Penn State Intercom......March 6, 2003

Smeal College of Business Administration
MBA programs climb in rankings

In the Financial Times' global rankings of the best MBA programs for 2003, The Smeal College of Business Administration is ranked sixth in the United States in the category of value for the money and 18th in the nation for placement success.

Overall, The Smeal College MBA Program ranks 48th in the world and 32nd among all MBA programs in the United States, up from last year's global ranking of 55th and domestic ranking of 37th, and well above the 2001 global ranking of 77th.

"Each year, rankings such as those in the Financial Times offer some insights into progress made at business schools around the world," said Judy Olian, dean of The Smeal College. "The rankings do not serve as the roadmap, but as helpful markers along the way. The Financial Times rankings provide an indication that our graduates are valued in the marketplace and benefit from an academic program that has one of the highest returns on investment in the country."

The Financial Times bases its rankings on responses from two questionnaires -- one from alumni who graduated three years ago and the other from business schools reflecting objective indicators of performance -- and an independent assessment of research in key academic and business journals. According to the Financial Times, its goal is to measure the relative strengths
in purchasing power in the marketplace; diversity of experience; and research
quality.

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