Willamette University’s Atkinson Graduate School of Management (Willamette MBA) has once again landed on Forbes magazine’s biannual “Best Business Schools” list, which ranks the top business schools in the country based for return on investment (ROI) achieved by graduates.
Appearing at number 57 this year, Willamette MBA is the top-ranked program in Oregon. It is the only Oregon business school to make the list, and one of only two in all of the Pacific Northwest.
Forbes’ “Best Business Schools” rankings are based on surveys of thousands of business school alumni regarding their pre- and post-MBA salaries, career choices, and locations. Return on investment was measured by what Forbes calls the “5-year MBA gain,” the difference between the salary a graduate would have earned in five years with and without an MBA, and programs are ranked according to this criterion.
Responding to news of the latest rankings, Dean Mike Hand reflected, “The Atkinson Graduate School of Management is committed to serving the region, the nation, and the world; preparing leaders for business, government, and not-for-profit organizations. It is gratifying to be recognized, not only for the quality of the Willamette MBA, but also for the incredible value represented by an Atkinson education.”
Willamette MBA also performed well for return on investment in the QS Global MBA Rankings: U.S. Out of 105 top U.S. MBA programs, the Willamette MBA ranked 49 for return on investment and 68 overall.
According to QS, Willamette MBA has a 10-year average return on investment of $569,653, significantly higher than the global mean of $509,658. QS also estimates that it takes 34 months or 2.8 years to payback the cost of the program, again significantly outperforming global averages of 43 months or 3.6 years.