History and Scope
The US News & World Report is an American publication that releases rankings not only related to education, but to a wider range of topics, including healthcare, banking and investment, careers, travel, and more. Their education rankings have existed since 1983. Among them is the Best Business Schools ranking, published annually in April.
Although the focus of the US News ranking is exclusively on US schools, the data is very exhaustive. The ranking includes around 500 institutions with Master’s-level business programs in the US accredited by AACSB. Prospective students can find out more about various aspects of the ranked schools – overall scores, employment after graduation, results in other US News rankings, student diversity breakdowns, and more.
Methodology and Stand-out Features
The main pillar of the methodology is called “placement success” and it includes information about employment after graduation, starting salary, and salary by profession (for a total weight of 50%)
To collect ranking data, US News relies heavily on peer assessment and recruiter assessments scores (together weighing 25%). These scores come from surveys sent to business school deans, MBA directors, and corporate recruiters, making it a strong measure of brand prestige and employer perceptions. Alumni surveys are not part of the ranking process.
Unlike other publications, US News also puts emphasis on GMAT/GRE scores, undergraduate GPAs, and acceptance rates.
Besides the Best Business School edition, US News & World Report publishes five more graduate school rankings in these disciplines:
- Law
- Medicine
- Engineering
- Nursing
- Education
For a more international outlook, there is another publication on the Best Global Universities, with the latest edition featuring 20 institutions.
Limitations and Considerations
The first thing to keep in mind about the US News ranking of the best business schools is that it focuses exclusively on US-based institutions. It doesn’t offer a global comparison and may not reflect the strengths of internationally recognized programs. It also heavily relies on peer and recruiter surveys, thereby excluding the viewpoints of alumni who have studied at these universities. Rankings are most useful when combined with other tools for researching schools. Comparing MBA curricula, talking to alumni or admissions consultants, and campus visits can all help candidates make a well-rounded decision.
US News Best Business Schools Ranking 2025
1. University of Pennsylvania: The Wharton School
2. Northwestern University: The Kellogg School of Management
2. Stanford University: Stanford Graduate School of Business
4. The University of Chicago: Booth School of Business
5. MIT: Sloan School of Management
6. Harvard Business School (HBS)
6. Dartmouth College: Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth
6. New York University: Stern School of Business
9. Columbia University: Columbia Business School
10. Yale University: School of Management
11. University of California Berkeley: Haas School of Business
11. University of Virginia: Darden School of Business
13. Duke University: Fuqua School of Business
13. University of Michigan: Ross School of Business
15. Cornell University: Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management
16. The University of Texas at Austin: McCombs School of Business
17. Emory University: Goizueta Business School
18. UCLA: Anderson School of Management
18. Carnegie Mellon: Tepper School of Business
18. Vanderbilt University: Owen Graduate School of Management
21. Georgia Institute of Technology: Scheller College of Business
22. University of Washington: Foster School of Business
22. Indiana University Bloomington: Kelley School of Business
24. Washington University in St. Louis: Olin Business School
24. Georgetown University: McDonough School of Business
24. University of Southern California: Marshall School of Business
24. The Ohio State University: Fisher College of Business
28. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: Kenan-Flagler Business School
29. Rice University: Jones Graduate School of Business
29. University of Georgia: Terry College of Business
31. The University of Texas at Dallas: Naveen Jindal School of Management
32. University of Rochester: Simon Business School
32. University of Notre Dame: Mendoza College of Business
34. SMU: Cox School of Business
35. Arizona State University: W. P. Carey School of Business
35. Michigan State University: Eli Broad College of Business
35. University of Minnesota: Carlson School of Management
38. University of Florida: Warrington College of Business
38. Brigham Young University: Marriott School of Management
40. University of Wisconsin-Madison: Wisconsin School of Business
40. The University of Utah: David Eccles School of Business
42. Iowa State University: Ivy College of Business
43. University of California at Irvine: Paul Merage School Of Business
43. Texas A&M University: Mays Business School
43. Texas Christian University: Neeley School of Business
46. Boston University: Questrom School of Business
46. Boston College: Carroll School of Management
46. University of Pittsburgh: Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business
49. The University of Tennessee at Knoxville: Haslam College of Business
50. University of Miami: Miami Herbert Business School
50. University of Arkansas: Walton College of Business
52. University of Maryland: Robert H. Smith School of Business
53. Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey: Rutgers Business School
54. The University of Alabama: Culverhouse College of Business
54. Baylor University: Hankamer School of Business
54. Tulane University: Freeman School of Business
54. Syracuse University: Whitman School of Management
58. Fordham University: Gabelli School of Business
58. Oklahoma State University: Spears School of Business
58. American University: Kogod School of Business
61. College of William and Mary: Raymond A. Mason School of Business
61. The George Washington University: School of Business
61. The City University of New York, Baruch College: The Zicklin School of Business
61. University of Kentucky: Gatton College of Business and Economics
65. University of California, Davis: Graduate School of Management
66. The University of Arizona: Eller College of Management
66. Chapman University: Argyros School of Business & Economics
68. Northeastern University: D'Amore-McKim School of Business
68. Stevens Institute of Technology: School of Business
68. University of California at San Diego: Rady School of Management
71. University of South Carolina: Darla Moore School of Business
72. The University of Kansas: School of Business
73. Babson College: Olin Graduate School of Business
73. Auburn University: Harbert College of Business
73. University of Cincinnati: Lindner College of Business
76. University of Massachusetts Amherst: Isenberg School of Management
77. North Carolina A & T State University: College of Business and Economics
77. University of Detroit Mercy: College of Business Administration
79. University of Colorado at Boulder: Leeds School of Business
79. University at Buffalo, State University of New York: School of Management
79. The University of Oklahoma: Price College of Business
82. Case Western Reserve University: Weatherhead School of Management
82. The University of Mississippi: School of Business Administration
82. Loyola University Maryland: Sellinger School of Business and Management
85. Louisiana State University: Ourso College of Business
86. Lehigh University: College of Business and Economics
87. Binghamton University, State University of New York: School of Management
88. College of Charleston: School of Business
88. Pepperdine University: Graziadio Business School
88. University of California, Riverside: School of Business
88. University of Oregon: Lundquist College of Business
92. Louisiana Tech University: College of Business
92. Canisius College: Richard J. Wehle School of Business
92. Texas Tech University: Rawls College of Business Administration
95. Clemson University: College of Business
96. Clark Atlanta University: School of Business
97. University of Denver: Daniels College of Business
97. Claremont Graduate University: Drucker School of Management
97. Willamette University: Atkinson Graduate School of Management
100. Clarkson University: School of Business
100. Rochester Institute of Technology: Saunders College of Business
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