The Australian Graduate School of Management’s AGSM online MBA, dubbed MBAx, has cemented itself as the top online course in Australia, as well as one of the best in the world after securing a spot in the Financial Times’ annual ranking.
Despite falling four places from last year, the AGSM online MBA retained its top ten position, beating out some of the world’s most prestigious business schools in the process. It’s the only online MBA delivered by an Australian university to feature in the annual list.
READ:AGSM Scores Top 50 In World-Wide Business School Report
The FT Rankings have strict entry criteria and are based on a survey that consists of two parts; one that evaluates alumni salary and experience on the program, and the other, information about the school.
AGSM online MBA graduates reported an annual salary of $US124,308 ($160,500) three years after graduating, up 28% on their pre-MBA salary.
Director AGSM and Deputy Dean UNSW Business School, Professor Nick Wailes, said the MBAx was responding to two major trends: the desire by prospective students for greater flexibility and their interest in combining a world class MBA with an area of specialisation.
“For busy working professionals, the opportunity to study where and when they want is increasingly important,” he said.
“MBAX is an innovative program that entered the prestigious Financial Times rankings for the first time in 2016. We have a strong digital heritage and are continually building on our online course content, making it easily accessible through various educational technologies.”
He said the AGSM online MBA continued to enjoy very strong enrolment growth in each of the specialisations on offer: technology, change and social impact.
“This year we will be expanding the specialisations we offer in this program to include a finance specialisation,” he said. “This focusses on the needs of executives inside organisations that are preparing themselves for senior commercial roles. It will help provide them with the background in corporate finance that they need to successful make this transition.”
FT 2018 Online MBA Rankings – Top Ten
| 2018 Rank | 2017 Rank | Business school | Country | Programme name | Salary today (US$) | Salary increase (%) |
| 1 | 2 | Warwick Business School | UK | Warwick MBA by Distance Learning | $182,994 | 34 |
| 2 | 1 | IE Business School | Spain | Global MBA | $184,030 | 39 |
| 3 | 3 | University of Massachusetts Amherst: Isenberg | US | Isenberg Online MBA | $168,088 | 32 |
| 4 | 7 | Indiana University: Kelley | US | Kelley Online MBA | $141,353 | 28 |
| 5 | 9 | Durham University Business School | UK | Durhan Online MBA | $140,258 | 27 |
| 6 | 8 | Babson College: Olin | US | Babson MBA Blended Learning | $167,386 | 26 |
| 7 | 5 | University of Florida: Hough | US | Hybrid Online MBA | $122,117 | 34 |
| 8 | 4 | AGSM at UNSW Business School | Australia | MBAx | $124,308 | 28 |
| 9 | 11 | Arizona State University: Carey | US | Carey Online MBA | $120,744 | 36 |
| 10 | 6 | George Washington University | US | Online MBA | $169,740 | 19 |
The AGSM online MBA ranked 6th for value for money, with an average of a 28% average difference in alumni salary on graduation from the MBA to now, and 6th for International Mobility.
The FT Rankings have strict entry criteria and are based on a survey that consists of two parts; one that evaluates alumni salary and experience on the program, and the other, information about the school.
The average salary of alumni from FT-ranked online MBAs generally matches that of their counterparts from the FT’s top 100 full-time MBAs. The online class of 2014 receive an average salary of $US147,000, slightly higher than the $US146,000 for full-time students. The classes of 2013 had salaries of $140,000 and $142,000 respectively.
However, there is a contrast between the salary increases seen by alumni of the different degrees. Online graduates had an average salary rise of about 32 per cent, significantly below the 107 per cent enjoyed by the campus alumni.
They have reached similar salaries but at different stages of their careers.
The online MBA graduates are now about 40 years old on average — six years older than their full-time equivalents — and their salary was about 60 per cent higher at enrolment for their course.
