The University of Pretoria's Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) has once again scooped top honours as Africa's preeminent business school in the annual Executive MBA (EMBA) Ranking conducted by the UK Financial Times (FT). This year marks the fifth consecutive year that GIBS has taken Africa's top spot. GIBS is now the only African business school ranked by the FT in its MBA rankings.

The ranking which is considered a global benchmark of business school excellence is based on surveys of business schools and MBA graduates. Various assessment criteria are used, which include, among others, the career progression of the school's alumni, the school's success in generating ideas, and the diversity of students and faculty members.

The School is ranked 23rd globally on international course experience — largely due to the compulsory global module which forms an integral part of the GIBS MBA programme.

GIBS continues to close the gender gap when it comes to female representation on the MBA programme. Of the faculty members who teach MBA courses, 38% are women; moreover, female students make up 42% of the student cohort and 50% of the GIBS board are women, putting the School eleventh, seventh and fifth respectively in the world in these three categories.

According to the ranking, GIBS alumni earn an average salary of approximately US$ 206 982, which is on par with alumni from leading business schools such as Columbia Business School in the US, and represents a 48% increase on their pre-MBA remuneration, hence ranking the school 38th on this measure.

The dean of GIBS, Professor Nicola Kleyn said, 'As a business school, we operate in a competitive space. To be featured in these prestigious rankings is both an honour and a privilege and is a testament to the hard work that students and faculty put into the qualification. 

'We continue to make every effort to deliver the very best learning experience possible at every touch point, providing students with the best opportunity to drive their careers to the next level,' she concluded.