Schools must meet strict criteria in order to be eligible. Their programmes must be full-time, cohort-based and schools must be accredited by either the AACSB or Equis bodies. Courses must be directed at students with little or no work experience. The ranking covers general management programmes, not specialised ones. The table is calculated according to information collected through two separate surveys. The first is completed by the business schools and the second by alumni who finished their MiM in 2020.

The ranking has 19 criteria. Alumni responses inform eight criteria that together contribute 56 per cent of the ranking’s total weight. The remaining 11 criteria are calculated from school data and account for 44 per cent of the weight.

Weighted salary US$ (16%) - Average graduate salary three years after graduation, adjustment for salary variations between sectors, US$ PPP equivalent.

Salary percentage increase (10%) - Average difference in alumnus salary between graduation and today. Half of this figure is calculated according to the absolute increase and half according to the relative percentage increase.

Value for money (6%) - Calculated according to alumni salaries today, fees and other costs.

Career progress (6%) - Calculated according to changes in the level of seniority and the size of company alumni are working for between graduation and today. 

Aims achieved (5%) - The extent to which alumni fulfilled their goals for doing a masters. 

Careers service (4%) - Effectiveness of the careers service in supporting student recruitment, rated by alumni. 

Alumni network (3%) - Effectiveness of the alumni network for career opportunities, launching start-ups, recruiting staff and providing event information (such as career-related talks), as rated by alumni.

Employed at three months (5%) - Percentage of the most recent class that found employment within three months of completing their course.

Female faculty (5%) - Percentage of female faculty.

Female students (5%) - Percentage of female students on the program.

Women on board (1%) - Percentage of female members of the school advisory board.

International faculty (5%) - Calculated according to the diversity of faculty by citizenship and the percentage whose citizenship differs from their country of employment.

International students (5%) - Calculated according to the diversity of current MiM students by citizenship and the percentage whose citizenship differs from the country in which they study.

International board (1%) - Percentage of the board whose citizenship differed from the school’s home country.

International work mobility (6%) - Calculated according to changes in the country of employment of alumni between graduation and today. Alumni citizenship is taken into account.

International course experience (6%) - Calculated according to whether the most recent completing masters class carried out exchanges and internships, lasting at least a month, in countries other than where the school is based. In-person, virtual and hybrid experiences are included. Programmes with overseas study trips and internships abroad lasting less than a month are not counted.

Faculty with doctorates (4%) - Percentage of faculty with doctoral degrees. 

ESG and net zero teaching rank (3%) - Proportion of teaching hours from core courses dedicated to ethics, social, environmental issues and climate solutions for how organisations can reach net zero. Some programmes offer electives but not core courses, so are ranked at the end. 

Carbon footprint rank (4%) - Calculated using the net zero target year for carbon emissions set by the university and/or school, and a publicly available carbon emissions audit report since 2019.

For all gender-related criteria, schools with a 50:50 (male/female) composition receive the highest score.