How to choose a business school

The AACSB provides this convenient checklist:

1. Research your prospective school
choices, talk with the admissions staff and
ask every possible question that you may
have. There are so many programs
available today, especially in the area of
business, that program diversity can be
overwhelming. Each business school has
its own programs, culture, personality
and blend of faculty. The good news is that
you can find the right program that fits
your areas of interest and personality.

When meeting with or talking to
admissions staff don’t be shy, this is their
area of expertise and make sure you ask
specific and direct questions relating to
your goals and aspirations.

2. Do your own personal needs
assessment. What kind of environment
do you want to live in during your years of
study? On or off campus? Large campus
or small? Do you want to be close or far
away from home? What are your career
goals? Where do you envision yourself
when your education is complete?
Remember, making your final choice
should be a very personal one — don’t
rely solely on the opinions or influence
of relatives and friends. What is right for
someone else might not be the best choice
for you.

3. Talk to everyone and compare
responses. If you can, have conversations
with current students or even past
graduates. Are current students or
graduates happy with their decision —
what would they do similarly or differently
if they could do it all over again? Try to
find out the overall philosophy, outlook,
and ‘feel’ of each particular school and
its various degree programs. What
are the academic strengths? What are
the weaknesses? Are there special
programs, research opportunities,
internships available for your area
of interest?

4. Assess faculty quality. Look at available
web pages and other information to
assess the experience level of the school’s
faculty. Do they have extensive real-
world experience that they bring to the
classroom? Are they engaged in research
that helps to advance knowledge in their
field of expertise? Does the school have a
strong link to the business sector through
internships or volunteer programs?

5. Don’t overemphasise the importance
of rankings. Remember, rankings are only
a single data point to help you with your
overall research. While you can make
some comparisons with rankings, be
careful in how much weight you attach to
them — the key to using media rankings
effectively is knowing if what they measure
is what is important to you. What
is most important is to select programs
that fit best with your goals regardless of
the rank attributed to a program by
any publication.

6. Choose a school with global business
accreditation. Be knowledgeable
about the importance of specialized
business accreditation. Specialized
accreditation, such as that awarded by
AACSB International, demonstrates that
a school has gone through an extensive
multi-year evaluation process and has
made a commitment to academic quality
and continuous improvement. AACSB-
accredited institutions, which make up
less than 5% of the world's business
schools, are subject to rigorous review
and evaluation processes — each of
which raise the school’s level of academic
excellence over those that are not
accredited.

Provided by AACSB International
(The Association to Advance Collegiate
Schools of Business)

www.aacsb.edu