9 Business Schools to Watch in 2024

Business schools throughout the United States and the world have an extremely important responsibility. By training students in the various subjects of business, schools and the graduates of the schools play a vital role in the success of the economy, which affects everyone.

By working in the area of public supply and demand, business brings to every home the necessities and comforts of life. Ethical and effective business education, as well as specific strengths and recent developments and advancements, make the schools on this list business schools to watch in 2024.

When it comes to choosing the best business schools for college degrees in the field of business, there is a range of factors that should be considered. The schools vary in terms of prestige, cost, curriculum, and job placement opportunities, so it is important to determine which factors are most important to you when it comes to selecting the right school. Accreditation is also a key factor, since it helps to ensure that the degree you receive will be recognized in the field of accounting.

With that in mind, there are a number of colleges and universities to choose from when it comes to business degree programs. In this guide, we’ll detail some of the most popular schools for business degrees. We’ll take a look at their history and reputation, the academic offerings, the cost of attendance, and more. With the right information in hand, you can make an informed decision and choose the best school for you.

Booth School of Business

University of Chicago

“defining new disciplines”

The University of Chicago Booth School of Business is another one of the oldest business schools in the U.S. Founded in 1898, Booth School of Business has produced no less than seven faculty members and alumni who have won the Nobel Prize in Economics. According to Forbes, “among the class of 2016 seeking employment, 95.2% accepted a job within three months of graduation with a median base salary of $125,000.” It is listed as #7 of the Best Business Schools by Forbes.

University of Chicago Booth School of Business recently hired Professor Sundhil Mullainathan, a scholar who formerly taught at Harvard. According to Mullainathan, “The University of Chicago has a grand tradition of defining new disciplines: the phrase ‘Chicago School of ___’ has its own resonance in many academic fields.” Mullainathan will be joining the faculty at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business to explore the emerging discipline of algorithms and the “intersection of human and machine intelligence.”

Recently replaced by the Wharton School of Business as #1 in top MBA programs in U.S. News & World Report, Booth moved back into third place, tied with Harvard. Chicago Booth offers Full Time, Evening and Weekend and Executive MBAs as well as PhDs to over 500 new students every year. With locations in Chicago, London, and Hong Kong, Booth School of Business moved to a larger London metropolis in 2020.

Mendoza College of Business

University of Notre Dame

Innovation in Business

The University of Notre Dame Mendoza College of Business has been hailed as one of the most innovative business programs in the last ten years. Forbes’s website has drawn attention, in the past, to Mendoza students’ unique exposure to business quite different from “sprucing up a languishing company.” Rather, “dropping into war zones and helping to rebuild entire economies” is what Mendoza students have accomplished.

Students study peace-through-commerce strategy and then spend ten days “rebuilding strategies, from farming to tourism.” Places the students have visited include Bosnia, Lebanon, and Uganda where they not only gain invaluable experience on the ground but also provide relief to countries in need.

In another article on the website master’s-in-business.net, Mendoza is listed as one of the top 20 innovative business schools based on students’ participation in service learning opportunities. Students at Mendoza can complete eight-week summer internships in places like Kenya, Cambodia, Haiti, Egypt, and South America. These programs give Mendoza students thinking skills, which translate into social change.

According to their website, Mendoza College of Business is ranked #4 by The Economist and #5 in undergraduate business by Poets and Quants. They are also ranked #26 by U.S. News & World Report. Also known for its strong emphasis on ethics in business, Notre Dame Mendoza College of Business is ranked #7 in non-profit business schools. The University of Notre Dame Mendoza offers full and part-time MBAs, Specialized Master’s degrees as well as undergraduate BBA degrees, and online Business Certificates.

McDonough School of Business

Georgetown University

International Entrepreneurship and Online Success

McDonough School of Business Georgetown University has been ranked highly for many years by numerous ranking systems including U.S. News and World Report. Of special note in 2019, is the U.S. News and World Report ranking of Georgetown’s MBA in the Top-10 for International Business, Nonprofit Careers. McDonough School of Business Georgetown is also ranked 9th for Careers in Nonprofits and 5th for International Business.

McDonough School of Business recently added a minor in entrepreneurship. The electives that students may choose in the minor emphasize the global, international mindset and strength of the school. The list includes Global Innovation Strategy, Practicum in Developing New Products, Science Tech in Global Arena, and Social Entrepreneurship.

In the last few years, McDonough has offered its Master of Finance degree online which has been an enormous success, putting Georgetown quality into the online arena. According to the director “The Georgetown MSF uses the latest technology to provide instruction from our top faculty members, providing an experience that rivals a top-ranked, in-person business degree.”

Graziadio School of Business

Pepperdine University

Online Expansion

Graziadio School of Business Pepperdine University is already receiving favorable reviews on its new partnership with 2U, Inc. to modify and improve its online MBA degree. 2U, a leader in education technology worldwide, will support Pepperdine in its management and development of the degree program.

According to 2U.com, the partnership “represents a new offering within the Business@Pepperdine Domestic Graduate Program (DGP), a suite of online graduate degrees in business and management announced in May 2018.”

Graziadio Business School is currently ranked #19 by U.S. News & World Report in Best Online MBA programs. Their goal with the revised program is to focus on the advancement of ethical business practice and to encourage students and graduates to initiate positive change both locally and globally.

According to the Dean, Deryck van Rensburg, “We’ve expanded our partnership with 2U because of their commitment to supporting our goals and mission, maintaining the rigor and integrity of our academics, and for their passion toward student success.” Graziadio School of Business Pepperdine currently offers 7 Master’s programs and 11 MBA programs and boasts over 40,000 graduates.

F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business

Babson College

Entrepreneurial “Gigs”

F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business is a business school to look out for in the area of entrepreneurship. Ranked #1 by U.S. News & World Report for MBAs in Entrepreneurship, the MBA programs at Babson are ranked above Harvard, Berkeley, and Stanford. Entrepreneurship at Babson has always been a focus and has put the school in the top spot for 26 years running.

An article on Babson’s website states, “According to a 2018 report by the World Economic Forum, the skills that will be in highest demand by 2022 include analytical thinking, active learning, creativity, complex problem solving, and emotional intelligence.” The article goes on to say that “at Babson, we call this collective knowledge an entrepreneurial mindset, designed for the future of work.”

Babson is known, among many things, for a class in Entrepreneurship and the Gig Economy, teaching students how to handle the changing of hands in industry and working as a part-time or self-employed business person. The class put Babson on the top ten list of Forbes for Innovative Business Schools.

Another class that Babson provides is Entrepreneurial Thought and Action which according to the school prepares students for areas of life beyond business. Babson offers blended online business degrees as well as an online class in its specialty: Entrepreneurship 101.

Along with an entrepreneurial mindset that helps students to create opportunities and effectively problem-solve in industry, Babson also provides students with a basic business knowledge that is practical and thorough. Babson has graduated over 41,000 alumni in 119 countries and all 50 states creating a far-reaching network in the business world. Babson College also seeks to make its graduate degree financially affordable and offers scholarships to 60 percent of its students.

Stanford Graduate School of Business

Stanford University

Technology-focused MBA

Stanford Graduate School of Business Stanford University is a business school to watch out for. With an average 100% salary increase, Stanford School of Business graduates can look forward to being placed in some of the best business positions available. The reputation of Stanford has placed them #2 in U.S. News & World Report’s best business schools for 2020.

U.S. News & World Report has also placed Stanford Graduate School of Business in the top ten for Accounting, Entrepreneurship, Finance, Information Systems, Management, Marketing, Nonprofit, Production/Operations, and Supply Chain/Logistics.

Stanford Graduate School of Business has made many top business school lists. But as a technology-focused MBA program, Stanford made the top ten in U.S. News & World Report last year. According to the article in CIO, the school emphasizes “alternative education methods, including corporate case studies, global study trips, role-playing, and real-world immersion internships.”

Stanford Graduate School of Business offers a full-time MBA program which is a two-year general management program, the Stanford MSx program, and a PhD program. Electives may be chosen in the subject of Technology and Operations including The Innovative Technology Leader, Harnessing AL for Breakthrough Innovation and Strategic Impact and Supply Chain Management: Strategies and Innovations.

Rady School of Management

University of California San Diego

Entrepreneurial Success:

Rady School of Management University of California San Diego claims to develop “ethical and entrepreneurial leaders who make a positive impact in the world through innovation, collaboration, and knowledge.” The reputation of graduates from Rady has proven the method.

According to NBC San Diego, 50% of the graduates from UC San Diego Rady School of Management are running successful startup companies. The article headline explains that 150 companies have been started by Rady Students and Alumni since 2006.

Rady School of Management has capitalized on student initiative and the school’s reputation for innovation and success. According to an article published by the school blog in 2019, startups by “entrepreneurially minded MBA students and alums” have only been accelerating since the 2012 launch of mystartupXX as well as StartR.

MystartupXX was focused on building companies founded by females. In 2013, StartR to assist students and graduates to achieve success in beginning a company. StartR has been so successful that the program has branched out to include StarR Veteran and StartR Teen.

Rady School of Management at UC San Diego offers MBA programs that include a full-time MBA and a FlexMBA. They also offer a Master of Professional Accountancy, an M.S. in Business Analytics, and a Master of Finance degree.

Wharton School of Business

University of Pennsylvania

Stevens Center for Innovation in Finance

Founded in 1881 as “the world’s first collegiate business school,” it should come as no surprise considering Wharton’s high reputation that it is a business school to continuously watch. However, Wharton has given a special reason to be watched in 2023.

Wharton School of Business is listed in the top 10 by U.S. News & World Report in the areas of Accounting, Entrepreneurship, Executive MBA, Information Systems, International Business, Management, Marketing and Production and Operations. It is listed as the 2020 #1 in Best Business Schools and for the purposes of this list, is also listed #1 in the area of Finance.

In March 2019, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania established the Stevens Center for Innovation in Finance. The Stevens Center was developed by Wharton’s partnership with undergraduate alumnus Ross Stevens, founder and CEO of Stone Ridge Holdings Group. The center will be focused on “stimulating cutting-edge teaching and research as well as student and industry engagement focused on the revolutionary impact of information technology on financial services.” On April 3rd 2019, the inaugural event of the Stevens Center, with global FinTech leaders, was held on campus.

Wharton School of Business has over 5,000 undergraduate, MBA, executive MBA and doctoral students and over 98,000 alumni. The business school offers individual, company-customized and online programs. Over 50 courses are offered online. Wharton has also had over 3 million students enrolled in their global online programs since 2012.

Sloan School of Management

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Technological Innovation

The MIT Sloan School of Management is a business school with a long-standing reputation as well as a school to watch, especially among innovative business schools. Ranked #3 by U.S. News & World Report in Best Business Schools, MIT Sloan is known for being technologically advanced as well as innovative in leadership.

Of special note, according to MIT News, the MIT Innovation Initiative, known as MITii plans to “hire experts to pursue new business opportunities by matching MIT expertise and innovation with real-world problems.” Through the new Proto Ventures Program, MIT Sloan expects to create “a new way to generate impactful companies that are….unlike anything else in higher education.”

MIT Sloan offered its first Master of Management degree in 1925 after it began in 1915 as part of the administrative curriculum for engineering. In 2010 MIT Sloan opened a new school building for management, named E62, which reflects the innovative nature of Sloan. The building has brought faculty and students under one roof and boasts many areas for teamwork and discussion. It also combines technology and innovation in the green roof and irrigation system which responds to the changes in weather and light-sensitive window shades.

Reflective of E62, MIT Sloan’s two-year MBA consists of a one-week “innovation period” as well as a focus on technical entrepreneurship. Students in this program may receive an MBA degree or a Master of Science in Management (SM). Other strengths of the school are in finance and operations strategy as well as global exposure.

Students may travel to study abroad as well as participate in “Action Labs” which allow students to handle real problems in China, The United States, and India. Over 86% of graduates from the program find themselves employed by graduation.

What are the most essential points to consider when selecting a quality Business school?

The most important point to consider when selecting a quality business school is to research the school’s reputation and student outcomes. This includes looking into the strength of its academic programs, the faculty’s credentials (such as accreditation), the school’s alumni confidence levels, and the job placement success of its graduates. It’s also important to consider a school’s extracurricular activities, specializations, and resources to determine if they are well-suited to your educational goals.

Additionally, you should explore the school’s tuition and scholarship rates to ensure you receive the best return on your investment.

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The schools on this list give prospective students and aspiring business people a reason to look again. Whether through innovation in entrepreneurship or finance, strong ethics, or technological advancements, the business schools on this list have put themselves on the current map.

By continuing to train students to a high standard, effective business schools, as well as the students and graduates, ensure the ongoing success of the business world and the smooth transition from industry and finance to persons.

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