WKU News

The Gordon Ford College of Business’s Online MBA Program was recently ranked No. 72 nationally by U.S. News for the second year running, a big leap from No. 138, the position the program held three years ago.

Upon entering the program, 87 percent of students are already employed. This particular MBA program is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), which is a highly-respected worldwide accreditation. The MBA program is also rated highly on geteducated.com, a highly-respected online MBA program information and ranking site.

WKU’s program prides itself on striving for student success by offering an outstanding curriculum and affordability, both of which formulated to aid full-time workers obtain a degree while staying employed. 

“Its the faculty, the selection of students, and the curriculum that work — they really work,” said Dr. Bob Hatfield, Associate Dean for Graduate Programs and Research in the GFCB.

The program aims for 24 students to a class, at about five classes a bi-term. The students enrolled range anywhere from 20 to 70 years old, most of them in their mid-30s to 40s. Dr. Hatfield is adamant that being ranked No. 72 is a tribute to the faculty, who are all professors within the university, as well as the students in the program.

ETS issues a major field test for MBA students which qualifies as their exit exam. WKU students averaged in the top 10 percent of all students within MBA programs across the country.

“Everyone is on their own plan,” Hatfield said. “Its the ultimate flexible program!”

To calculate the ranking, U.S. News surveys nearly 450 master's-level business programs at regionally accredited institutions that deliver classes predominantly online. Programs were ranked based on their success as promoting student engagement, the training and credentials of the faculty, the selectivity of their admissions process, the services adn technologies available to remote learners, and the opinions of deans and other academics in the disciplines at peer distance-education programs. For more information about the ranking methodology, visit usnews.com/onlinedegrees. 

More information about the WKU MBA program can be found at: https://www.wku.edu/mba/