Report: Rankings Reign

Research probes nation's MBA programs

KNOXVILLE -- Media rankings of colleges and university MBA programs matter.

That according to a research study done by Nissa Dahlin-Brown, assistant director of the Howard H. Baker Center for Public Policy at the University of Tennessee.

Dahlin-Brown's study, "The Perceptual Impact of U.S. News & World Report Rankings on Eight Public MBA Programs," was published in the June 2006 issue of the Journal of Marketing for Higher Education.

Three criteria drive rankings

U.S.  News officials said rankings are based on the following:

Dahlin-Brown interviewed 45 faculty and administrators.  Those officials represented eight unnamed colleges and universities.

Study finds four themes                                    

• First, rankings matter.
  

"Rankings catch the attention of prospective students, parents, and employers," she said.  "Schools that rank well win praise from legislators, trustees, and alumni."

• Seconds, rankings impact policy and practice.
  

Those interviewed said the desire to be a top-ranked MBA school had prompted their institutions to adopt some controversial practices, such as doing away with undergraduate programs to provide more resources for MBA programs.

• Thirdly, rankings may be based more on appearance than substance.
  

Dahlin-Brown's study quotes on person interviewed as saying, "I think these rankings, no matter how systematic they are, tend to be beauty contests."

• Finally, rankings are generally thought to be correct.
  

Although most participants thought U.S. News' top-ranked schools were the nations best, they said that's partly because those schools have good overall reputations.

Academic achievement not measured

"Most participants agreed that the U.S. News ranking did not measure the academic excellence of the (MBA) school they ranked," the study states.

"While some think rankings are helpful to prospective students, others think the rankings are time-consuming endeavors that have little or no constructive value," Dahlin-Brown said.