Indian b-schools have made a bigger mark in the latest QS Global MBA rankings with 19 schools ranked globally, up from 14 last year. However, the top three Indian institutes slipped sharply this year. IIM Bangalore fell to #64 spot from #52, IIM Ahmedabad to #70 from #58 and IIM Calcutta to #95 from #64. The fall in their rankings appears to be less about a deterioration in their own performance and partly due to stronger performance by competing schools. QS said Indian institutes faced tougher competition this year since global peers made bigger gains in areas such as return on investment, entrepreneurship and alumni outcomes.
Within the new entrants from India, O.P. Jindal Global University was the highest-ranked placed in the #171-180 band. Four other institutes – Jaipuria Institute of Management, School of Business and Management CHRIST, School of Leadership and Management at Manav Rachna International Institute of Research and Studies, and Vikrant University (Gwalior) – entered in the #301+ band.
The leading Indian schools continued to perform better on employability. IIM Bangalore ranked #29 globally on this measure and second in Asia while IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Calcutta ranked #35 and #39, respectively. IIM Ahmedabad was the only Indian entry in the top 100 for entrepreneurship and alumni outcomes.
QS president Nunzio Quacquarelli said that the latest rankings show that more Indian business schools are continuing to build their international reputation with five new entries from the country this year. “The MBA market is changing and providers are becoming more competitive. For Indian institutions this year, global peers are outpacing in key areas such as return on investment and entrepreneurship and alumni outcomes. While 10 entries from India improve in the thought leadership lens in 2027, it is key that providers continue to serve MBA students and help them to achieve their career ambitions,” he said.
Separately, the participation of Indian business schools increased in specialised business master’s programmes with 41 entries in 2027 against 37 last year. Management accounted for the largest share with 19 entries followed by seven each in Business Analytics and Finance, five in Marketing and three in Supply Chain Management.
But the domestic schools had limited presence near the top of these rankings. IIM Bangalore’s Management programme was the highest-ranked Indian entry at #31 followed by IIM Ahmedabad at #46 and IIM Calcutta at #57. All seven Indian Finance entries were outside the global top 200, while all three Supply Chain Management entries were outside the top 100.
The QS rankings covered 1,132 specialised business master’s programmes spanning five specialised areas, including management, finance, business analytics, marketing and supply chain management.
QS rankings takes into account how well MBA programmes perform in areas such as employability, value for money, alumni outcomes, thought leadership and diversity. Employability carries the biggest weight, while ROI and the time taken to recover the cost of the course are also important.
Globally, the US continued to dominate the MBA rankings, holding the top four positions, led by MIT Sloan, which moved to #1 from #3 spot.