IN A LETTER dated April 17, top leaders from AACSB International,
the European Foundation for Management Development, and the
Graduate Management Admission Council called for business
school rankings institutions to delay the next round of
rankings. Written in coordination with the MBA Career
Services and Employer Alliance, the letter was addressed
to Bloomberg Businessweek, The Economist, Forbes,
The Financial Times, QS World University Rankings, and
U.S. News & World Report. The letter argues that business
schools are focused on helping their students and communities
navigate the COVID-19 crisis. Furthermore, with travel curtailed,
study and work abroad programs will be significantly affected.
“Business school deans and administrators have always understood
the impact outside forces have on their mission to develop
diverse, high-level talent in their classrooms. Traditionally, such
forces have included economic fluctuations, trade wars, advances
in technology, and political factors. The forces we face today are
extraordinary,” the letter reads. “Therefore, we strongly advocate
that all rankings institutions postpone their work and publication on
business school rankings, to provide business schools worldwide
the opportunity to rebound in these tumultuous circumstances.”
The letter was signed by AACSB’s former president and CEO
Thomas Robinson, EFMD’s president Eric Cornuel, and GMAC’s
president and CEO Sangeet Chowfla. The three emphasize the
“unknown impacts” the pandemic crisis will have on metrics
that traditionally drive the rankings. These include disruptions
to enrollments, recruitment, student mobility, and job
placement that could skew rankings results.
“At the same time, we are seeing business schools
respond to the emergent needs of businesses, local communities,
and learners in agile and innovative ways that carry the
opportunity for new areas of measurement; also a critical aspect
of the rankings discussion,” Robinson, Cornuel, and Chowfla write.
“We believe a collaborative dialogue will lead to stronger, more valid
outcomes in the end, for all stakeholders.”
On May 7, Bloomberg Businessweek announced that it would
suspend its 2020 rankings of MBA programs.