For a third straight year, the Financial Times ranked the University of Georgia’s Full-Time MBA program as the top value for the money among business schools worldwide. 

The MBA program’s return on investment and overall satisfaction, as reported by Terry College of Business alumni, led other top business schools surveyed by the Financial Times. 

“The return on investment at the University of Georgia and the Terry Full-Time MBA program stands out from the competition. It’s spectacular, really,” said Jason Matthews, who was named director of the Full-Time MBA and the Master of Science in Business Analytics this past fall. “Even as the perception of an MBA is shifting within the market for graduate education, UGA is in a great position with our program cost, plus the scholarships and assistantships we’re able to offer. Factor in the reputation of a degree from Georgia, and it’s an exceptional value.” 

“Value for money” was measured by dividing the average alumni salary three years after graduation by the total cost of the MBA, which included tuition, lost salary, opportunity cost and other expenses. 

The Financial Times, based in London, surveyed 128 full-time MBA programs at graduate business schools worldwide and released its ranking of the 100 best B-schools in February. Among public business schools in the U.S., Terry’s Full-Time MBA is ranked 10th, up one spot from the previous year’s survey. 

Georgia MBA graduates who responded to the survey gave the full-time program a 9.38 “overall satisfaction” rating on a 10-point scale, which gave UGA one of the five highest scores globally and the top score among public universities in the U.S.  

“Students who choose a full-time MBA are making a long-term investment in reshaping the trajectory of their careers,” said Santanu Chatterjee, interim dean of the Terry College of Business. “But long-term value does not have to mean long-term debt. At Terry, we are committed to delivering a high-quality, affordable education that prepares students to lead and contribute in a rapidly evolving economy. That commitment is reflected in the strong satisfaction our alumni report as they re-enter the job market.” 

The MBA rankings methodology used by the Financial Times considered 21 different measures, including change in salary, career progression, alumni network, the program’s employment rate, faculty expertise, research productivity and several international and ESG criteria. Applying its full methodology, the Financial Times ranked UGA No. 60 out of the crowded field of full-time MBA programs worldwide. More than half of the ranked programs are based outside of the United States. 

In another subcategory, Terry’s MBA career services ranked No. 7 overall, repeating its top 10 global ranking from last year. Matthews said the career services staff works in close partnership with students, getting familiar with them individually before classes begin. 

“We have a very active career management team, and they begin engaging our students early in the program and continue to meet with them often throughout their time with us,” Matthews said. “Because our program size is small enough, we are able to give each student individualized support that is tailored to their goals and strengths and includes personalized touchpoints with alumni and recruiters.”  

Illustrating that point, the Georgia MBA program reported an employment rate of 92 percent within three months of graduation for the Class of 2025. The Terry College’s “salary percentage increase,” meaning the difference in alumni salary from before their MBA to now, averaged 134% for the Georgia MBA survey respondents. That salary percentage increase ranked 2nd among all U.S. public universities.  

The 2026 edition of the Financial Times’ Global MBA rankings was released February 16.