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UCD Micheal Smurfit Graduate Business School via YouTube

UCD Smurfit School MBA ranked among best in world

The MBA programme has moved up five spots in the Financial Times Global Executive MBA Rankings.

ONE OF UCD’S MBA programmes has been ranked among the world’s best, coming 81st in the 2013 Financial Times Global Executive MBA Rankings.

The programme in question is the Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School’s Executive MBA.  It has moved up five places since last year’s rankings and continues to be the only Irish business school included in the global rankings.

It is also one of less than 50 schools worldwide to have been consistently ranked over the last 13 years.

Speaking about the results, Professor Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh, Dean, UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School, said this “further strengthens the school’s reputation in its commitment to excellence, allowing us to compete with the other premier business schools in the world.”

“Interpersonal and communication skills, leadership ability, self-awareness and confidence are all enhanced by the UCD Smurfit School MBA experience and the business, peer and alumni networks created while studying for an MBA can be invaluable”, he added.

This year, UCD Smurfit School has had a number of its programmes recognised globally. The Economist acknowledged both their full-time MBA programme, which ranked 68th out of 100 of the world’s leading MBA’s, followed by its Executive MBA programme which is ranked 57th out of 100 in the world.

The Financial Times also recognised its Masters in Finance, ranked 34th out of 40 included in the survey, and their Masters in Management ranked 56th out of 100 of the leading business masters programmes in the world.

Read: Trinity College Dublin falls 19 places in world university rankings>

Read: 8 Irish universities feature in the top 200 spots in world university rankings>

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17 Comments
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    Mute Gerard McAuliffe
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    Oct 21st 2013, 7:07 AM

    Well nobody’s really gonna give a toss about an MBA from Trinity or Smurfit. Executive MBA’s don’t mean much from anywhere and if you’re gonna do a real MBA it’s either LBS, INSEAD or a trip to the states for a few years.

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    Mute Fergal Kelly
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    Oct 21st 2013, 7:47 AM

    You speak for the world of business? I’m just curious because you might tell everyone who’s doing MBAs across the country that they’re really just wasting their time and money. In fact, wrote to your international counterpart and tell him we need to close all business schools that aren’t in London or the States. Shame really…

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    Mute Gerard McAuliffe
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    Oct 21st 2013, 8:14 AM

    I think everybody who is doing an MBA in Ireland is wasting their time and money. I’ve come across quite a few graduates all eager and beaming fresh out of Smurfit and Trinity and most just end up getting jobs they could have gotten with a good degree anyway.

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    Mute Hairy lemon
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    Oct 21st 2013, 8:46 AM

    @Gerard… really? You don’t think it makes any difference at all to have an advanced degree? Curious!

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    Mute Steve
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    Oct 21st 2013, 9:00 AM

    I agree. The standard of Irish 3rd level education has dropped so far in the last 5 years, I think that any Irish person needs to get a masters to be on the same educational par as a European with a Bachelors. It’s just lack of investment in education paying dividends. It’s ok though, you dont need a degree to work in retail or in a call centre which are the only jobs that will be available to graduates in Ireland anyway.

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    Mute Fiachra Maolmordha Ó Raghallaigh
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    Oct 21st 2013, 10:41 AM

    Hi Steve, given that this year’s QS World Ranking have TCD in 61st place world wide, I’d highly doubt that we’re struggling at a European level. There are just 16 universities above TCD in the rankings, the vast majority of which are British and charge you an arm and a leg to study there, or Swiss and therefore spectacularly efficient in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds – just like Switzerland itself. The French institutions that rank higher than TCD are all elitist Grandes Écoles, which you can only get into if you’re super rich or super smart (prefarably both). Germany have a few universities above us, but then again Germany has far more money to invest in higher education than we do, and also benefits from a lot of private sector investment (thanks to industrial research).

    I suggest the real reason that Irish universities have plummeted in the world rankings is the rise of higher education in ASEAN economies – which is backed by more cash than we could ever dream of holding.

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    Mute Gerard McAuliffe
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    Oct 21st 2013, 12:47 PM

    I’m not saying Ireland isn’t as good as anywhere for undergrad or postgrad courses in general. Some of our universities are top notch.

    MBA’s are a different kettle of fish though and business schools have completely different rankings to universities. As MBA’s are really meant for people who’ve got good careers anyway, if you want to take it to the next level then the average MBA isn’t much use.

    MBA’s are really about prestige and building networks with other future leaders so going to a crappy business school (not necessarily any cheaper than the top ones) often doesn’t yield much benefit.

    Oxford and Cambridge are probably the top universities in the world but MBA’s from their business schools (Said and Judge) aren’t of much value.

    Similarly if you’re going for a top job nobody’s really gonna value a Smurfit MBA and them’s just the facts.

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    Mute Right Wing Steve ©
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    Oct 21st 2013, 6:42 AM

    It’s still not trinity is it?

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    Mute Steve
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    Oct 21st 2013, 9:20 AM

    Trinity is pretty bog standard these days, get off your high horse

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    Mute Neil Burke
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    Oct 21st 2013, 10:24 AM

    Here’s a link to the list since thejournal NEVER link to their sources or original material (as is common practice on just about every other news site on-line).

    http://rankings.ft.com/businessschoolrankings/global-mba-ranking-2013

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    Mute Neil Burke
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    Oct 21st 2013, 10:29 AM
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    Mute Hairy lemon
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    Oct 21st 2013, 7:47 AM

    Afaik Trinity dont enter into this ranking competition thus wouldn’t show up (now or the last number of years)

    Not sure where Gerard got his MBA… somewhere foreign it sounds!

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    Mute Sandra Turner
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    Oct 21st 2013, 8:32 AM

    I’ve never entered the Olympics but I’m pretty sure I’d win. I don’t need a medal to prove it.

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    Mute Peter Doherty
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    Oct 21st 2013, 10:25 AM

    ‘Fewer than fifty schools’ NOT ‘less than fifty schools’. Wouldn’t be surprised if the journo who wrote this was a semi-illiterate ‘business’ grad himself.

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    Mute Andrew Gache
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    Oct 21st 2013, 8:42 AM

    Seriously people… Get a life!!

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    Mute Wikey Waguire
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    Oct 21st 2013, 10:35 AM

    Where do all the graduates of this school work? In Ireland, or abroad?

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    Mute Nick Hill
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    Oct 21st 2013, 12:24 PM

    A bit of both really. Same as any other college.

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