When a professional decides to study an MBA, the first thing to identify in a business school is the quality and excellence of the institution, and the international accreditation granted by AACSB International is a world-class seal that makes a difference.
The accreditation standards are based in principles and focus on effective outcomes
Stephanie Bryant, Executive Vice President and Global Chief Accreditation Officer, AACSB International
To understand the value of accreditation, it’s important to know about AACSB. As the global connector and convenor in business education, AACSB unites educators, students, and businesses to achieve a common goal: to create the next generation of great leaders. Since 1916, AACSB has been providing quality assurance, data, and insights, and learning and development opportunities in business education. AACSB currently serves over 1,700 member organizations and accredits more than 900 business schools worldwide. The collective strength of the organization is founded on diverse perspectives, a global mindset, and a commitment to making a difference.
Just as AACSB is committed to making a positive impact on society, so are the business schools that have earned AACSB business accreditation. The fundamental purpose of AACSB accreditation is to encourage business schools to hold themselves accountable for improving business practice through a commitment to strategic management, learner success, thought leadership, and societal impact.
AACSB-accredited business schools have gone through a rigorous, consultative process to ensure they are well-equipped to deliver the cutting-edge education required for learners to succeed in the workforce. The accreditation standards are based in principles and focus on effective outcomes. They require business schools to provide demanding curriculum, highly skilled faculty, globally recognized research, and experiential learning opportunities.
The standards also emphasize the importance of diversity and inclusion in business school programs and operations, which are core values of AACSB. These principles are embedded throughout the standards and enable business schools to demonstrate impact in a variety of ways, according to their unique contexts. The accreditation standards view diversity and inclusion through a global lens and are structured to help schools determine the impact they most want to have in society. The value of AACSB accreditation is rooted in the ever-deepening commitment made by business schools to deliver the highest quality business education while also having a positive societal impact.
When students choose an AACSB-accredited business school, they are making the first significant investment in their future. Thousands of graduates from AACSB-accredited schools have gone on to lead some of the world’s most influential companies, while making an impact in their communities.
While in school, learners are mentored and supported by the best professors and researchers who not only instill foundational knowledge but also prepare learners for work in the real world. AACSB-accredited schools are also recognized worldwide by top employers and other universities and offer learners greater access to recruiting opportunities and higher, more competitive salaries.
Students in an MBA program, or any masters-level program, at an AACSB-accredited business school are prepared to lead – not only through traditional learning methods, but through experiential learning opportunities. And because AACSB-accredited schools must pass rigorous quality standards, they’ve proven to be providers of the best in business education worldwide.
AACSB accreditation provides confidence and security
Paulo Carvalho, (Executive Director, ISEG MBA Portugal
ISEG MBAISEG – Faculty of Economics and Management (University of Lisbon) is part of the 5 percent of elite AACSB Accredited business schools. This is important to put us in the right path to make ISEG MBA one of the most solid, visionary, and innovative learning experiences for future leaders.
The AACSB it’s crucial for ISEG MBA since it is known, globally, as the longest-standing, most recognized form of specialized accreditation that an institution and its business programs can earn. It’s also an independent and nongovernmental process that includes a rigorous external review of a school’s mission, faculty qualifications, curricula, and ability to provide the highest-quality programs.
We have been using AACSB accreditation process to reinforce our commitment to upholding and advancing ISEG MBA as a high quality, innovative and unique program globally, and as a tool to strengthen the relevance of curriculum, the quality in the highest-caliber faculty, and leading-edge courses and learning material to our students.
AACSB accreditation also provides the confidence that ISEG MBA offers a holistic view of management, with a strong emphasis in all functional areas of management, as well as the acquisition of a set of leadership and personal development skills that are critical in an increasingly turbulent and uncertain world.
AACSB accreditation ensures quality with a continuous improvement process
(FOTO) Sandro Sánchez, Director of MBA Programs at CENTRUM PUCP Business School
AACSB accreditation allows a business school to ensure the quality of teaching and to have a continuous improvement process to achieve relevant impacts, not only on students but also on society; In this sense, the main benefit of studying an MBA in a business school accredited by AACSB is to achieve the development of relevant skills to stand out in the business world.
At CENTRUM PUCP, the skills that are developed when studying an MBA are: critical thinking, responsible business conduct, leadership, innovation, global strategic vision, and business skills; having the AACSB accreditation helps us in an outstanding way to ensure that students have these competencies that are articulated throughout the MBA curriculum. Likewise, the strategic focus provided by the AACSB accreditation ensures that the improvements applied to the MBA are in line with the purpose of our business school, which is to “to educate in business for a better world”; We seek that our students, through the achievement of competencies, be real agents of change so that they carry out business in such a way that profitability is not the only measure of success, but also the social impact that is achieved through through business.