IIM-A 4th in The Economist’s good-value B-schools

The Economist has ranked India’s premier B school, Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, fourth among 20 leading schools globally in terms of return on investment for its students.

In its latest issue dated May 10, the newspaper ranks HEC Paris as the B school which offers the best returns of 67 per cent after one year, post an MBA.

Aston in the UK ranks second while the University of Hong Kong is third. Schools such as Insead, Harvard and Kellogg rank much lower; the latter is ranked 19{+t}{+h}.

The Economist’s chart shows the cost of an MBA at selected B-schools after taking into account tuition fees and forgone salary. Two-year courses, it says, at prestigious American institutions are the most expensive.

An MBA at Wharton costs $330,000 on an average, in part because it enrols well-paid executives.

But, it goes on to say that the immediate returns on such degrees is small as graduates tend to land jobs just a few notches above the ones they left. Cheaper shorter MBAs around the world offer better returns. IIM-A offers a 44 per cent return on investment, according to the newspaper. Still, Wharton alumni are “more likely to top the greasy pole in the long run,” it adds.

Ashish Nanda, Director, IIM-A, said: “ The Economist calculations are one measure of how economically rewarding our students find the IIMA experience to be. But returns from education at IIMA go beyond purely pecuniary returns to self. Our alumni consistently report that they find the IIM-A learning experience life-changing.”