Top 10 Executive MBA Programs in the US 2022

The Wharton School has been ranked the best business school for studying an Executive MBA in North America for the fourth year running in the QS EMBA Rankings by Region 2022.

Released today, the QS Global EMBA Rankings 2022 reveal the top Executive MBA programs around the world, as well as providing a regional breakdown to help you find a top school near you. The rankings also include a separate table of the best joint programs.

Find out more about the methodology used to produce the rankings.

10) Michigan Ross School of Business

Kicking off our top 10 EMBA programs in North America is the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business, which scored highly for both employer reputation and thought leadership, two of the indicators used to compile the ranking.

The Executive MBA program is 21 months in duration, with Class of 2023 students paying US$162,592 in tuition.

The class of 2023 is made up of 103 students with an average of 15 years' experience. 26 percent of the class are women with 23 percent international representation. The average age of candidates is 39, with 21 percent of students over 45. 

9) Columbia Business School

Situated in New York is Columbia Business School. Columbia’s flagship Executive MBA program can be completed either through the 20-month Friday/Saturday option, or the 24-month Saturday schedule.

Columbia’s EMBA program scored very highly for employer reputation and thought leadership in this year’s ranking. The current cohort is made up of 152 students with 48,000 alumni and 152 full-time faculty. That's one academic per student. 

Students enter the program with an average age of 32, an average of nine years’ work experience. Fees for students in 2022 are US$228,480. 32 percent women and 17 percent international students.

8) NYU Stern School of Business

Situated a stone’s throw away from the financial heart of the US, NYU Stern is one of two New York institutions featured in the top 10. Stern’s program scored very highly for employer reputation and thought leadership in particular.

Students on Stern’s EMBA program have an average of 14 years’ work experience. Of the class, 35 percent are female, 40 percent have an international background, and 30 percent hold an advanced graduate degree.

The 22-month program costs US$213,100.

7) Kellogg School of Management

Working our way towards the middle of the table is Kellogg School of Management’s Executive MBA program, however, the program does achieve its highest score for its reputation among employers, while also scoring highly for thought leadership.

Every year, EMBA participants at Kellogg congregate in Evanston for Global Network Week, and they’re also required to complete one set of global electives.

As a group, students on Kellogg’s EMBA meet either one weekend or two weekends a month. Women make up 35 percent of the class, while 20 percent are international students. The average age of an executive MBA student at Kellogg is 39, while they typically start the program with 15 years’ work experience. 46 percent of students are classed as a US minority. 

Students pay US$226,638 for the two-year program.

6) UCLA Anderson School of Management

Next, we venture to UCLA’s Anderson School of Management, which scored very highly in both employer reputation and thought leadership.

Anderson’s class has 137 students, with students averaging 14 years’ work experience and nine years’ management experience. Students work across 34 industries and 25 percent hold advanced level degrees.

The cohort also boasts 30 countries of origin. 40 percent of the class identify as female.

As classes are on the weekends with flexible scheduling (either biweekly or monthly), you’ll complete your EMBA in just 22 months. Past electives cover a broad range of topics including entrepreneurship, macroeconomics and management communication.

Fees for the two-year program are estimated at US$176,490.

5) Yale School of Management

Yale School of Management’s MBA for Executives is the next on our list, scoring very highly for employer reputation, thought leadership and career outcomes.

The program starts with a two-week in-residence session, then classes are held every other weekend on Friday and Saturday for 22 months.

The current EMBA class has 76 students enrolled, with an average of 14 years’ work experience. Almost half of the class, 47 percent, are women and the average age is 37. 

The program for students entering in July 2022 will be US$205,500.

4) Berkeley Haas School of Business

Located in the San Francisco Bay Area, Berkeley Haas’s MBA for Executives program scored a close to perfect score for thought leadership, and very highly for employer reputation.

The EMBA program at Haas promises a global experience, with an immersive course that will send you to Silicon Valley, Washington, DC, and global business hubs like Shanghai or São Paulo.

There are 71 students in the cohort, of which 30 percent are women and nine percent are underrepresented minorities. 44 percent of students were born outside of the US and the students have an average of 12 years’ work experience. 

The cost for the 22-month program in 2021 was US$196,000.

3) Chicago Booth School of Business

And we’ve reached our bronze medallist – Chicago Booth School of Business. Booth created the world’s first Executive MBA program in 1943, so it’s clear to see why the program retains its soar. Booth scored very highly across employer reputation, thought leadership, and career outcomes.

Depending on whether you study Booth’s EMBA program in the US or one of their other campuses, tuition fees will vary. Chicago’s program fees for June 2022 are US$198,500 for the 22-month program – which covers three residential weeks in Chicago, one in London, and one in Hong Kong.

The current cohort includes 225 students, 119 of which have advanced degrees. 48 nationalities are represented across the class, with 32 percent identifying as women. The average age is 38 and students have an average age of 38. 

2) MIT Sloan School of Management  

This year’s runner-up for the title of best Executive MBA program in North America is MIT Sloan, which earned a perfect score of 100 for thought leadership and also ranked extremely well for diversity and employer reputation.

The MIT Executive MBA is a 20-month program, with classes once every three weeks. There are four week-long modules, 26 weekend sessions (spaced about three weeks apart) for iterative development, and a one-week international project trip during the capstone Global Labs action learning experience.

The Class of 2023 has an average of 17 year's work experience. 60 percent of students have advanced degrees and 92 perfect have experience at director-level or above. The average age is 41, 50 percent of students are international and 67 percent come from outside of Illinois. 

Tuition payments (Class of 2024, matriculating September 2022) total US$192,000.

1) The Wharton School

And here we are, our winning program for North America yet again. The Wharton School’s MBA for Executives program – scoring very highly across all indicators – features a required one-week Global Business Week, and students can also take part in Global Modular Courses at locations such as Israel, India, Brazil and more.

Wharton’s Class of 2024 has 234 students, an average age of 37, 12 years’ work experience, and a median GMAT score of 710.

Students entering Wharton’s two-year program in 2022 paid US$214,800, but no need to worry, as Wharton grads note whopping salary increases – not too bad a return for the best EMBA in North America!