The latest Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) global MBA rankings have been released, and six Indian institutes feature in the list of the top-200 business schools in the world. 4 out of 20 IIMs feature in QS's global MBA rankings for 2021, and two private business schools also feature in the list. Only one Indian management institute manages to keep its place in the top-50.
QS Global MBA Rankings 2021 - 5 Important Highlights
The QS global MBA rankings are, along with the Financial Times MBA rankings, two of the most influential rankings of business schools across the world. As per a
report by the Association of MBAs (which includes various Indian business schools), 3 out of 4 global recruiters consider b-school rankings to be important in their decisions to hire management graduates.
The QS global MBA rankings are created by evaluating b-schools on criteria such as employability, return on investment, class and faculty diversity, and thought leadership, amongst others. Here's where Indian b-schools feature in the latest rankings:
- IIM Ahmedabad leads the way for Indian b-schools in the latest QS global MBA rankings, finding itself in the 50th spot. However, IIM Ahmedabad has slipped by 10 positions compared to last year, when it was ranked 40th.
- IIM Bangalore has slipped out of the top-50 group, ranking 54th in the latest rankings. Like IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore has also slipped by 10 positions compared to last year.
- IIM Calcutta, which has never featured in the top-100 in the past 5 years has leapfrogged into the top-80 and finds itself at the 79th position in the latest QS global MBA rankings.
- The Indian School of Business has improved its rankings this year, going from the 98th position to the 93rd position in the latest MBA rankings.
- Also featuring in the QS rankings this year are IIM Lucknow and SPJIMR Mumbai, though these institutes have not made it to the top-100 club. SPJIMR features in the QS rankings for the 4th consecutive year, and is one of Asia's top-25 business schools.
IIM Ahmedabad & IIM Bangalore Slip In Rankings, IIM Calcutta Jumps Into The Top-100 Club
The QS global MBA rankings of 2021 have revealed a somewhat surprising trend as compared to previous years' rankings. In 2020, IIMs ABC improved their rankings significantly, with IIM Bangalore jumping from the 71st position in 2019 to the 44th position in 2020, and IIM Ahmedabad breaking into the top-40 club. However, both IIMs A and B have slipped in their rankings significantly in 2021 despite showing tremendous improvement in rankings in the past two years. Despite this slip, both these IIMs find themselves amongst the top-10 management institutes in Asia.
Notably, IIM A's ranking has also fallen significantly in the FT global MBA rankings, making way for IIM Bangalore to be India's top-ranked IIM. IIM A has dropped even below IIM Calcutta, which has made its way yet again to the top-50 in the latest FT rankings and only made it to the list for the first time in 2017.
A notable observation is the massive jump that IIM Calcutta finds in its ranking, finally breaking into the top-100 club in the latest QS rankings and featuring amongst the top-15 business schools in Asia. The QS rankings aren't the only rankings that the institute is rapidly climbing year-on-year; IIM-C has also improved its overall position in the prestigious FT global MBA rankings.
The Indian School of Business, established well after the older IIMs, has consistently featured amongst the top-100 for the past 4 years, though the institute has been unable to break into the top-90 in all these years. In 2021, ISB has improved its rankings, going from the 98th position to the 93rd position and features amongst the top-15 business schools in Asia.
In a commendable achievement, IIM Lucknow has found itself as a new entrant to the QS Global MBA rankings, ranked in the 151-200 group. IIM Lucknow also finds itself amongst Asia's top-25 business schools, along with SPJIMR Mumbai which has been ranked 22nd in the continent.
How do these top Indian business schools fare in the latest InsideIIM MBA Rankings of 2020? Find out here.
Stanford GSB, Wharton, and MIT Sloan Are The World's Top-3 Business Schools
US business schools continue to dominate the latest QS global MBA rankings, with 60% North American business schools in the top-10. The other 40% is made up of top European business schools like HEC Paris, INSEAD, and the London Business School.
Stanford's Graduate School of Business, UPenn's Wharton School, and MIT's Sloan School of Management continue to dominate the top-3 for the second consecutive year. Columbia Business School and Madrid's IE Business School, which had slipped out of the top-10 last year, finds themselves again in the top-10 club, ranked 8th and 9th by QS respectively.
Take a look at the latest QS global MBA rankings here.
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