Global MBA ranking countdown

In the lead-up to our publication of the FT MBA 2015 global ranking on Monday, 26th January 2015, we are counting down the days using highlights from the data. Which school will be ranked number one? Join the debate on Twitter @ftbized #FTranking

The number of business schools in the FT MBA 2015 ranking that were not ranked in 2014. This year, a record 159 business schools participated in the ranking process, which is up from 153 in 2014. Of the 10 new programmes, nine are programmes that featured in previous editions of the rankings and one has entered the top 100 on its first participation.

The number of MBA programmes that moved up by more than 15 places. Schools in the bottom half of the FT rankings are in a more volatile position than those in the top half. Excluding schools which dropped out of the ranking, those in the bottom 50 moved, on average, 13 places compared to only four places for those in the top 50. Altogether, 18 schools moved by more than 15 places.

The number of schools where more than 75 per cent of the faculty are international. A business school’s main asset is its scholars and international diversity ensures that students benefit from a wide range of expertise. Overall, of the top 100 schools, an average of 40 per cent of the full-time faculty is international.

The number of schools with graduates who gained a salary increase of more than 120 per cent three years after graduation. This is fewer than in 2013, when alumni from 13 schools boasted these figures. The ranking is based in part on the current salary of the alumni who graduated three years ago, with adjustment for variations between sectors and the increase compared to their pre-MBA salary.

The number of schools from mainland China and Hong Kong that feature in the 2015 ranking. This is the third largest group of schools from one country, on a par with Canada, and behind the US (50 schools) and the UK (13 schools).

Alumni from five schools have a salary greater than $165,000, on average, three years after graduation. The overall average for alumni from the top 100 MBA programmes is $133,000.

The University of Chicago Booth School of Business ranks number four in the world for research in the 2015 ranking. The research rank is based on the number of articles published by full-time faculty members in 45 selected academic and practitioner journals between Janaury 2012 and October 2014.

In the 2015 ranking the University of Hong Kong is ranked number three for the international experience enjoyed by the participants on its MBA programme.

London Business School is ranked number two for the international mobility of its MBA graduates in the 2015 ranking.

Harvard Business School is top of the 2015 ranking. This is the third time in a row that Harvard heads the ranking.

See the full ranking here