Introduction
Career success and leadership impact define the value of an MBA program. For 2025, CareerDNA has analyzed the career trajectories of 1.9 million MBA alumni with more than five years of post-graduation experience as of 2024. Our rankings focus on a balanced measure of career success probability (the proportion of alumni reaching divisional leadership or above, scaled to a maximum of 73) and success velocity (how quickly they achieve these milestones, also scaled to a maximum of 73).
This unique approach highlights the MBA programs that produce not just leaders, but leaders who rise at the right pace.
Section 1: The Top 10 MBA Programs for 2025
Based on the combined total of Success Probability and Success Velocity, these are the top MBA programs:
- Saïd Business School, University of Oxford
- Career Success Probability: 65/73
- Success Velocity: 71/73
- Total: 136/146 (Best in the world for balanced career impact)
- Warwick Business School, University of Warwick
- Career Success Probability: 51/73
- Success Velocity: 67/73
- Total: 118/146
- Cranfield School of Management
- Career Success Probability: 69/73
- Success Velocity: 47/73
- Total: 116/146
- Henley Business School
- Career Success Probability: 64/73
- Success Velocity: 52/73
- Total: 116/146
- London Business School
- Career Success Probability: 68/73
- Success Velocity: 48/73
- Total: 116/146
- Hult International Business School
- Career Success Probability: 49/73
- Success Velocity: 64/73
- Total: 113/146
- INSEAD
- Career Success Probability: 71/73
- Success Velocity: 39/73
- Total: 110/146
- Stanford University Graduate School Of Business
- Career Success Probability: 72/73
- Success Velocity: 38/73
- Total: 110/146
- AGSM @ UNSW Business School
- Career Success Probability: 56/73
- Success Velocity: 53/73
- Total: 109/146
- Columbia Business School
- Career Success Probability: 70/73
- Success Velocity: 33/73
- Total: 103/146
Section 2: The Standouts
Oxford Saïd takes the crown as the best MBA program in the world, offering a perfect balance between the number of alumni achieving leadership roles and the speed of their success.
The only three business schools with a consistent track record of a high proportion of alumni reaching senior management were Harvard, Stanford, and INSEAD, but all three ranked in the bottom half of the world MBA rankings due to the time it took for their alumni to get to this level. For some cohorts, there was a lag of five or more years compared to the consistent median of other schools. This reflects the career volatility that almost all executives experience, with only INSEAD preparing to take a novel approach to support alumni in these transitions.
Programs like the University of Warwick and ESCP Business School excel in the speed with which their alumni reach a senior level, i.e., that of divisional leadership or above.
Section 3: Why This Ranking Matters
While other rankings rely on reputation or subjective surveys, CareerDNA’s methodology is rooted in hard data. By standardizing and analyzing the careers of over 1.9 million MBA alumni, we ensure the rankings reflect the real-world career impact of these programs.
These ranks are in fact a by-product of our core work. We help business schools and universities to become better launch pads for their alumni, both by identifying short-term solutions, such as approaching the most effective recruiters for their schools, and long-term calibration by demonstrating where in their careers alumni struggle on a school- and sector-specific basis. Our services can be found on this page, where we highlight everything we offer for free.
Section 4: How to Use These Rankings
If you’re deciding which MBA program to attend, consider both career success probability (which reflects long-term potential) and success velocity (which shows short-term acceleration). Choose a program that aligns with your career goals and preferred pace of growth.
For those of you already in employment, you can gauge your current career success metrics for free at CareerDNA, where you'll see your salary and progress comparisons for free and with minimal input.
