November 18, 2019. Shanghai – CEIBS’ Global EMBA programme has now placed fifth in the world – and first amongst independent (non-joint) programmes in Asia – for the second consecutive year with the release of the latest Financial Times global Executive MBA ranking today. This January, the school’s MBA programme was also ranked fifth by the Financial Times, further highlighting the strength and international influence of CEIBS in the field of management education.

“This year marks the 25^th anniversary of the founding of CEIBS and this achievement is a big gift to add to the celebration,” CEIBS President Li Mingjun said. “Over the past 25 years, CEIBS has witnessed the rapid development of China’s economy. During that time, CEIBS has grown into a leading, world-class business school. As China begins to play a more significant role in economic globalisation, the focus of global management education is gradually shifting east. The future calls for talents with both international vision and China wisdom, and CEIBS has assumed the responsibility of cultivating more corporate leaders.”

Due to its stringent standards for participation and diverse criteria, the Financial Times’ annual ranking has become one of the most widely recognised business school rankings in the global management education community. The rankings are based on a comprehensive assessment of 16 categories, covering graduate career progress, school diversity, and teaching and research levels. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) was also included in the ranking review criteria for the second time in 2019.

“With this latest news, for the first time, our EMBA and MBA programmes have ranked in the top ten in the world for two consecutive years,” CEIBS Vice President and Dean Ding Yuan said. “There has been relatively little movement at the very top of the ranking and this is a sign that the market for global management education is reaching a point of maturity. As a business school rooted in China, CEIBS’ success in ranking in the top five for two consecutive years highlights the rise of management education in China and Asia. It also shows the school’s efforts in promoting globalisation have paid off.”

Taking a closer look at the categories factored into the ranking, CEIBS’ Global EMBA graduates have again achieved remarkable results in terms of “salary level” and “salary increase”. CEIBS finished in third place in the world in terms of “salary level”, and has remained in the world’s top five for seven consecutive years. In addition, the school’s “career progress”, “work experience” and “aims achieved” rankings moved up more than ten places each. CEIBS also ranked seventh in terms of “career progress”, where it entered the top ten in the world for the first time. The jump in rankings in these categories corresponds with the increased level of satisfaction alumni have with CEIBS. The school has long been committed to providing excellent service for students and alumni, creating a strong sense of belonging for its alumni community.

In the category of “international faculty”, CEIBS jumped three spots from 2018, while at the same time moving up two positions each in the categories of “international students” and “international course experience”. These results further support the fact that the Global EMBA programme delivers an international, multi-cultural learning experience for students.

The CEIBS Global EMBA programme also leverages its overseas campuses and a strong network of partner schools to facilitate overseas modules at locations on five continents, including Switzerland, the US, Brazil, Israel, India, Ghana and Southeast Asia. These opportunities serve to further enrich the international experience of students.

Equally striking, the school’s “FT research rank” increased 18 places, thus confirming the strength of academic research at CEIBS. Since 2014, CEIBS’ professors have ranked first on Elsevier’s list of most highly cited scholars in China in the category of “Business, Management and Accounting”. In 2017, the school also launched its Real Situation Learning Method^TM, combining classroom learning with real-world experiences where students can visit companies and meet face-to-face with company executives.

“Academic research is an important criterion in business school rankings, and the ‘FT research rank’ is based on both the total and average number of articles published by a school’s current full-time faculty in 50 globally-recognised top economics and management journals,” CEIBS Associate Dean (Research) and Professor of Economics and Finance Xu Bin said. “After many years of continuous effort, CEIBS has established an effective system of faculty research management and incentive policies, which has greatly enhanced faculty research activity and creativity. The big increase of CEIBS’ ’FT research rank’ is a natural reflection of this continuous effort.”

CEIBS’ “corporate social responsibility rank” also rose ten spots, reflecting the various efforts of the school in promoting CSR. CEIBS was the first business school on the Chinese mainland to promote CSR and it holds a series of CSR-related activities each year to encourage alumni to elevate social responsibility to the level of corporate development strategy.

“The CEIBS Global EMBA programme continues to keep pace with the latest economic trends and optimise our curriculum,” CEIBS Global EMBA Director, Associate Dean and Professor of Operations Management Nikolaos Tsikriktsis said. “At the same time, the programme contributes Chinese know-how to overseas companies entering the Chinese market, and has helped usher in the globalisation of Chinese enterprises.”

Earlier this month, the CEIBS 25^th Anniversary Celebration was held at the school’s Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen campuses. Over the past quarter of a century, with the support of the Chinese government and the European Union, CEIBS has realised many remarkable achievements. Looking ahead, the school will continue to adhere to its motto of “Conscientiousness, Innovation and Excellence”, to focus on China and to contribute to betterment of the world.