The FT MBA ranking features 100 of the world’s best full-time MBA programmes. A total of 142 schools took part in the ranking process for the 2023 edition. All participating schools meet the FT’s entry criteria and are accredited by Equis or the AACSB. The FT surveys alumni three years after completing their MBA. For schools to enter the ranking calculations, the FT usually requires that a minimum of 20 per cent of alumni reply to the survey, with at least 20 fully completed surveys. The ranking considers the following 21 metrcis:

Weighted salary (16%) - average alumni salary three years after completion, US$ PPP equivalent, with adjustment for variations between sectors.

Salary increase (16%) - average difference in alumni salary from before the MBA to now. Half of this figure is calculated according to the absolute salary increase and half according to the percentage increase relative to pre-MBA salary. 

Value for money (5%) - calculated using salary today, course length, tuition and other costs, including lost income during the MBA.

Career progress (3%) - calculated according to changes in the level of seniority and the size of the organisation alumni work in now, compared with before their MBA.

Aims achieved (4%) -  the extent to which alumni fulfilled their stated goals or reasons for doing an MBA.

Alumni network rank (4%) - effectiveness of the alumni network for career opportunities, starting companies, gaining new ideas, recruiting staff and giving event information (such as career-related talks), as rated by alumni.

Careers service (3%) - effectiveness of the school careers service for career counselling, personal development, networking events, internship search and recruitment, as rated by alumni. 

Employed at three months (2%) - percentage of the most recent completing class which found employment or accepted a job offer within three months of completing their studies. 

Sector diversity rank (3%) - calculated according to the diversity of sectors the students worked in at the time of admission, before the MBA.

Female faculty (3%) - percentage of female faculty.

Female students (3%) - percentage of female students on the MBA.

Women on board (1%) - percentage of female members on the school’s advisory board.

International faculty (3%) - calculated according to the diversity of faculty by citizenship and the percentage whose citizenship differs from their location of employment.

International students (3%) - calculated according to the diversity of current MBA students by citizenship and the percentage whose citizenship differs from the location in which they study.

International board (1%) - percentage of the board whose citizenship differs from the location in which the school is based.

International mobility (5%) - based on alumni citizenship and the locations where they worked before their MBA, on completion and three years after.

International course experience (3%) - calculated according to whether the most recent completing 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. 

Faculty with doctorates (5%) - percentage of full-time faculty with a doctoral degree.

FT research rank (10%) - calculated according to the number of articles published by current full-time faculty members in 50 selected academic and practitioner journals between January 2020 and July 2022. The FT50 rank combines the absolute number of publications with the number weighted relative to the faculty’s size.

Carbon footprint rank (4%) - calculated using the net zero target year for carbon emissions set by the university or school, and a publicly available carbon emissions audit report within the last three years.

ESG and net zero teaching rank (3%) - proportion of teaching hours from core courses including ethics, social, environmental issues and climate solutions that can enable organisations to reach net zero.