Top 10 MBA Programs in the United States 2020

By Niamh Ollerton Updated Dec 10, 2020

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Introduction
10) Yale School of Management
9) UCLA Anderson
8) Columbia Business School
7) Kellogg School of Management
6) Haas School of Business
5) The University of Chicago Booth School of Business
4) Harvard Business School
3) MIT Sloan School of Management
1=) Stanford Graduate School of Business
1=) The Wharton School

Top 10 MBA Programs in the United States main image

Explore the QS Global MBA Rankings 2021

Discover QS World University Rankings: Global MBA Rankings 2021 here

The QS Global MBA Rankings 2020 have been released today, ranking business schools from around the world. The rankings are also split up into regions: Asia, Europe, Canada, Oceania, Latin America, and the US.

MBA programs were ranked based on the indicators of employability, entrepreneurship and alumni outcomes, return on investment, thought leadership, and diversity. You can find out more about the methodology used to produce the rankings here.

The top 10 business schools in the US MBA Rankings 2020 are:

QS Global MBA Rankings 2020: Top MBA Programs in the US
US Rank	Global Rank	Business School
=1	=1	The Wharton School
=1	=1	Stanford Graduate School of Business
3	=3	MIT Sloan School of Management
4	5	Harvard Business School
5	8	The University of Chicago Booth School of Business
6	9	Haas School of Business
7	10	The Kellogg School of Management
8	11	Columbia Business School
9	13	UCLA Anderson School of Management
10	18	Yale School of Management

10) Yale School of Management

Yale SOM

Tuition: US$139,000
Students in class: 347
Percentage of female students: 43 percent
Percentage of international students: 45 percent

Yale’s 21-month program incorporates core modules in the first year, as well electives in your second year from the schools of management, art, forestry and environmental studies, engineering and more.

Students can also utilize the Global Study functionality, whereby you’ll travel for a weeklong course at another business school, study with international students in a virtual global course, or travel for a non-profit consulting engagement.

Similarly, Yale’s online “raw” cases simulate real-world decision making by asking you to sift through documents, video, news article, and other data.

9) UCLA Anderson

UCLA Anderson

Tuition: US$130,228
Students in class: 359
Percentage of female students: 33 percent
Percentage of international students: 33 percent

To successfully complete Anderson’s MBA 22-month program all UCLA Anderson students need to fulﬁl a global requirement.

Some interesting activities outside the classroom include:

CES at UCLA Anderson which gives students exclusive access to leading-edge tech. You’ll learn from progressive startups from LA, Silicon Beach and the UCLA Anderson community
Velocity: UCLA Anderson Women’s Leadership Summit
Anderson’s Latin American Business Conference (LABA)
Anderson Days (“A-Days”) is the official preview weekend for full-time MBA students. The perfect time to explore LA with your future classmates

8) Columbia Business School

Columbia Business School

Tuition: US$143,088
Students in class: 756
Percentage of female students: 39 percent
Percentage of international students: 42 percent

Columbia’s 20-month program core curriculum consists of two full-term courses (Financial Accounting as well as Corporate Finance) and eight half-term courses (Managerial Statistics; Business Analytics; Strategy Formulation; Global Economic Environment, and more).

Beginning in the second term, students can select from more than 325 elective offerings from numerous specialized topics.

Columbia scored highly for employability but scored the lowest in the top 10 for diversity.

7) Kellogg School of Management

Kellogg School of Management

Tuition: US$71,544
Students in class: 478
Percentage of female students: 46 percent
Percentage of international students: 38 percent

Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management’s standard program length is 21 months; however, students can choose an accelerated one-year pathway if preferable.

The business school offers an array of global learning opportunities, including 37 exchange programs across 20 countries. Students can choose from seven majors (or none). Majors include Accounting, Economics, Finance, Marketing, Operations Strategy and Managing Organizations.

6) Haas School of Business

Haas School of Business

Tuition: US$119,622
Students in class: 291
Percentage of female students: 43 percent
Percentage of international students: 42 percent

The 21-month MBA program at the Haas School of Business, University of California Berkeley consists of 12 required courses, as well as electives to tailor the program to the needs of the student.

Participants need to complete an ‘Applied Innovation’ requirement, which hones leadership skills through experiential learning and teamwork. Some examples of the courses available include International Business Development and the Haas Socially Responsible Investment Fund.

5) The University of Chicago Booth School of Business

Chicago Booth School of Business by Spikebrennan at English Wikipedia

Tuition: US$144,000
Students in class: 591
Percentage of female students: 42 percent
Percentage of international students: 30 percent

The 21-month program at Booth’s scored highly for employability but shared the second lowest score in this ranking for diversity (tied with UCLA Anderson).

Booth’s MBA prides itself on the flexible curriculum – with only one compulsory course in Leadership Effectiveness and Development (LEAD) – meaning students are able to design their program to fit personal career goals. The electives available cover 13 concentrations, including business analytics, operations management, and economics.

4) Harvard Business School

Harvard Business School

Tuition fees: US$146,880
Percentage of female students: 41 percent
Percentage of international students: 37 percent
Students in class: 930

Since launching the world’s first MBA program in 1908, HBS has long been recognized as the originator of the MBA.

The 24-month program has achieved the joint second-highest score in the US rankings (alongside Stanford) for employability.

Harvard’s infamous case method is internationally renowned, with HBS faculty writing over 80 percent of business school cases sold globally. Students will read and work on around 500 cases during HBS’ MBA program, both individually and in groups.

3) MIT Sloan School of Management

MIT Sloan School of Management by Sloancondev via Wikimedia Commons

Tuition: US$148,400
Students in class: 409
Percentage of female students: 42 percent
Percentage of international students: 38 percent

Landing the bronze position this year is the 24-month program at MIT Sloan School of Management.

World-renowned for its research excellence, it’s no surprise as to why MIT is the only school in the rankings to achieve a perfect score for thought leadership.

Through the ‘Action Learning’ method MIT promotes, students will learn about management skills through a hands-on approach, working remotely and on-site with host organizations to solve real-life business challenges.

1=) Stanford Graduate School of Business

Stanford Graduate School of Business

Tuition: US$141,180
Students in class: 419
Percentage of female students: 41 percent
Percentage of international students: 42 percent

Landing this year’s top spot once more (although now tied with Wharton) is Stanford’s MBA program – which is the only program in the rankings to achieve a perfect score for entrepreneurship and alumni outcomes.

Students hoping to pass the 21-month program must complete a Global Experience Requirement, where you will study and work abroad for a minimum of 10 days. Previous destinations have included Brazil, South Korea and Greece.

Students can also take a series of two-week compressed courses to build deep knowledge in specific business topics.

1=) The Wharton School

The Wharton School

Tuition: US$162,756
Students in class: 862
Percentage of female students: 43 percent
Percentage of international students: 33 percent

Earning the number one spot this year - while sharing the limelight with Stanford - is The Wharton School, which achieved the highest score in the rankings for employability.

Students on the 21-month program can choose from 18 majors (including accounting, finance, and marketing), with around 40 percent of students completing their degree with two majors.

And let’s not forget about the recommended summer internship at the end of your first year.

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Written by

Niamh Ollerton

Niamh was Deputy Head of Content at QS (TopMBA.com; topuniversities.com), creating and editing content for an international student audience. Having gained her journalism qualification at the Press Association, London and since written for different international publications, she's now enjoying telling the stories of students, alumni, faculty, entrepreneurs and organizations from across the globe.