taking-your-mba-in-the-us2Earning a master’s degree in business administration is one of the best investments anyone can make. These include increasing employment opportunities, securing higher starting salaries, and widening networks. Moreover, an MBA also equips students with the necessary skills, values and lessons to effectively manage businesses.

A common dilemma many aspiring MBA students face is where to enroll for their most sought after degree. With so many schools offering these programs, it’s hard to decide which option is the best.

According to the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), there are more than 16,000 business schools worldwide. AACSB is the international body that provides internationally recognized, specialized accreditation for business and accounting programs at the undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate levels. Less than 5%, however, has passed AACSB’s standards.

Taking an MBA in the United States.

In the US, there are over 700 business schools offering MBA degrees. The AACSB accredited only 57%, or roughly around 400 of them. Among these, the top 10 institutions hailed by Forbes as the best business schools in the US.

Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business is named by Forbes as the top business school in the United States for 2015. A close second is Harvard Business School, and third is Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.

The top 10 also includes Columbia Business School, Dartmouth College’s Tuck School of Business, University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business, University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, University of California, Berkeley’s Haas School of Business, Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management, and lastly, Cornell University’s Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management.

If you’re dreaming of earning your master’s degree from any of these prestigious schools, then it is time to brush up on your skills and prepare for the rigorous application process.