Auburn’s Harbert College of Business jumps eight spots to No. 2 in national ranking of online MBA programs

Poets & Quants, a leader in online coverage of graduate business education, today announced that Auburn University’s Harbert College of Business is No. 2 in its 2019 Best Online MBA Programs ranking.

Harbert College jumped from No. 10 in last year’s ranking, a move attributed to the quality of responses from its 2016-2018 Online MBA alumni who responded to the Poets & Quants’ satisfaction survey. This is the second year of Poets & Quants’ online MBA national ranking, which will be featured on theirwebsite starting Tuesday, Oct. 9.

“The Harbert College of Business was an early mover in online MBA programs, with an eye to continuous improvement, relevance and student success driving our philosophy,” said Harbert College Dean and Wells Fargo Chair Annette L. Ranft. “We are inspired by our students’ success and alumni and employer support of our program.”

The three pillars of Poets & Quants’ ranking methodology are: admissions standards, MBA program experience and career outcomes. Admissions statistics were gathered directly from participating schools, while a survey of recent graduates was used to gauge MBA experience and career outcomes. Survey questions addressed a range of topics, including the quality and responsiveness of professors, career support, consulting projects, fellow students and program flexibility.

“It has always been the goal of Online MBA program leadership to begin with the end in mind,” said Jim Parrish, director of Full-Time and Online MBA programs at Harbert College. “We make program delivery decisions by asking the question: ‘How will this benefit the learner?’ Hearing that our recent graduates have rated their experience in such a favorable light provides confirmation and excitement that we are doing things the right way in the Auburn Online MBA program.”

Rounding out the top five in the ranking are the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business, Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University’s Tepper School of Business and Lehigh University.

“Unlike many other rankings, Poets & Quants gives a majority weighting to the program experiences and career outcomes of our graduates. This is where the rubber meets the road, and it’s very gratifying that our graduates are so pleased with their choice of Auburn’s Online MBA. We work hard to provide a learning experience that offers our students an outstanding return on their investments of time, effort and money,” said Associate Dean and Luck Professor Stan Harris. “While program tuition is not a factor in Poets & Quants’ ranking, the combination of Auburn’s affordability and quality equates to an incredible value proposition for our students."

Auburn’s Online MBA also was ranked No. 11 in the recent U.S. News & World Report 2018 Best Online Programs ranking. This marks Auburn’s sixth straight top-12 finish in this coveted list.

“Some of the key pillars of Auburn University—and being a land-grant institution—are extension and outreach. Taking education to those who cannot arrange to be on our campus is something that has always been part of our core mission. As we approach the 30th anniversary of delivering distance education in the Harbert College of Business, this ranking confirms that our future is bright,” Parrish said.

Housed in the Harbert College of Business, Auburn’s MBA programs serve more than 580 students and an alumni network of more than 5,000. Auburn offers the MBA degree in full-time, online, executive and physicians executive formats, allowing students to choose the program that best accommodates their professional and personal demands.

More information about Auburn’s MBA programs is available by contacting MBA Admissions Advisor Julie Vaught at 334-844-4060 or mba@auburn.edu.