Editor’s note: This is a guest column written by Will Geoghegan, Kelley Direct Programs chair and clinical associate professor of management and entrepreneurship.
Will Geoghegan
Rankings from multiple outlets continue to recognize what we at Indiana University know well — the Kelley School of Business is the best for online graduate business education. Most recently, the Kelley Direct Online MBA and Master of Science degree programs were ranked No. 1 by U.S. News and World Report, which is a reflection the programs’ innovative student experiences and career success.
This is the second consecutive year and fifth overall U.S. News named the Kelley Direct Online MBA best in the country. It has also been ranked No. 1 twice by Poets & Quants and six times by The Princeton Review
Kelley Direct’s approach to delivering a quality educational experience ensures every aspect of programming, from admissions, instructional design and IT support to career services, is delivered in-house by the Kelley School. This may not sound unique, but in an educational environment where other universities increasingly rely on external for-profit partners, it is.
The student experience is at the core of everything we do. Vertical integration enables us to invest tuition dollars back into the program and our students. We do not outsource, and we are better for it. We are nimble and responsive, and we create incredibly unique, valuable experiences for our students. This is why Kelley is consistently ranked No. 1 and why our online graduate programs standout from other top universities.
Kelley Direct is a boutique online MBA program at scale. Rigorous admissions standards, including GMAT/GRE scores, average GPA and work experience — bring the best and brightest to Kelley. And while courses are intimate (more than 90% of classes have fewer than 40 students), the network is vast. Each new cohort includes around 200 students, and the Kelley School of Business boasts the largest business school alumni network with more than 127,000 living graduates.
Kelley Direct Online MBA students get a personalized experience while meeting hundreds of talented colleagues from around the world. These connections have the potential to change the course of a student’s career — and they often do. In fact, Kelley Direct employs a staff member dedicated solely to facilitating student and alumni connections — to help students advance in their careers through one-to-one mentoring and networking programs.
The network doesn’t stop with fellow students. Kelley Direct has more than 125 full-time faculty members, unlike other schools that use adjunct models for teaching. Our students learn from and build authentic connections with respected leaders and researchers across a variety of fields.
Our signature in-person residencies reveal the best Kelley has to offer: peer learning, award-winning instruction, intense immersion experiences and team building. We enhanced the residency experience with Kelley On Location in Chicago. Second-year students were blown away by the experience, as they explored the intersection of business and the arts amidst the amazing cultural fabric of the city, while building even deeper connections with peers and Kelley faculty.
For more than 20 years, the Kelley School of Business has been an innovator of online business education, demonstrated by our renowned research faculty, exceptional students and co-curricular experiences that make Kelley Direct stand out amongst a crowded market. At Kelley Direct, students learn from the best, with the best.