How Do the QS Distance Online Rankings 2018 Differ from Other Leading Rankings?

Published this week, the QS Distance Online MBA Rankings 2018 is one of the most comprehensive online MBA rankings lists on the market, ranking a staggering 50 online MBA programs from around the world.

We rank more global programs than any other leading organization’s rankings, with over nine countries represented in this year’s list of 50 schools, as well as three schools that are based across several nations, including the EuroMBA Consortium, EU Business School, and The Open University.

How does this compare to other leading rankings? In 2018, the Financial Times online MBA ranking listed 20 programs, from five different countries. Poets & Quants included 25 schools in their rankings, however, they only ranked US programs. US News ranked a huge 250 schools, but, similarly to Poets & Quants, only focused their attention on schools in the United States.

Why the weightings matter

One of the most important aspects of the QS rankings is employability, which is the ranking indicator with the highest weighting. The employability indicator includes school reputation perceptions from employers directly, which is something not found in any of the other rankings mentioned above.

Employer reputation is a vital component of all QS rankings as it allows an interested candidate to know what schools are thought of positively by employers and which they’re more likely to hire graduates from. While indicators used in other rankings, such as salary increase, can be an important metric for students to consider, it doesn’t tell the full story. This is why we always recommend students consult multiple rankings when trying to choose the right school and program for them.

How to use the QS Distance Online MBA Rankings 2018

If you’re considering undertaking an online MBA, the different ranking indicators can be really useful in deciding where to study for your MBA. While employability is the indicator that carries the highest weight in our rankings, you can also sort the schools according to five other indicators: student quality, establishment in the online market, faculty and teaching, class experience, and diversity (you can find out more about the methodology used in our rankings here).

So, if the face-to-face interaction you would receive on an online program is the most important consideration for you, you can sort the table according to this. Similarly, if you want to be in a diverse cohort, you can see which schools excel in this particular indicator.

As with all rankings, the most important thing is how it works for you and enables to you to make the right decision in choosing where to study.