- IMD Business School
News Stories · Leadership

IMD’s MBA ranks among the best

The program consistently places among Forbes’ top list
September 2015

Forbes has ranked IMD’s MBA #2 among one-year MBA programs outside the US. Testament to the program’s strength and effectiveness in continuously shaping business leaders, this is the third consecutive time that the IMD MBA ranks among the Forbes top. In both 2013 and in 2011 the IMD MBA was ranked #1

The Forbes ranking measures return on investment based on “5-year MBA gain” (for IMD this is the MBA Class of 2009), and separates US from non-US programs. The rankings are published every two years.

“At IMD we offer real-life, solid education that is intended to provide direct applicability and impact,” said Ralf Boscheck, IMD MBA Program Director. “We are delighted to have the Forbes ranking as recognition of our success and we are proud of the success of all our graduates. They are true business leaders with a vision for navigating the future.”

It’s all in the numbers

IMD may have slipped to number two in the ranking, behind Insead, but the program still remains the best in terms of after program earnings. As Forbes mentions “Students arrived at the Lausanne, Switzerland campus with a median salary of $90,000 and five years after leaving it are making $226,000, besting the earnings profile of Insead’s class ($209,000 five years later).”

Underlining IMD’s role in building global leaders

Having a closer look at what IMD’s MBA graduates are doing professionally, Forbes notes that a majority of them are in leadership roles. “General Management jobs were the top destination for IMD graduates last year — 31% of graduates landed in such roles, the most of any school and earn a median salary of $127,018. Top employers included Boston Consulting Group, Accenture, Hilti, Dow Chemical and Cisco Systems.”

The 2015 Forbes ranking reinforces IMD’s consistent performance in delivering some of the world’s best educational programs. The Financial Times ranked IMD #1 in open programs worldwide (2012 & 2013 & 2014 & 2015), and since 2008 the school ranks #1 on average with the FT in executive education outside the US.

Learn more about the IMD MBA program

Read more about the Forbes ranking

Learn more about IMD’s worldwide rankings

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