The holidays are here…and it’s time to look back.
Nostalgia? A little, maybe. After all, this is the time to slow down, to see how far we’ve come…and start preparing for the year ahead. If anything, reflecting enables us to see the bigger picture – the events that shaped the current year…and the underlying shifts that will shape the coming year.
New priorities, new degrees, new players – that was 2025 in graduate business education, a time when AI continued to dominate the conversation. This time around, it wasn’t always the big names driving progress. American University’s Kogod School has been busy integrating AI across its business curriculum, be it sustainability, analytics, or entrepreneurship. At the University of Toronto’s Rotman School, faculty has implemented an AI teaching assistant that answers students’ questions and reports back their levels of comprehension. Across the Pacific, Anand Nandkumar, an Indian School of Business professor, has weaved together AI chatbots and virtual reality modules so students can truly experience the content. If that isn’t enough, Indiana University’s Kelley School has authored a ‘playbook’ to help faculty incorporate AI into their courses. More than that, Kelley shared it with all of its rival schools. Talk about confidence!
NEW DEGREES & FACILITIES
Speaking of innovation, Babson College – long known for its ETA (Entrepreneurial Thought and Action) model – has rolled out an Entrepreneurial Leadership model, which combines research on neuroscience and interpersonal skills to show how entrepreneurs can successfully build teams and scale ventures. EDHEC Business School continued to set the pace in sustainability, launching a Center for Net Positive Business, while enhancing signature programming like the Sustainable Impact Challenge and the Sustainable Impact Projects. By the same token, ESCP – P&Q’s reigning Business School of the Year – is putting the finishing touches on its School of Technology, a management program that will immerse business students in AI, Blockchain, coding, and cybersecurity.
Business schools have also been busy with new facilities. This fall, the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School and the University of Illinois’ Gies College opened Bell Hall and Wymer Hall respectively, representing a combined 150,000 square feet for classrooms, studios, and study space. Meanwhile, Purdue University’s Daniels Business School broke ground on a new 164,000 square foot facility in April, while the Wharton School announced that it would be relocating its San Francisco campus to new digs. That doesn’t count New York University’s Stern School and IIM Ahmedabad opening campuses in Abu Dhabi and Dubai respectively.
And there were plenty of new degree programs in 2025 too. Notably, Michigan State’s Broad College and UNLV’s Lee Business School are starting online MBA programs. Dartmouth College’s Tuck School, long-known for catering exclusively to on-campus MBAs, has ventured into the online space with Executive Sprints. And if you’re looking for the most unique MBA program, pay a visit to the University of Central Florida. It is offering an online Space MBA that emphasizes commercialization in the field.
Such programming and facilities require funding. Let’s just say alumni and friends were especially generous to business schools in 2025. Konstantin Sokolov, an alum of the University of Chicago’s Booth School, doled out $100-million dollars to its Executive BA program. Tack onto that another combined $31-million from donors for Booth’s health, Civil Scholars, and family business programming. At the University of Delaware’s Lerner College, a $71.5-million gift from Robert and Kathleen Marie Siegfried will help fund Siegfried Hall, replete with state-of-the-art classrooms and research and computer labs. Arizona State’s W. P. Carey School, already a leader in operations and logistics, took home $35-million to bolster its supply chain resources. Indeed, the well-heeled found business schools to be a sound investment in 2025. Northwestern University’s Kellogg School pulled in a $35-million gift for research, while the University of Utah’s Eccles School raked in $20-million for entrepreneurship. That’s the same amount as the University of Texas’ McCombs School and the University of Iowa’s Tippie College generated for leadership programming and facility upgrades respectively.
Stanford GSB Dean Sarah Soule
LOTS OF TURNOVER AMONG BUSINESS SCHOOL DEANS
With every new year, there comes new leadership. Last January, Sarah Soule became the first woman to serve as dean for the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Across the bay, Jennifer Chatman moved from interim to full-time dean of UC Berkeley’s Haas School. This year, there were several top business schools hiring new deans: MIT (Sloan), New York University (Stern), Indiana University (Kelley), University of Florida (Warrington), University of Rochester (Simon), and Southern Methodist University (Cox). At the same time, there were several programs that found themselves with an opening at the top: Carnegie Mellon University (Tepper), University of Texas (McCombs), University of Georgia (Terry), and the University of Toronto (Rotman). In breaking news, Scott Beardsley, dean of the Darden School, is now living every dean’s dream. He was elevated to being the president of the University of Virginia.
Alas, the University of Virginia has been in the crosshairs of the Trump administration over claims of civil rights violations. This year, business schools definitely experienced a shift in political fortunes. The Wharton School, for one, rebranded its DEI concentration. All the while, MBA programs like the Kellogg School and the McCombs School severed their partnerships with the Consortium. Several business schools also found themselves in the headlines…for all the wrong reasons. Professor Shai Davidai, an outspoken critic of Columbia Business School’s response to anti-Israel campus protests, left his post after being cleared during a school investigation. Doğukan Günaydın, an MBA student at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School, was detained by ICE over a DUI conviction that opened the door to deportation for the non-citizen. At Harvard Business School, Francesca Gino and administration continued their back-and-forth accusations (and suits) over ongoing plagiarism claims. At the same time, Wharton and Stanford GSB MBA students went public over their discontent with their education.
That said, the year brought several bright spots. Three programs – Stanford GSB, Dartmouth Tuck, and the University of Miami’s Herbert Business School – all celebrated their 100-year anniversaries in 2025. USC’s Marshall School managed to land Snoop Dog as its graduation speaker. At Indiana University, the Hoosier football team achieved an unbeaten season and a Big 10 title. The team was led by Fernando Mendoza, a Heisman winner and first-year MBA student at IU’s Kelley School.
Want to learn more about these stories – and hundreds more? We’ve got you covered with our school-by-school story listing of all the top MBA stories from 2025.
MEET THE CLASS
Meet IIM Kozhikode’s PGP-BL Class Of 2025
Meet Carnegie Mellon Tepper’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet The China Europe International Business School (CEIBS) Class Of 2026
Meet The Indian Institute Of Management Ahmedabad MBA Class Of 2025
Meet The Imperial College Business School MBA Class Of 2025
Meet Chicago Booth’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet The Indian School Of Business PGP Class Of 2025
Meet Harvard Business School’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet Wharton’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet Columbia Business School’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet Duke Fuqua’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet The Alliance Manchester MBA Class Of 2026
Meet Yale SOM’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet The Georgia Tech Scheller MBA Class Of 2026
Meet Virginia Darden’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet UCLA Anderson’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet Dartmouth Tuck’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet The Texas McCombs MBA Class Of 2026
Meet The Minnesota Carlson MBA Class Of 2026
Meet The Stanford GSB MBA Class Of 2026
Meet Washington Olin’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet Georgetown McDonough’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet INSEAD’s MBA Class Of 2025
Meet The Michigan Ross MBA Class Of 2026
Meet Toronto Rotman’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet The Washington Foster MBA Class Of 2026
Meet Vanderbilt Owen’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet Notre Dame Mendoza’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet The Rice Jones MBA Class Of 2026
Meet IESE Business School’s MBA Class Of 2026
Meet Oxford Saïd’s MBA Class Of 2025
Meet The MBA Class Of 2027: Students Today, Leaders Tomorrow, Innovators Always
Meet The Texas A&M Mays MBA Class Of 2025
Meet North Carolina Kenan-Flagler’s MBA Class Of 2027
Meet Emory Goizueta’s MBA Class Of 2027
Meet IIM Bangalore’s EPGP Class Of 2026
Meet Wharton’s MBA Class Of 2027
Meet IMD Business School’s MBA Class Of 2025
Meet McKinsey & Company’s MBA Class Of 2024
Meet NYU Stern’s MBA Class Of 2027
Meet Chicago Booth’s MBA Class Of 2027
Meet Duke Fuqua’s MBA Class Of 2027
Meet The Indian Institute Of Management Calcutta MBAEx Class Of 2026
10 BUSINESS SCHOOLS TO WATCH
10 Business Schools To Watch In 2025
(Northwestern Kellogg, EDHEC, Vanderbilt Owen, IESE, Dartmouth Tuck, IMD, Indiana Kelley, Carnegie Mellon Tepper, Wharton, ESSEC)
10 Undergraduate Business Schools To Watch In 2025
10 Best European MBA Programs: Where Future Global Leaders Thrive
(INSEAD, London Business School, IESE, Cambridge Judge, IMD, HEC Paris, IE Business School, Oxford Said, SDA Bocconi, ESMT Berlin)
MEET THE ALUMNI
Meet The HEC Paris EMBA Alumni
Meet The 2025 ClimateCAP Fellows: Motivated To Make A Difference
What Does Success Mean To You? What I’ve Learned From Executives, Leaders, Artists, MBAs & Students
STEM SCHOOLS
‘STEMB’ Is The New Strategy: Why Tech-Linked MBAs Are Shaping The Future Of Business
(MIT Sloan, Imperial, Stanford GSB, Polimi, Nanyang, Carnegie Mellon, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Alliance Manchester, TUM, Georgia Tech)
2025-2026 SCHEDULE
2025-2026 MBA Admissions Events By School
2025-2026 MBA Application Deadlines At Leading Business Schools
ADAM SMITH BUSINESS SCHOOL
How Adam Smith Business School Prepares Students For The World — Not Just The Job Market
UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA (MANDERSON)
The University Of Alabama’s Manderson Graduate School Of Business Offers Options
Building A Core Of Support At Manderson
Back In Business With The University Of Alabama MBA
ALLIANCE MANCHESTER
Why These Female Business Leaders Chose The Manchester Global Executive MBA
How The Hybrid MSc In Financial Management Is Reshaping Careers
American University’s Kogod Business School rose 70 spots in Corporate Knights’ 2024 sustainability MBA ranking.
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY (KOGOD)
AI Isn’t Taking Your Job – But Someone Who Knows AI Will | Kogod School of Business
American Kogod Dean: How Higher Ed is Missing The AI Revolution
A Dean’s Silicon Valley Trip Leads To An AI Partnership With Perplexity
American University’s Kogod School Launches AI Institute
How One Student-Led Seed Fund Targets Startups In AI, Sustainability & Impact
P&Q Perspectives: AI & The MBA: Building Future-Ready Leaders
Where Entertainment Meets Business: Inside Kogod’s BAE Program
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY IN BEIRUT
American University Of Beirut’s B-School Dean: ‘We’ve Been Operating In Crisis Mode For Years’
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY IN CAIRO
‘Beginning Of A New Journey’: 2025 Dawns Bright At The American University In Cairo
UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA (ELLER)
This B-School Is Launching 4 — Yes, 4 — New Programs This Summer & Fall
One-Of-A-Kind: University Of Arizona Introduces Business & Engineering Degree
ARIZONA STATE (W. P. CAREY)
Carey Leads The Way With Mindful AI Business Education
Carey Evening MBA Graduates Lead With Purpose
First To The Finish: ASU’s Pioneering AI In Business Program Has Its First Grad
P&Q Perspectives: AI & The MBA: Building Future-Ready Leaders
Maximizing The ROI Of A Business Graduate Degree With W. P. Carey
The Ways Business Graduate School Drives Entrepreneurship
How W. P. Carey Became A Top Incubator For Entrepreneurs
‘A Historic Gift’: $35 Million Powers Big Changes In ASU Carey’s Global Supply Chain Program
P&Q Perspectives: Entrepreneurship & The MBA
2025 MBA Best In Class Award For Incubators: Arizona State (W. P. Carey)
UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS (WALTON)
University of Arkansas Rolling Out Accelerated MBA Program
BABSON COLLEGE (OLIN)
2024 Graduates At Babson Make Impact As Entrepreneurs
Babson Profs Unveil First Model For Entrepreneurial Leadership
Babson Awards Over $150K To Student & Alumni Ventures In 2025 B.E.T.A. Challenge
Babson Launches First-Ever On-Demand Platform & Executive Lodge To Expand Lifelong Learning
BADRUKA SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT
In India, Building A B-School With AI As Its Spinal Cord
BAYLOR UNIVERSITY (HANKAMER)
Baylor Hankamer Names David M. Szymanski as Dean
BIRMINGHAM BUSINESS SCHOOL
Behind Birmingham Business School’s Push For Responsible Business
Birmingham’s Big Three: Generous Scholarships, Consultancy Projects & Industry Partnerships
BITS SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT
BITSOM Launches Women’s Leadership Program For Mid-Career Professionals
India’s Most Diverse MBA? BITSoM’s New Class Breaks The Mold
BOSTON UNIVERSITY (QUESTROM)
Inside The Redesign Of Boston University’s Undergraduate Business Program
Empowering Women In Business: The Questrom Approach
The Power Of Alumni Networks In Today’s Changing Economic Landscape
Three Notable Recognitions For The Questrom Community
Questrom Gets ‘Generous Gift’ For The Mehrotra Institute
BUTLER UNIVERSITY (LACY)
Balancing Work, Life, And An MBA: How Butler Makes It Possible
Students in an AI elective course at Haas.
UC BERKELEY (HAAS)
Inside Berkeley Haas’s Sparkling New Home For Entrepreneurship & The ‘Entrepre-Curious’
Berkeley Haas’ First ‘Flex’ MBAs Make Their Mark
UC Berkeley Takes ‘Interim’ Tag Off Haas Dean Jennifer Chatman’s Title
Jenny Chatman Charts A New Course For Berkeley Haas
How To Get Into Berkeley Haas – Expert Advice From Fortuna’s Sharon Joyce
Berkeley Haas Professor Fatally Shot in Greece While Visiting Children
UC Berkeley Haas Welcomes New Faculty
Hope, Hustle, Haas: 5 Things I Wish I Knew Before Transferring To UC Berkeley
‘We Aren’t Chasing Hype’: Berkeley Haas Just Launched A Game-Changing AI Certificate For MBAs
UC Berkeley Haas Rolls Out New Strategic Campaign
Berkeley Haas MBA Class Of 2027: Smaller Class Rebounds In Global Diversity
After A Brief Slump, Tech Reasserts Its Dominance At Berkeley Haas
CARNEGIE MELLON (TEPPER)
Carnegie Mellon Tepper Announces Inaugural Golub Capital Board Fellows Cohort
Tepper School Dean Stepping Down Next Year
‘We Want To Define The Future’: Inside CMU Tepper’s AI-Powered Transformation
Carnegie Mellon Tepper’s International MBA Population Has Fallen 30% In 2 Years
CASE WESTERN RESERVE (WEATHERHEAD)
Case Western Reserve Weatherhead Receives $15 Million Gift to Launch Leadership Institute
CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY (BUSCH)
Catholic University Launching MBA Program
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