ESADE in the Financial Times European Business School Ranking

Written by Ivan Bofarull Viu, Director for Global Strategic Initiatives at ESADE

The Financial Times European Business School Ranking is unlike any other ranking because it analyses business schools as a whole rather than just the programmes they offer. Using a simple methodology, it aggregates the various programme-based rankings (Masters of Science, MBA, Executive MBA, and Open and Custom Executive Education) published by the Financial Times over the course of the year.

In 2008, ESADE took 11th place in the European Business School Ranking. Since then, the school has steadily climbed through the ranks to reach its current #3 position – just behind IE Business School and HEC, tied with London Business School, and just ahead of INSEAD and IESE – in the list of 75 European business schools. Beyond specific results and positions, the most relevant conclusion to be drawn from this aggregate ranking is that the six institutions mentioned above are forming a consolidated high-end business school cluster in Europe.

ESADE’s solid, consistent membership in this cluster is relevant for several reasons. First, because the business-school world is highly fragmented at both the global and European levels, it is fundamental that ESADE’s flagship courses – such as the Full-Time MBA and the MSc programmes – and its overall brand be situated in this leading cluster. Belonging to this elite club is essential to attracting top-notch international students and faculty, as well as the best recruiting companies. 


Second, because of the accelerating pace of globalisation – which affects much of ESADE’s portfolio – membership in top international academic alliances is viewed as an indicator of a school’s reputation. In order to enter top-tier alliances in the United States, Asia and Latin America, a European school must be among the continent’s top five or six institutions. 


Third, breaking into Europe’s top 5% – as in this aggregate ranking – encourages an academic institution to keep innovating and maintain its excellence. If ESADE is ranked in the top 5% of Europe, then our students are probably also among the top 5% of the continent’s potential applicants. In a 2010 study, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) revealed the “virtuous circle" effect of rankings: the higher a school’s ranking, the better its ability to attract students, the better its selection capacity and the better its placement. The study found, however, that this effect only holds true for the top 20% of business schools. In other words, for the bottom 80%, the rankings cause indifference or a slight negative impact; for the top 20%, however, the rankings attract more students and allow the schools to become more selective. In today’s global environment, rankings cause the demand for top schools to snowball. ESADE has managed to enter the global top 20% in all of the important rankings, and its showing in the Financial Times European Business School Ranking reflects its solid position across the board.


Finally, other analyses have shown that business schools with a solid mission and a strong differentiation capacity are better situated to “decouple" from the rankings, such that both positive and negative results have a much smaller effect. For a rapidly transforming business school that aspires to global relevance, the greatest virtue is to maintain an ongoing dialogue between the forces that shape the market – of which rankings are the most iconic indicator – and the permanence and singularity of its mission and differential value.