Online MBA Rankings: The Impact of Rankings on Online MBA Programs

Abstract

This study analyzed the effect that shifts in the U.S. News & World Report rankings have on input variables such as admitting grade point average (GPA), percentage of students taking the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT), average incoming GMAT score, acceptance rate, tuition rates, average student debt, the proportion of students with debt, the number of tenure track faculty and the percentage of minority students. Finally, this study will examine if these correlations are more pronounced during the initial years of this ranking regime or in the most recent years. This is not the first study to look at U.S. News & World Report business school rankings, but it is the first study to specifically look at online business school rankings. The study determined rankings influence admissions criteria and the number of tenure track faculty. Implications of this finding for further research and practical implications for administrators are discussed, and the study's limitations.