Though I am not a firm believer in MBA rankings, I definitely welcome the Financial Times MBA rankings to place ISB (Indian School of Business) 20th best B-school in the world. ISB ought to receive recognition for its innovation, boldness and strategy. I reserve my judgment if it is really worth to be in the Top 20 and at the outset, it appears to be a bit premature. But, as is true with other rankings, there is no smoke without fire and FT has numbers to give this rank to ISB - which is great.
In recent times, the credibility of MBA rankings has surely taken a beating. Major reason is the mushrooming of sources that issue the rankings. It is surprising to see London Business School in #2, ahead the likes of Harvard and Stanford. But, FT is based in London and so may be they had other assessments too (?). Wharton leads the race for the umpteenth time.
Coming to India and ISB, I believe the diverse class profile, course delivery, cost of the program, duration and the return of investment worked in its favor. The average GMAT for the incoming class is high compared to most other schools in the FT list, which is largely driven by Indian applicants. It is an unprecedented and truly remarkable achievement for the six-year old school. One reason why the IIMs missed the bus, to me, is their over dependence on CAT for admission which eliminates any chance of diversity. I have high regards for CAT (it is the toughest entrance exam to crack) but I feel if IIMs reduce the weightage for CAT (and not compromise on the cut-offs and thus the quality of intake) and implement the currently non-existing requirements like admission essays, work experience in selecting the class, then they (A,B,C) would be on par with the best.
Anyways, it is great to have an Indian school in the list and it only increases ISB's responsibilities to maintain its standards and surge ahead.
