Every year, the Financial Times releases its ranking of the best business schools in Europe and the 2022 edition is no exception! This year again, France shines with the quality of the teaching of the business schools which are positioned in this list.
Unsurprisingly, France demonstrates the quality of its training through the 2022 ranking of the best business schools in Europe by the FT (Financial Times). The most spectacular thing is not so much their rank this year, but the excellent progress that some have shown for several years. Indeed, unlike previous editions, France positions four schools in the top 10!
Other establishments have made strong progress in recent years, such as Excelia (+15 places in 2 years) or Audencia (+9 places in 2 years). It is important to note that this ranking sees the return of SKEMA and ICN, which were not present last year, but are still marked by the absence of ESSCA and Paris-Dauphine University.
The methodology of the 2022 ranking of the best business schools in Europe
The 2022 ranking of the best business schools in Europe according to the FT is actually made up of the results of other rankings carried out by the British media. It’s sort of a summary of the Financial Times rankings. Indeed, it compiles the data of five rankings: that of the best PGE in the world (25%), that of the best EMBA (25%), that of the best MBA (25%) and the two prize lists concerning Executive Education: Open programs (12.5%) and Custom programs (12.5%). Thus, the establishments absent from the ranking of the best PGEs in the world could not find their place in the 2022 list of the best business schools in Europe.
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Ranking of FT business schools: The European business schools with the best EMBAs in 2022
As indicated, the FT’s 2022 ranking of the best business schools in Europe brings together the scores obtained by business schools in several rankings published by the British media. Thus, it highlights the institutions that offer the best Executive MBAs in 2022.
In this category, the French business schools also shine since HEC Paris ranks first, closely followed by ESCP Business School (4e) and INSEAD (10e). American and Chinese establishments monopolize the top 10 of this list, a top 10 in which there are relatively few English or German business schools.
Ranking of FT business schools: The European business schools with the best PGEs in 2022
The best Masters in Management or Global Grandes Ecoles Programs are mainly European. This year, the top 3 looks almost like previous editions. The University of Saint-Gall is followed by HEC Paris and Smurfit. Indeed, ESSEC lost its third place and tumbled out of the top 5, to 6th place. That said, within the ranking of the best Masters in Management FT, French business schools stand out from their global counterparts with programs whose excellence is recognized in France, but also abroad.
Ranking of FT business schools: The European business schools with the best MBAs in 2022
The MBA is one of the flagship courses of the Grandes Ecoles of business in France, Europe and around the world. Often offered at very high prices, they prove to be quite profitable for graduates who often earn six-figure salaries.
Here again, in the ranking of the best MBAs 2022, French schools stand out among the establishments that offer the most excellent MBAs. INSEAD and HEC Paris respectively occupy first and fourth place in this list. The Parisian business school has indeed given up its third place to the Iese Business School. EDHEC steals 20th place from emlyon business school, which is 26th. ESSEC, she grabbed a rank and is positioned in 23rd place.
The ranking of the best business schools in France in 2022
This year, we can observe 22 French establishments in the FT’s ranking of the best business schools in Europe. The year 2022 is marked by the good progress of many schools which find themselves in the top 10 which contains 40% of French business schools. EDHEC is also making a comeback in this prestigious top, going from 14e at the 10e square ! Unfortunately, for its part, ESCP fell and left the top 10. It is now in 14th place.
The biggest increases are from Audencia (+14 places over one year) and EDHEC (+4 places). On the other hand, some establishments are experiencing dizzying falls, such as the IAE of Aix (-21 places) or Rennes SB (-20 places).
| French rank | Rank 2022 | Rank 2021 | Rank 2020 | business school | Progress 2020-2022 |
| 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | HEC Paris | 0 |
| 2 | 3 | 3 | 5 | INSEAD | 2 |
| 3 | 8 | 6 | 7 | ESSEC Business School | -1 |
| 4 | 10 | 14 | 15 | EDHEC Business School | 5 |
| 5 | 14 | 8 | 14 | ESCP | 0 |
| 6 | 19 | 20 | 20 | emlyon Business School | 1 |
| 7 | 31 | 45 | 40 | audencia | 9 |
| 8 | 36 | 28 | 25 | Grenoble School of Management | -11 |
| 9 | 40 | 34 | 31 | KEDGE Business School | -9 |
| 10 | 44 | 39 | 50 | Neoma Business School | 6 |
| 11 | 48 | X | X | SKEMA Business School | X |
| 12 | 58 | 58 | 57 | TBS (Toulouse Business School) | -1 |
| 13 | 62 | 55 | 64 | IESEG School of Management | 2 |
| 14 | 64 | 63 | 79 | Excelia Business School | 15 |
| 15 | 75 | 72 | 69 | MBS (Montpellier Business School) | -6 |
| 16 | 79 | 58 | 64 | IAE Aix-Marseille Graduate School of Management | -15 |
| 17 | 80 | X | X | ICN Business School | X |
| 18 | 82 | 80 | 81 | BSB | -1 |
| 19 | 84 | 73 | 75 | Institut Mines-Telecom Business School | -9 |
| 20 | 86 | 83 | 81 | EM Normandie Business School | -5 |
| 21 | 88 | 68 | 56 | Rennes School of Business | -32 |
| 22 | 92 | 81 | 85 | EM Strasbourg | -7 |
The top 3 best business schools in Europe in 2022 according to the FT
After being 5e in 2020 and having returned to 3rd place in 2021, INSEAD retains its bronze medal in 2022. The business school, which mainly specializes in Executive Education training, stands out for its excellent position in the ranking of the best full-time MBAs , but also a strong internationalization of teachers, 91% of whom are foreigners.
London Business School still holds 2nd place in the 2022 ranking of the best business schools according to the FT. This silver medal goes to the English business school in particular for its excellent ranking in the rankings of the best Masters in Management and the best MBAs in 2022.
Finally, the crown goes to HEC Paris, recognized internationally for the excellence of its EMBA program, but also its PGE. The school has excellent scores in all the different Financial Times rankings.
The full FT 2022 ranking of the best business schools in Europe
| Rank 2022 | Rank 2021 | Rank 2020 | business school |
| 1 | 1 | 1 | HEC Paris |
| 2 | 2 | 2 | London Business School |
| 3 | 3 | 5 | INSEAD |
| 4 | 4 | 6 | Iese Business School |
| 5 | 5 | 3 | SDA Bocconi/Università Bocconi |
| 6 | 7 | 4 | University of St Gallen |
| 7 | 9 | 9 | ESMT Berlin |
| 8 | 6 | 7 | ESSEC Business School |
| 9 | 10 | 10 | University of Oxford: Said |
| 10 | 10 | 11 | IMD Business School |
| 10 | 14 | 15 | EDHEC Business School |
| 12 | 12 | 8 | IE Business School |
| 13 | 12 | 13 | Esade Business School |
| 14 | 8 | 14 | ESCP Business School |
| 15 | 17 | 16 | University of Cambridge: Judge |
| 16 | 18 | 18 | Imperial College Business School |
| 17 | 15 | 12 | Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University |
| 18 | 15 | 17 | Warwick Business School |
| 19 | 20 | 20 | emlyon Business School |
| 20 | 19 | 23 | WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management |
| 21 | 21 | 24 | Mannheim Business School |
| 22 | 21 | 26 | Stockholm School of Economics |
| 23 | 25 | 19 | City, University of London, The Business School (formerly Cass) |
| 24 | 26 | 32 | Frankfurt School of Finance and Management |
| 25 | 29 | 28 | Eada Business School Barcelona |
| 26 | 30 | 27 | Copenhagen Business School |
| 27 | 26 | 30 | Nova School of Business and Economics |
| 28 | 23 | 21 | University College Dublin: Smurfit |
| 29 | 31 | 32 | Católica Lisbon School of Business and Economics |
| 30 | 32 | 38 | Tias Business School, Tilburg University |
| 31 | 45 | 40 | Audencia Business School |
| 32 | 56 | 60 | Trinity College Dublin, Trinity Business School |
| 33 | 36 | 35 | Alliance Manchester Business School |
| 34 | 32 | 44 | Cranfield School of Management |
| 34 | 38 | 29 | Henley Business School |
| 36 | 28 | 25 | Grenoble School of Management |
| 37 | 41 | 45 | Politecnico di Milano School of Management |
| 38 | 37 | 34 | Aalto University |
| 39 | 24 | 22 | Vlerick Business School |
| 40 | 34 | 31 | Kedge Business School |
| 41 | 34 | 41 | WU (Vienna University of Economics and Business) |
| 41 | 41 | 36 | Nyenrode Business University |
| 43 | 54 | 42 | Lancaster University Management School |
| 44 | 39 | 50 | Neoma Business School |
| 45 | 48 | 43 | Durham University Business School |
| 46 | 41 | 46 | Antwerp Management School |
| 46 | 44 | 53 | Hult Ashridge Executive Education |
| 48 | X | X | Skema Business School |
| 49 | X | X | Moscow School of Management Skolkovo |
| 50 | 49 | 36 | BI Norwegian Business School |
| 51 | 40 | 47 | HEC Lausanne, University of Lausanne |
| 52 | 51 | 51 | University of Edinburgh Business School |
| 53 | 51 | 51 | University of Strathclyde Business School |
| 54 | 45 | 48 | Kozminsky University |
| 55 | 50 | 55 | Prague University of Economics and Business |
| 55 | 62 | 39 | NHH Norwegian School of Economics |
| 57 | 51 | 59 | St Petersburg University, Graduate School of Management |
| 58 | 58 | IBS-Moscow Ranepa | |
| 58 | 58 | 57 | TBS (Toulouse Business School) |
| 60 | 45 | 57 | HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management |
| 61 | 58 | 78 | Koc University Graduate School of Business |
| 62 | 55 | 64 | IESEG School of Management |
| 63 | 63 | 61 | Maastricht University School of Business and Economics |
| 64 | 63 | 79 | Excelia Business School |
| 65 | 88 | 92 | Birmingham Business School |
| 66 | 79 | 67 | Porto Business School, University of Porto |
| 67 | 63 | 69 | Sabanci Business School |
| 68 | 85 | University of Glasgow: Adam Smith | |
| 69 | 69 | 81 | University of Zürich |
| 70 | 63 | 69 | Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management |
| 70 | X | X | TUM School of Management |
| 72 | X | X | University of Exeter Business School |
| 73 | 67 | University Carlos III of Madrid | |
| 73 | X | X | University of Liverpool Management School |
| 75 | 72 | 69 | MBS (Montpellier Business School) |
| 75 | 75 | 79 | Hanken School of Economics |
| 77 | X | X | Business School |
| 78 | 70 | 61 | Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management |
| 79 | 58 | 64 | IAE Aix-Marseille Graduate School of Management |
| 80 | X | X | ICN Business School |
| 81 | 57 | 54 | University of Bath School of Management |
| 82 | 80 | 81 | Burgundy School of Business |
| 83 | 73 | ZHAW School of Management and Law | |
| 84 | 73 | 75 | Institut Mines-Télécom Business School |
| 84 | 82 | 89 | University of Ljubljana, School of Economics and Business |
| 86 | 83 | 81 | EM Normandie Business School |
| 86 | 83 | 81 | Leuven School of Management |
| 88 | 68 | 56 | Rennes School of Business |
| 89 | 75 | Lund University School of Economics and Management (Lusem) | |
| 90 | 85 | 92 | Luiss University |
| 91 | X | X | University of Amsterdam — Faculty of Economics and Business |
| 92 | 81 | 85 | EM Strasbourg Business School |
| 93 | X | X | University of Antwerp Faculty of Business and Economics |
| 94 | X | X | Corvinus University of Budapest |
| 95 | X | X | Jonkoping International Business School |