According to a press release on the school website, the Financial Times (FT) has listed the George Washington University School of Business online MBA program as No. 6 in the world in its 2017 survey of “Top 20 Online MBA Programmes.”
The 2017 survey was the first time that GWSB’s online MBA program has been rated by the FT. According to the FT, rankings are determined by data from two surveys: one completed by the rated schools, the other by program alumni. The final ranking positions were based on a weighted formula with alumni responses counting for 65 percent of the final score; school data, 25 percent; and the school’s research ranking, 10 percent.
GWSB’s program was ranked first for “online interaction” and had the highest percentage of women students (49 percent) of any the top-20 rated programs.
“This is great recognition for our online MBA program,” Dean Linda Livingstone said in a statement. “Being ranked one of the very best in the world is a reflection of the excellence of our program, the quality of our faculty, the hard work of our staff, and the success of our students. I am especially proud that these rankings also reflect GWSB’s ongoing, successful efforts to encourage women to pursue business education and business careers.”
The GWSB Online MBA coursework is offered completely online, though students may take classes on campus if they would like. Digital courses are organized into learning episodes made up of videos, video cases, podcasts, animations, and other multimedia content in addition to reading assignments.
Each course also offers live online classroom sessions where students participate in lectures, case discussions, and other group activities. These sessions are also recorded and made available to students within the digital learning environment. Faculty are available to students during online office hours offered through the digital classroom platform. Online students can also pursue their degree in a hybrid format, taking on-campus coursework alongside the online options.