BusinessWeek Ranks SMU Cox #18 for its Prestigious Full-time MBA Program

Dallas (SMU) – SMU Cox School of Business is delighted to announce that its full-time MBA program has been ranked among the top 20 business schools in the United States by BusinessWeek.

The Cox School ranked #18 in the nation in the 2008 ranking. When surveyed, Cox students gave the faculty an A+ for teaching and an A for career services.

Geoff Gloeckler, BusinessWeek editor, explained the Cox School’s rise in the ranking by saying, “I think SMU will surprise some people, but I'm not sure that it should…  I would expect them to remain in the top tier.”

This ranking solidifies the Cox School’s ranking among the top 20 for all of its graduate programs. BusinessWeek ranks Cox #11 and #13 worldwide for its EMBA and PMBA programs, respectively.  U.S. News & World Report currently ranks the Cox EMBA program #15 and the PMBA program #9 in the nation.  And The Wall Street Journal ranks Cox’s EMBA program #15 in the U.S.

“Our students and recruiters have spoken, and the Cox School has received glowing recognition,” said Albert W. Niemi, Jr., dean of the Cox School. “Having top-ranked MBA programs begins with an outstanding faculty and offering admission to students with strong academic and professional backgrounds.  The classroom environment allows our students to learn not just from our tremendous faculty but also from each other.  This collaborative atmosphere prepares them well for their careers.”

“This has been a long time in coming but we have always said that we will continue to make this the best MBA experience as possible and the rankings will follow,” said Marci Armstrong, associate dean for graduate programs.  “We are delighted that our students and faculty are finally receiving the recognition they so richly deserve.” 

About the Methodology 
Since 1988, BusinessWeek has published a biennial ranking of full-time MBA programs.  The ranking is based on three elements: a survey of newly minted MBAs, a poll of corporate recruiters and an evaluation of faculty research output. The MBA survey, which measures satisfaction with all aspects of the B-school experience is combined with two previous MBA surveys for a total pool of more than 20,000 responses over six years. The corporate poll, which asks recruiters to identify the schools that produce the best graduates, is also combined with two previous recruiter surveys for a total of nearly 700 responses. Finally, BusinessWeek tallies the number of articles published by each school’s faculty in 20 top journals and reviews of their books in three national publications. The total for faculty size is then adjusted and an intellectual-capital rating is assigned for each school. The MBA surveys and the recruiter polls each contribute 45% to the final ranking with the intellectual-capital ranking contributing the final 10%.
 
“The Best B-Schools” is featured in the November 24, 2008 issue of BusinessWeek and online at www.businessweek.com/bschools.

About SMU Cox
SMU’s Cox School of Business offers a full range of business education programs, including BBA, full-time MBA, Professional MBA (PMBA), Executive MBA (EMBA), Master of Science in Management (MSM) and Executive Education. The school also offers a number of unique resources and activities for students, ranging from its Business Leadership Center (BLC), Caruth Institute for Entrepreneurship, Maguire Energy Institute and American Airlines Global Leadership Program (AAGLP) to its Associate Board executive mentoring program and an international alumni network with chapters in more than 20 countries. SMU Cox is ranked among the top business schools nationally and internationally by major publications, including BusinessWeek, The Economist, Financial Times, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal and U.S. News & World Report. 
 
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