These “prestige rankings” were compiled by Brody counselors based upon their experiences at schools and counseling applicants, spending time within corporations and with investment bankers and management consultants, and reviewing a number of primary and secondary sources. The purpose of the rankings is not to indicate which business school is best for you, or even which one would provide you with the best education, but rather to convey to you our feel about which MBA programs are the most prestigious: i.e. which schools garner the most respect, in a general sense, from employers, the business community, and the American public.

We realize the myriad flaws inherent in any such ranking system, but we feel that too often applicants operate in a vacuum concerning the relative reputations of schools. This vacuum is inevitably filled by local prejudices, more broad rankings systems with serious flaws, and other less meaningful circumstances. With our rankings in hand, we hope applicants can go to schools knowing generally how they stack up against each other in terms of prestige. Weather, specific programs, “vibe”, resources, etc. they can (and should) discover for themselves or with personalized guidance.

MBA programs that did not make our list inevitably defy the type of nationwide analysis done here, and should be judged by local standards and specific major/program details.

One caveat--MBA students today come from a variety of careers and choose schools for a number of different reasons. If you will not eventually be seeking an employer that demands graduates from a high prestige institution, these rankings will likely be of little value to you.

Our rankings of the top 30 business schools by prestige:

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