Melbourne Business School’s Executive MBA (EMBA) was the only Australian program to secure a place on the latest ranking of the world’s 100 best programs, with students reporting a 46% hike in salary three ears after graduating.
The FT Executive MBA rankings are one of seven that are published by the UK-based Financial Times. To determine the rankings, the Financial Times surveys graduates that completed their program three years ago focusing on their career progression since completion.
Alumni responses inform six ranking criteria: salary today; salary increase; career progress; work experience; aims achieved; and the new alumni network category, measuring the quality of networks, rated by surveyed graduates. Together, they account for 52 per cent of the ranking’s weight. The first two criteria on alumni salaries count for 31 per cent.
They also look at other factors including research, diversity of students and faculty, and the School’s carbon footprint.
Melbourne Business School’s EMBA was ranked 76th in 2024, down three places from last year. The MBS EMBA ranked highly for carbon footprint (6th) and career progression (28th).
The Melbourne EMBA program is condensed into 10 on-campus, 4-day residential weekend modules, with one Asia module, over 18 months. The 2025 program will commence in March next year and costs $125,100.
MBS graduates reported a post-MBA salary of $US164,400 ($AUD244,900) three years after graduating. The salary is down slightly from last year where students reported a post-EMBA earnings of $USD176,309 ($AUD262,651).
To determine average salaries, FT uses purchasing power parity rates, published by the International Monetary Fund, rather than normal currency exchange rates. All salary data are converted into $US equivalents. Unlike conventional current rates, PPP conversion factors take into account the cost of living in the country where a currency is used.
The FT report showed that while the age of EMBA students has remained roughly constant in recent years, their earnings three years after completing the course have dropped significantly in real terms.
Average salaries for those aged over 40 fell from a recent peak of $USD240,000 annually, in 2018, to $USD210,000, this year, after adjusting for inflation, with a similar decline for younger alumni.
Washington University-Fudan EMBA students reported the highest salary three years after graduating with an average of $USD627,737 ($AUD935,155).
Ceibs, founded through a partnership between the EU and the Chinese government in 1994, is ranked top by the FT for the first time — building on its second placing for the past four years. It is also the first time a school from the Asia-Pacific region has topped the table with a solo EMBA, not run in partnership with an institution elsewhere.
FT said Ceibs’ rise reflected, in part, high average alumni salaries of nearly $US537,000, after adjusting for purchasing power parity using IMF rates. All five of the highest salaries were recorded by China-based courses, all but one on joint EMBA programmes with a US partner.
Financial Times 2024 EMBA Rankings (Top 10)
| 2024 Rank | School | Location | Salary Today ($US) |
| 1 | Ceibs | China/Switzerland/Ghana | 536,759 |
| 2 | ESCP Business School | France/Germany/UK/Italy/Spain/Poland | 363,789 |
| 3 | Washington University: Olin | China/US | 627,737 |
| 4 | IESE Business School | Spain/US/Germany | 328,158 |
| 5 | Trium: HEC Paris/LSE/NYU: Stern | France/US/UK | 421,699 |
| 6 | MIT: Sloan | US | 406,328 |
| 7 | Arizona State University: WP Carey | China/US | 477,750 |
| 8 | EMBA-Global: Columbia/LBS | US/UK | 322,085 |
| 9 | Insead | France/UAE/Singapore | 346,472 |
| 10 | Fudan University School of Management | China | 480,536 |
| 10 | Yale School of Management | UK | 536,759 |
The recently released 2023 EMBAC Student Exit Survey, by the Executive MBA Council, revealed that EMBA graduates received an average 23.9 percent increase in compensation – combined, both salary and bonuses – after program completion.
The average salary and bonus package at program start for students in the 2023 survey was $USD193,215. By the end of the program, the average salary and bonus package rose to $USD239,312.
“These compensation hikes – while students are in the program – are one measure of the many ways the EMBA experience helps students advance their careers,” says Michael Desiderio, EMBAC executive director.
EMBA Programs encourage students to apply what they learn while attending classes to their workplace, says Desiderio.
“EMBA Programs offer numerous opportunities to leverage the new knowledge and skills that result from their EMBA experience in their jobs,” he says. “And organizations notice the transformation of EMBA students.”
In fact, 42 percent of students who completed the survey received a promotion during the program, up from 36 percent in 2021, and 52 percent reported increased responsibilities during the program, up from 49 percent in 2021.
EMBA graduates also appreciate the program’s benefits: They reported high levels of satisfaction with their EMBA experience, including the program quality. They are likely to recommend their program to a colleague or friend and to support the program as alumni.
In addition, graduates in the survey credit EMBA with helping them improve key business skills, as well as strengthening other abilities.
EMBA Programs help prepare students to lead during times of great change and uncertainty, which makes the program more relevant than ever, says Desiderio.
“In these days of almost-constant change, the skill sets that EMBA Programs help students develop allow them to adapt to rapid marketplace changes. They learn ways to nurture innovations, marshal their teams, and drive change that helps their organisations thrive.”
