of Texas at San Antonio, College of Business	San Antonio	TX	550.6	2.66	$17,759
The University of Texas at Tyler, College of Business and Technology	Tyler	TX	566	7.74
The University of Texas of the Permian Basin, College of Business and Engineering	Odessa	TX	422	1.79	$8,347
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Robert C. Vackar College of Business and Entrepreneurship	Brownsville	TX	442	0.73	$12,738
West Texas A&M University, College of Business	Canyon	TX	535	4.6	$16,000
Brigham Young University, Marriott School of Management	Provo	UT	640.5	4.16	$24,620
Southern Utah University, School of Business	Cedar City	UT	497	0.63	$13,680
University of Utah, David Eccles School of Business	Salt Lake City	UT	558.7	9.62	$55,836
Utah State University, Jon M. Huntsman School of Business	Logan	UT		4.18	$28,688
Utah Valley University, Woodbury School of Business	Orem	UT		0.85	$21,678
Weber State University, John B. Goddard School of Business & Economics	Ogden	UT	576.3	1.15	$17,574
Christopher Newport University, Joseph W. Luter, III School of Business	Newport News	VA
College of William and Mary, Raymond A. Mason School of Business	Williamsburg	VA	620.8	6.17	$64,098
George Mason University, School of Business	Fairfax	VA	550.5	3.52
James Madison University, College of Business	Harrisonburg	VA	548	0.55
Longwood University, College of Business and Economics	Farmville	VA		0.27	$20,520
Norfolk State University, School of Business	Norfolk	VA
Old Dominion University, Strome College of Business	Norfolk	VA	535.7	0.54	$20,708
Radford University, College of Business and Economics	Radford	VA	482	0.15	$21,916
Shenandoah University, Harry F. Byrd, Jr. School of Business	Winchester	VA
University of Richmond, Robins School of Business	Richmond	VA	614
University of Virginia-Darden, Darden School of Business	Charlottesville	VA	663.5	11.13	$121,200
University of Virginia-McIntire, McIntire School of Commerce	Charlottesville	VA	664	3.51
Virginia Commonwealth University, School of Business	Richmond	VA		4.35	$20,921
Virginia Military Institute	Lexington	VA
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Pamplin College of Business	Blacksburg	VA	606.7	1.09
Virginia State University, Reginald F. Lewis College of Business	Petersburg	VA
Washington and Lee University, Williams School of Commerce, Economics, and Politics	Lexington	VA
University of Vermont, School of Business Administration	Burlington	VT	589	1.59	$28,804
Central Washington University, College of Business	Ellensburg	WA	640	0.4
Eastern Washington University, College of Business and Public Administration	Spokane	WA	538	0.49	$22,724
Gonzaga University, School of Business Administration	Spokane	WA	566.7	2.38	$32,175
Pacific Lutheran University, School of Business	Tacoma	WA	456.5	3.27	$48,980
Seattle Pacific University, School of Business, Government, and Economics	Seattle	WA	451.3	1.15	$57,456
Seattle University, Albers School of Business and Economics	Seattle	WA	573.3	3.46	$46,680
University of Washington Bothell, School of Business	Bothell	WA	507	0.79
University of Washington Tacoma, Milgard School of Business	Tacoma	WA		1.81
University of Washington, Michael G. Foster School of Business	Seattle	WA	644	2.81	$62,400
Washington State University, Carson College of Business	Pullman	WA	595	5.31	$25,216
Western Washington University, College of Business and Economics	Bellingham	WA	576	0.36	$23,100
Marquette University, College of Business Administration & Graduate School of Management	Milwaukee	WI	590	2.47
University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, College of Business	Oshkosh	WI		0.3	$25,975
University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, College of Business	Eau Claire	WI
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, College of Business Administration	La Crosse	WI		0.12	$10,092
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisconsin School of Business	Madison	WI	659	2.21	$34,617
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Sheldon B. Lubar School of Business	Milwaukee	WI	520	0.59	$28,282
University of Wisconsin-Parkside, School of Business and Technology	Kenosha	WI		0.8	$13,895
University of Wisconsin-River Falls, College of Business and Economics	River Falls	WI		2.28	$36,800
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, School of Business and Economics	Stevens Point	WI
University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, College of Business and Economics	Whitewater	WI	480	6.15	$18,236
Marshall University, Lewis College of Business	Huntington	WV	471.5	4.49	$29,680
West Virginia University, College of Business and Economics	Morgantown	WV	532.5	2.93	$27,972
University of Wyoming, College of Business	Laramie	WY

10 Factors to Consider When Choosing a Business School

Let’s say you graduated from college five or even ten years ago and are working full time at an acceptable job; or maybe you didn’t finish college or always wanted to go and never got the chance due to circumstances that just happened. You are sitting at your desk at work, and there is a new opportunity, but it requires that business degree. Maybe, you are sitting at your desk doing the same unchallenging task each day, but you are receiving correspondence from another department, and the work there seems so much more interesting. You think that you have finally found your calling. The scenarios are endless but what is certain is that you are unfulfilled in your current job or career. Before you choose which school and program may suit your purposes, consider as many facts as you can gather.

1. Will You Consider Part-Time or Full-Time Programs?

If you are in a situation where you could not possibly leave your current position as you pursue your education, you will have no choice but to choose a part-time program. This is not an easy path, even if it is a practical one. Working full time while studying and possibly having other family responsibilities is challenging. You will need the support of your family as well as your employer. Check with your employer to see if it offers an educational assistance program. If so, you may be able to exclude $5250 off certain educational costs from your income.

2. Will You Attend In-Person or Online?

If you have a school nearby and decide on a part-time option, you may decide to attend in-person. Advantages include feeling more a part of a community, better opportunities to ask questions of professors, more on-campus amenities (gym, counseling center, tutoring center), greater separation between school, work, and home. The negatives include the extra commuting time, the stress of taking a course at one time only, and possibly being too tired to take that course at the given time. Be careful when you apply to a school as even some online schools have one or two weeks of residency required. You may need to use your vacation time from work unless your employer agrees to grant you paid leave. Due to the Coronavirus, it is very confusing right now to distinguish between schools that are online all the time and those that have gone online due to the virus. Be careful if you are choosing an online program that it will remain online – even when things are back to normal.

3. Will You Stay Close to Home?

If you decide on a full-time option, will you stay close to home? This obviously depends on your current living situation. Do you have a partner who is working or going to school in your area? Do you take care of a sibling or elderly parent or grandparent in your location? Due to a large number of online schools, it is not necessary to move to an on-campus environment unless you want the benefit of that experience. There are business schools that offer unusual technology centers and other perks that are meant to be utilized in-person. For example, at The University of Chicago Booth School of Business, the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation teachers practical entrepreneurial skills with real-life oriented courses and labs. It is just one of many schools offering international options in worldwide cities – something more to consider when choosing a school. Take the case of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Would you want to miss out on a Research Park that brings students together with business, entrepreneurs, start-ups, and of course, university researchers?

4. What Is the Cost and How Will You Manage It?

Check with your employer to see if it offers an educational assistance program. If so, you may be able to exclude $5250 off certain educational costs from your income. If you have college credit in any subject or completed an undergraduate degree, you may be able to transfer a good number of credits to an undergraduate degree in business. In fact, if you have been working in a business-related field of any kind, you may be able to transfer your real-life experience into college credits towards your new undergraduate business degree. You may receive credit for courses you took at work or present a type of portfolio to show knowledge in a course for a prior learning assessment. It is more difficult to transfer credits to an MBA program except from an earlier graduate business program of some kind. When pursuing an undergraduate business degree, there could be large differences between being an in-state or out-of-state student. You should see what your in-state options are if you want to cut down on costs. However, some of the MBA programs offer the same cost whether you are an in-state or out-of-state student.

5. Will You Have to Take the ACT or SAT or GRE or the GMAT?

Due to the current Coronavirus crisis, many schools are currently waiving the ACT or SAT, and some schools are trying 3-year pilot programs waiving these requirements and considering eliminating them permanently. Other schools have already decided to eliminate the testing requirement as not representative of whether students will succeed. As for the GRE and GMAT, most MBA programs do require one or the other, but always make sure if the GRE is accepted. Further, if you have been working for several years, many schools will consider a request for a waiver of the GRE or GMAT as you are more of a known quantity

6. How Many Credits Will You Need to Get Your Degree?

This is important. The number of credits varies dramatically between programs. Most undergraduate business degrees require a minimum of 120 credits, but some require more. They are split between your core classes and your area of concentration which we will get to later. MBA degrees vary more dramatically. For example, you will need just 35 credits for your Ohio University MBA, but Syracuse University will require 54 credits. In fact, some schools offer a way to get both your undergraduate business degree and your MBA in an abbreviated fashion with fewer credits than if you pursued them separately.

7. How Long Will It Take to Get Your Degree?

This, of course, depends on whether you are going part-time or full-time. However, there are other aspects to consider. Even online, some Universities only allow you to take courses that match the on-campus schedule of resident students. This tends to give you fewer opportunities to earn credits. There may also be limits on how many courses you are permitted to take online at one time. The more periods of time to take courses, the more courses you generally should be able to take. Of course, keep in mind that with a more intensive six or eight-week “semester,” the courses will be concentrated and require extreme amounts of study and work.

8. What Is Your Goal?

This is one of the harder questions. Now that you have been working, is there an area you are eyeing to study? Do you plan to remain with your current employer and move to a different department when a job opens? Have you been working in the health care industry, and now want to move into health care administration with an MBA in that concentration? Do you realize that you will get no further salary-wise without completing your undergraduate degree? Do you want a more “concrete” profession such as accounting or are you striving to become a Certified Financial Planner? The areas of concentration are endless; some schools have over 20 with most schools having under 10. Some of the most common concentrations are finance, marketing, accounting, operations, entrepreneurship, but no matter what your choice, there is a school for that choice!

9. When Do You Apply?

Since you probably have been out of school awhile, it would be good to send away for copies of your transcripts from all your college education – just don’t open them. Applications may have to mimic resident students – even if you are online. In many cases, rolling admissions exist, and you apply either at many different times during the year or any time during the year. Then, in many cases, your application is considered as soon as it is received. Many schools have waived the application cost in recent years.

10. What Else Can Help Me Decide What to Do?

There are many ranking services available. If you are only considering U.S. schools, you can use U.S. News and World Report rankings and the Princeton Review for undergraduate schools as well as graduate schools. To consider world rankings for MBA programs, you can also consider the Financial Times or The Economist, or Bloomberg Businessweek rankings. If you wish to heavily focus on the return on investment, look at the Forbes MBA Rankings. Only one question is considered – is the MBA worth it?

Even if you go to through this exercise, you will still have to decide what is important to you. Will you plunge headlong into a full-time on-campus program, or will you try just one course online in your desired field and then decide? A lot of that decision will depend on your personal family and financial circumstances. However, with dedication and a spirited attitude, you can find a way to succeed at a career that you genuinely want and that will be worth the short term sacrifices that you must undertake.

Understanding Business School Accreditation

Accreditation has a long history in American institutions of higher learning dating back to the onset of ensuring accountability on behalf of the general public. Originally broken into six regional accrediting organizations, the scope has expanded to include dozens of accrediting agencies moving beyond regional norms to include programmatic and international benchmarks.

What is Accreditation?

Accreditation is another word for quality assurance. It is a voluntary process undertaken by institutions of higher education, or programs within the academic unit, that involves an independent accrediting body appraising the educational goals, activities, and/or outcomes of a university or program. It is both a time-intensive and cost-intensive process as institutions pay accreditors, usually over the course of several weeks, to evaluate their academic standards. This meticulous evaluation process is extensive and typically includes the following:

Research support, library resources, and administrative scale
Student satisfaction and alumni outcomes
Graduation, enrollment, and retention rates
Faculty and staff qualifications, educational attainment, and expertise

A university must be approved by at least one federally recognized accreditation agency for students to be eligible for federal aid. It is also required before alumni can complete licensing exams such as a teaching certificate. Accreditation is an integral part of the higher learning experience and supports academic institutions and students alike.

Institutional v. Programmatic Accreditation

Accreditation is separated into two categories: institutional and programmatic. Institutional accreditation affirms the entire university or college adheres to the qualifications of its accrediting body. On the other hand, programmatic accreditation speaks to a much more in-depth analysis of a professional or specialized program within the institution.
Institutional accreditation is further divided into two subcategories, regional and national accreditors, each with unique standards based on common practices. Additionally, professional and post-secondary institutions that may otherwise be considered program-specific operate under the purview of institutional accrediting bodies since they function as free-standing units.

For business schools, institutional accreditation usually reigns supreme. Despite programmatic accreditation, some business programs see it as insufficient without coinciding institutional accreditation.
Key Business Accreditors

AACSB (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business)

Founded in 1916, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business is one of the oldest and most studied accreditation bodies for business schools both domestically and internationally. With a list of 15 business accreditation metrics—strategic management and innovation; students, faculty, and professional staff; academic and professional engagement; and learning and teaching—and a supplemental six accounting standards, the AACSB is a constantly evolving accrediting agency shaping its standards to meet modern expectations. Upon fulfilling the weeks-long process, institutions undergo a review procedure every five years to certify standards are properly maintained. Business schools that boast AACSB accreditation are, generally, sought after due to the rigor of the accreditation process and legacy of the accrediting agency. Only 25 percent of U.S. business schools meet AACSB standards for accreditation.

ACBSP (Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs)

The Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs was the first agency to offer accreditation at every educational level in the U.S. While relatively new, the ACBSP has over 1,200 member campuses across 11 geographic regions and helps programs keep up-to-date with industry standards as a learning-outcome focused agency. The ACBSP adheres to the public-private Baldrige Education Criteria for Performance Excellence, which offers additional organizational criteria by evaluating faculty credentials, academic support, strategic planning, and leadership for business schools seeking an ACBSP accreditation. Universities undergo a quality assurance review every two years, but accreditation is awarded on a 10-year basis.

IACBE (International Accreditation Council for Business Education)

The newest accrediting body, the International Accreditation Council for Business Education was founded in 1997 and is a relatively large accreditor with more than 2,000 business programs around the world. Created to prioritize the relationship between an institution’s mission and student success, the IACBE is a favorite among student-focused universities and programs. Offering more lenient criteria, most small business schools have an IACBE accreditation compared to the more coveted AACSB or even ACBSP. Specializing in alumni outcomes, the IACBE largely evaluates student performance as an outcomes-based programmatic accreditor.

AMBA (Association of MBAs)

As its name suggests, the Associate of MBAs focuses on graduate-level business programs: MBA, MBM, DBA, and international business. It is considered the global standard for high-quality post-graduate business programs and is one of the few programmatic business accreditors. Complete with a thorough review process, programs awarded with the distinction of an AMBA accreditation are often considered global leaders in their respective fields.

EQUIS (EFMD Quality Improvement System)

The EFMD Quality Improvement System is known as the European standard in international business schools as a subsidiary of the European Foundation for Management Development. This highly prestigious accreditor ensures international excellence with its 10-point criteria that comprehensively appraises programs and offers a global merit system for business institutions. Primarily focused on management development, EQUIS cements its status as a global juggernaut with main offices in Hong Kong, Switzerland, Belgium, and the U.S. Along with the AMBA and AACSB, the EQUIS is 1/3 of the coveted Triple Accreditation honor awarded to less than 1 percent of business schools. Each of these accrediting bodies guarantees a degree of excellence in different areas and denotes the business world’s crème of the crop.

Conclusion – Accreditation determines the acceptability of transfer credit based on the minimum standards of a university or program’s accrediting body. Most importantly, it relays to students and their families an institution’s level of commitment to providing a rigorous learning environment and its capacity to produce adept business leaders, entrepreneurs, and scholars ready to excel in their respective fields of study.

While accreditation is not a necessity for an institution or program, completing a degree from an accredited institution can open doors to graduate and doctoral programs or otherwise inaccessible job opportunities. Students are encouraged to seek out accredited business programs and contact institutions for information on their accreditation status.

Ranking Business School Programs

1. U.S. News and World Report Rankings of Best Business Schools

477 MBA programs accredited by the ASCSB s were surveyed in the Fall of 2019 and early 2020. Only 364 responded. Out of those 364, only 131 schools provided sufficient data to calculate rankings.

Factors making up the ratings are: Quality Assessment, Placement Success, Mean Starting Salary and Bonus, Student Selectivity, and Acceptance Rate.

Specialty rankings, including executive MBA programs, are only based on ratings by directors and business school deans of accredited MBA programs from the surveyed schools. They could nominate a maximum of 15 programs for excellence in each of the specialty areas. Business Schools are then ranked in descending order and included only if they have at least 7 or more nominations.

All 477 schools do appear in the directory with data provided by schools and school profile pages. All unranked schools receive an N.A. and are listed alphabetically. Only the top 3/4s of the ranked schools actually get numerically ranked.

Pros: Multiple types of MBA programs are ranked. If schools fail to provide data, the school still appears in the directory.

Cons: U.S. only programs; dependent on schools filling out surveys and less than one-third qualified for rankings; specialty programs based solely on ratings by directors and business school deans.

2. Financial Times MBA Rankings

The Financial Times ranks the world’s 100 top full-time MBA programs. For 2019 rankings, 150 schools participated. All schools must be accredited either by Equis or the AACSB.

Alumni are surveyed three years after completion; a minimum of 20% of alumni need respond to even enter the ranking calculations.

There are 20 different criteria with alumni contributing 8 of these which contribute 61% of the total weight. 29% comes from 11 other criteria calculated from school data. KPMG does an audit of a certain number of schools each year. The final 10% comes from the research rank.

Alumni criteria is actually based on data collected over three years with the latest year accounting for 50% and the two earlier years accounting for 25%. Two of the criteria are the alumni’s average income 3 years after graduation (20%) as well as salary increases compared with his/her pre-MBA salary (20%). Non-profit and public sector workers and full time students are not included.

A value for the money for each school is done by taking the average alumni salary from the above and dividing it by the total MBA cost. (3%)

Career services are weighted at 3%, Employment at 3 months at 2%, the percentage of female faculty at 2%, female students at 2% plus there are additional criteria.

Additional information is collected from the schools themselves including staff diversity and gender and nationality. Schools that have a 50-50 gender division receive the highest scores for that factor.

For the research rank, the number of articles by full-time faculty in 50 recognized publications is analyzed.

The newest category is Corporate Social Responsibility.

Pros: Looks at the world’s top 100 full time programs; 61% of ranking comes from alumni with 29% from school data and 10% from research. An audit is done. Excludes non-profit and public sector workers when looking at salaries of alumni.

Cons: Not clear how many world programs are surveyed; only 150 schools participated in the survey.

3. Academic Ranking of World Universities by the ShanghaiRanking Consultancy

Uses broader subject fields: Economics/Business.

This service uses rankings done by surveying professors from the top universities in the world. The participants’ names and institutions are published sans their answers.

There are two sets of questions. First, list the top tier journals in their main subject. Then, list the most “influential and credible” international awards in those subjects.

To qualify as a top journal, it must have more than 1 vote in one subject and have 50% or more votes in one subject. To qualify as a Top Award, an award must have more than 1 vote in one subject as well as 50% of more votes in one subject. A conference must have more than one vote to be a Top Conference.

454 professors only have participated in this survey by April of 2019.

To rank the universities, there are 6 objective factors such as the number of alumni and staff winning Nobel and Fields Medals, highly cited researched articles as selected by Clarivate Analytics, articles published in Nature and Science, articles indexed in the Science Citation Index and its expanded index as well as per capita performance of the school are considered. Over 1800 universities are ranked each year with the top 1000 published.

Pros: If a student is interested in research, this is the most research laden ranking. Over 1800 universities are actually ranked, and the top 1000 are published.

Cons: Only research related factors are considered; it is actually even narrower as it is based on winning top prestigious awards and published articles only in selected publications.

4. The Economist MBA Rankings

Data was collected in spring of 2019 by using two surveys: one to be completed by schools covering quantitative data such as graduates’ salaries, GMATS, and the number of registered alumni with 80% of the ranking weight and 20% from a qualitative survey completed by current MBA students and those who just graduated. They must rate the faculty, facilities, and career services and provide their salary details. There must be at least a 25% response rate or 50 students/alumni (the lower of) to even be included.

There was a verification check of data and auditing of questionnaires. There is a history built-in using weighted data from 2019 (50%), 2018 (30%) and 2017 (20%). Each business school receives a unique score. If differences between schools are slight, they are grouped together although the “tie” method is not used.

Factors considered are 35% for career opportunities; 35% for personal development/educational experience which is broken into faculty quality ranking at about 25% of that total, student quality at 25%, student diversity at 25% and educational experience at 25%.; 20% for increases in salary; and 10% for the potential to network.

Pros: World MBA programs are ranked; heavy quantitative data is used; data is audited.

Cons: Very little weight is given to qualitative data; only current MBA students and those who just graduated fill out surveys opposed to those from multiple years.

5. The Forbes MBA Rankings

This ranks the best business schools around the world. There is only one question is considered: Is the MBA worth it?

The only factor used is the median return on investment achieved by graduates back to 2014. Over 100 are analyzed with over 17,500 alumni surveyed looking at pre and post MBA comp, location, and career choice. There was a 25% response rate. If less than 15% of alumni responded, the school was eliminated. Also, if a school had a negative ROI after 5 years, it was eliminated.

A comparison of alumni salaries within 5 years out of MBA school with opportunity cost (two years without comp) is reviewed. The assumption is that comp would increase half as fast as post-MBA salary increases without the benefit of the MBA. For exchange rates, a 5-year average is used. Earnings gains are also discounted for the time value of money Discounted tuition for in-state rates and scholarships and non-loan financial aid is included.

Pros: If a student is laser-focused on whether an MBA is financially worthwhile, this may be the best choice.

Cons: There are so many other factors that usually go into deciding whether to get an MBA and where to go to get one that this system has limited use. It is relying on alumni data alone; if a school’s alumni don’t respond in sufficient numbers, the school will not even appear on the list.

6. Bloomberg Businessweek Rankings

Rankings are based on the premise that graduating students, recent alumni, and MBA recruiters are the key. Ratings are based on over 26,804 surveys of those three groups and employment data provided by the schools. There are four indices: “Compensation, Learning, Networking, and Entrepreneurship.”

Which factors matter the most are based on the survey takers’ opinions. Questions are mapped to one of the indices. Data was collected in 2019 for schools one might attend in 2020.

Each MBA program has a page highlighting school-specific data that was collected. An algorithm is used to find the most representative comments. Improvements this year include: the top 5 nationalities, movement of the school from the previous year, and whether a school certifies that it is following CSEA employment data standards and subject to CPA review. Instead of global rankings, there are regional pages for Europe, Asia, and Canada, and the U.S. Earnings receive 37.3% weight, Networking 25.7%, Learning 21.3%, and Entrepreneurship 15.7%.

On the surveys, there was a question to reveal the best thing about the MBA program. Using an algorithm, representative comments were found and published.

Pros: Uses mixed data from three different groups: graduating students, recent alumni, and recruiters; use of regional rankings which may make it less daunting if a future student is set on a region.

Cons: Not comparing all of the world schools against each other by using regions; not looking at further out alumni.

7. Princeton Review’s Best MBA Programs

There are two groups: Best on-campus MBA programs in 18 categories with the top 10 schools in each category as well as the top 25 online MBA programs. For on-campus, 17/18 of the lists either incorporate or are totally based on students’ opinions. The list “Toughest to Get Into” is based only on administration data. The 18 categories include such titles as “Best Classroom Experience”, “Best Career prospects”, “Best professors” and even “Best Green MBA” and “Greatest Resources for Women”. There are also divisions based on concentration fields such as finance and human resources. To qualify for the online MBA Ranking list, a school must offer the “majority of their program of study online.” It also looks at students surveys and institutional data. The students evaluate 30 unique fields and rate faculty, career pre, fellow students, and other areas.

The 2020 list is based on surveys from 26,700 students at 358 school as well as the administrators. The data surveyed covered the 2016-17, 2017-18, and 2018-2019 academic years. There were more than 60 data points with the areas divided between “academics, selectivity, faculty, technical platforms, and career outcomes.” Only those schools who participated were considered.

Pros: On-line MBA programs are ranked which is unusual. Schools are ranked in 18 different categories which can help potential students pinpoint their passion. Extensive student data is used. “Also, divisions based on concentration fields.
Cons: 17/18 of the on-campus program categories come solely from students’ opinions. This could lead to a skewed result.

8. Top Universities in the World

For these rankings, world programs are considered. In 2020, 240 programs were ranked and many more were analyzed. Data collected in early 2019 used three different surveys: employer, academic, and those completed by business schools. If a school doesn’t provide all the data, data from the other surveys as well as publicly available data is used to make an accurate estimate.

The school survey includes data such as salaries and class profiles. Alumni were not surveyed. Schools provided career progression info on their alumni. In most cases, both the 2018 graduation class and the incoming 2018 class were considered. The programs had to be mainly on-campus and full time to be counted with at least 10 students in a class. A majority of the indicators must be included on the survey response.

Employability ranked at 40%, Entrepreneurship and Alumni Outcomes at 15%, ROI at 20%, Thought Leadership at 15%, and Class & Faculty Diversity at 10%.

Employability is based on employers stating which schools they hire from. Employers across all sectors and industries participate. Also looked at are the employment rate and what happens at three months post-graduation.

Entrepreneurship & Alumni Outcome is determined by looking at over 60,000 CEO’s, execs, and board members at the largest world companies. This is then combined with the percentage of students from each program who have set up their own business.

Salary Increases are considered using a 10 year ROI approach.

Thought Leadership: Universities and business schools nominate (95,000 academics) which institutions are strongest in the subject area. Also considered are the research impact based on citations per paper (not citations per faculty member) and the percentage of faculty with a doctorate.

Diversity: The percentage of female students and faculty members and international faculty and international mix of MBA students are evaluated.

If a school doesn’t provide all the data, data is used from the other surveys as well as publicly available data to make an accurate estimate.

Pros: If incomplete data, estimates are used so those schools are not totally eliminated like other surveys. By analyzing 60,000 CEO’s, execs, and board members at largest companies, there is additional objective data that is not found in other surveys. Employer data is also used.

Cons: If information is missing, only estimates are used; alumni are not surveyed. Looking at three months post-graduation may be too early and inaccurate in imperfect economies.