AFR BOSS 2009 MBA Survey

The table below lists the 18 schools that we ranked. For more information on how we conducted the survey, and further details about programs, courses and fees, see below.

AFR BOSS SURVEY: 2009 MBA RANKINGS

Rank	School	First year of MBA	Accreditations	Tuition fees FT domestic students	Average class size (core subjects)	New MBA students enrolled to March 31, 2009	Class contact hours MBA course	% teachers with PhD #	% teachers with current business experience #	% students with at least u/grad degree	% female students	% international students
1	Melbourne Business School	1963	EQUIS	$54,000	45	294	720	85.3	94.1	99.0	24.5	22.8
2	Monash Graduate School of Business – Monash University	1968	EQUIS, AMBA	$46,400	45	125	624	72.0	100	100	32.0	16.0
3	Macquarie Graduate School of Management	1969	EQUIS	$50,400	40	158	640	65.6	100	96.2	36.7	19.6
4	Australian School of Business/AGSM	1977	AACSB	$57,120	40	267	144	75.8	71.0	95.9	28.8	3.7
5	University of Western Australia Business School ˆ	1973	EQUIS	$36,000	25	145	432	75.8	55.8	100	38.6	32.4
6	University of South Australia – International Graduate School of Business	1980	EQUIS	$26,400	29	256	396	50.0	43.8	79.8	34.0	5.9
7	UQ Business School – University of Queensland ˆ	1972	EQUIS, AACSB	$39,600	22	71	504	100	63.6	100	39.4	5.6
8	La Trobe University – Graduate School of Management	1994		$30,800	22	289	624	75.6	100	100	45.0	64.0
9	Curtin University of Technology – Graduate School of Business	1988	AMBA	$34,200	34	518	500	49.2	82.7	100	37.1	8.1
10	Brisbane Graduate School of Business - Queensland University of Technology	1989	AACSB, AMBA, EQUIS	$38,880	26	126	504	74.1	39.7	100	32.5	19.8
11	University of Technology Sydney (UTS) – Faculty of Business	1980	AACSB	$39,840	38	353	640	47.0	34.7	92.6	40.8	47.0
12	Deakin Business School – Deakin University	1980		$27,220	33	328	432	88.0	67.6	100	32.9	13.1
13	University of the Sunshine Coast – Faculty of Business ˆ	1997		$27,000	25	34	432	68.6	14.3	88.2	8.8	35.3
14	RMIT University – Graduate School of Business	1974		$31,680	27	257	432	68.4	100	59.1	33.9	3.1
15	Sydney Graduate School of Management – University of Western Sydney	1990		$34,200	22	76	480	71.4	28.6	73.7	19.7	14.5
16	Charles Sturt University – Faculty of Business	1989		$19,920	N/A	161	N/A	69.6	26.8	100	36.6	0.0
17	Chifley Business School	1989		$1450/unit	N/A	243	N/A	44.4	77.8	81.1	16.5	29.6
18	Graduate School of Business – University of New England	1991		$1500/unit	N/A	171	N/A	85.7	8.0	60.2	39.8	2.3

# all staff (full-time and part-time) ˆ distance education provider only. All unisa IGSB domestic students study part-time only.

Further details about schools

* What distinguishes one school from another. Click here to download the pdf.

* Which courses each school offers, plus tuition fees. Click here to download the pdf.

How we did it

Research for the 2009 AFR BOSS MBA rankings was conducted by Financial Review Business Intelligence, based on the latest available data to August 24. Results are based on two major components: an alumni survey worth 60 per cent and a schools questionnaire worth the remaining 40 per cent. This year for the first time, the schools questionnaire included a question probing the research output of the schools. In keeping with international surveys, AFR BOSS ranking criteria includes entry requirements, faculty qualifications - with a bias towards academic degrees and business experience (recent and current).

A record number of alumni responded to this year's survey. We invited graduates who completed 12-unit MBAs in 2006, 2007 and 2008 to participate; 1732 filled out the online survey. Almost three-quarters of respondents were male. The majority (56 per cent) were in their 30s when they completed their MBAs. Twenty-two schools participated in this year's survey, but only 18 made it onto our ranking table. Due to insufficient alumni responses, we were unable to include Bond, Griffith, Wollongong and Swinburne universities.

Rank tank

Despite business schools' consistent criticism of rankings, our top schools nonetheless fight it out for their place in the sun in the international rankings. They include:
* Financial Times 2009 global MBA rankings: AGSM (No. 32); MBS (No. 52)
* Economist Intelligence Unit 2008 top MBAs: MBS (No. 26); Monash (No. 47);
MGSM (No. 57); Curtin (No. 94) * Forbes 2009 best non-US MBA programs (two-year programs): AGSM (No. 9)

The top-ranked schools worldwide are: * Financial Times 2009 global MBA rankings: University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business; London Business School (equal first); Harvard Business School
* Economist Intelligence Unit 2008 top MBAs: IMD, Switzerland; IESE Business School, University of Navarra, Spain; Booth School of Business, University of Chicago
* Forbes 2009 best in US: Stanford; Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth; Harvard.

In Australia, the Graduate Management Association of Australia gives 11 Australian MBA programs an equal five-star rating, and the Good Universities Guide to MBA and Management Courses (2010 edition out this month) rates a wide variety of criteria.

Alumni survey prizewinners

AFR BOSS thanks the alumni and schools who participated in 2009. From the 1732 alumni who submitted entries, we selected 10 prizewinners, who have been notified. The winners received five exclusive gift packs from Italian luxury goods retailer Bvlgari and five wine packs from Hunter Valley wine group Hope Estate.

Please direct any queries regarding the MBA rankings to boss@afr.com.au