Business schools have been driving towards more equal representation of international and female students in their cohorts, and having effective DEI strategies will elevate business schools’ position to prospective candidates.
In fact, according to the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) Prospective Students Survey, more than two-thirds of graduate business education candidates consider equity and inclusion to be important or very important to their academic experience—and more than half said they wouldn’t consider a school that fails to prioritize them.
So, where can you study a top MBA with strong diversity representation? Here we go through the 20 most diverse MBA programs within the Financial Times’ Top 100 MBA programs.
MBA Diversity Ranking: Top 20
20. Eada Business School
International Students: 97%, Female Students: 33%
Based in Barcelona, Spain, Eada Business School’s MBA boasts a personalized approach to learning with small classes, active participation, and individual coaching sessions.
It looks to engender a real-world understanding of business in students through an executive leadership development program and a campus designed to optimize leadership skills through outdoor training, role plays, and team building exercises.
Students can also tailor the program toward specific interests such as Sustainability and Business Impact and Structured Finance and Private Equity.
=18. University of St Gallen
International Students: 98%, Female Students: 37%
Located in Switzerland, the University of St Gallen is known for a hyper-localized approach to education, preparing students with the management skills for a successful career in the DACH region (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland).
Its MBA class of 2024 has 23 nationalities, demonstrating its commitment to a diverse cohort.
Of the class of 2023, the healthcare industry was the most popular employer (29%), manufacturing was the second largest (25%), and financial services was third (14%).
=18. IE Business School
International Students: 98%, Female Students: 37%
IE Business School’s International MBA is Europe’s seventh best, according to the Financial Times MBA ranking.
Located in Madrid, Spain, the MBA aims to give students a personalized academic journey that homes in on their specific skills and unique career goals.
IE allows students to pick from three different course lengths and students are taught by faculty hailing from a vast range of industries including finance, entrepreneurship, law, and technology.
17. IMD—International Institute for Management Development
International Students: 100%, Female Students: 36%
IMD—International Institute for Management Development—is another Swiss business school that makes this list.
Located in Lausanne, IMD offers an MBA where students learn responsible leadership skills in an innovative, entrepreneurial, and global business environment, with over 40% of learning happening outside the classroom.
The business school looks to continually evolve its program to develop students' modern skills and prepare them for the rapidly changing business world.
16. HEC Paris
International Students: 96%, Female Students: 41%
One of Europe’s top MBAs, this business school located in France’s capital offers a curriculum that combines academic theory with practical experiences.
HEC Paris’s MBA is top rated, coming 12th in the FT’s 2024 ranking.
Students have opportunities to work directly with successful entrepreneurs, apply their classroom knowledge to the real world, and participate in international exchanges with HEC partner schools.
15. Rotterdam School of Management
International Students: 100%, Female Students: 40%
The Netherlands-based business school claims a truly international learning environment, with a very strong diversity performance.
The International full-time MBA is designed to build the critical-thinking, problem-solving, leadership and communication skills students will need to launch and sustain a world-class career in business, in any sector, in any management role, anywhere in the world.
Of the class of 2022, 93% found a job within three months of graduation and the MBA boasts a strong alumni network of nearly 50,000 grads across the globe.
14. University of Cambridge Judge Business School
International Students: 98%, Female Students: 42%
Located in the UK, at one of the world’s most prestigious institutions, University of Cambridge’s Judge Business School looks to help MBA students transform their career journey.
The Cambridge MBA equips students with skills, networks, and confidence to accelerate leadership opportunities, enable a career change, or put students on an entrepreneurial path.
The diverse MBA program offers a rigorous curriculum, tailorable to students interests and goals and allowing them to gain 400+ hours of practical experience, with real client projects.
13. Esade Business School
International Students: 98%, Female Students: 43%
Spain’s Esade Business School sits in the top 20 of the Financial Times’s full-time MBA ranking at number 17.
The diverse business school pushes students to change their perspectives on success to help them push their career forward. Esade teaches students to embrace innovative leadership and new technologies to create a positive impact for both the planet and society.
This mindset is shown through the number of students (97%) who changed function, sector, or location after graduation.
=11. Copenhagen Business School (CBS)
International Students: 98%, Female Students: 44%
This Denmark-based business school’s full-time MBA program is built around sustainability and innovation.
The program teaches the diverse cohort how to lead responsibly through a comprehensive curriculum and experiential learning opportunities at top companies across the region.
CBS feels the diversity of the class ensures that while the Scandinavian approach to doing business is infused into the program, there is still a global understanding of how different ideas and practices can be tailored to various industries or countries.
=11. Hult International Business School
International Students: 98%, Female Students: 44%
Hult focuses on providing students with modern skills that will help them be an asset for companies and make an impact in society.
The MBA’s focus on experiential learning—from professional coaching to cutting-edge simulations—aims to prepare students for workplace success.
Hult's class of 2022 shows this success: 95% of MBA graduates were employed after three months, while 93% changed industries.
10. Alliance Manchester Business School
International Students: 96%, Female Students: 46%
Based in one of the UK’s most popular cities, Manchester, Alliance Business School is known for being one of the most practical MBA programs, focusing on group work and practice-based learning.
Students take on three consultancy projects, the Social Impact Project, Commercial Business Project, and the International Business Project, with real-world clients.
They also learn to take structured and data-informed approaches to decision making, lead and work effectively with multinational groups, and reflect critically and analytically as they solve problems.
9. University of Edinburgh Business School
International Students: 97%, Female Students: 46%
Another UK-based business school, with a diverse full-time MBA based in Scotland’s capital, Edinburgh built its MBA program on three pillars: strategic leadership, professional development, and personalized approach.
This approach helps enhance students’ career potential by giving a clear focus on the role of the highly sought strategic leader.
Edinburgh gives students the opportunity to spend 10-12 weeks abroad in the second semester at one of its partner universities including ESSEC Business School in France, HKUST Business School in Hong Kong, and Kellogg School of Management in the US.
8. Cranfield School of Management
International Students: 100%, Female Students: 43%
Located in the UK, Cranfield School of Management looks to transform students’ network, knowledge, and careers.
The school’s MBA is a one-year immersive experience that includes opportunities to work with real clients, secure an internship, spend a month abroad, attend networking and speaker events at a dedicated entrepreneurship hub, and experience one of the most gender diverse cohorts in the world.
7. TIAS Business School
International Students: 100%, Female Students: 44%
Another diverse business school located in the Netherlands, TIAS Business School offers an internationally oriented MBA program that immerses students in a diverse environment with peers from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences.
Graduates see high employment success rate, with over 90% of MBA graduates landing jobs within three months after graduation.
The Full-time MBA is top-ranked for international careers and fourth worldwide for international mobility, according to the Financial Times.
6. EDHEC Business School
International Students: 97%, Female Students: 47%
Sitting just outside the top five in this list of the most diverse MBA programs, EDHEC Business School is located in Nice, France, and offers a personalized and sustainable Global MBA program.
One of the best in the world for an ESG education, the program includes a sustainability learning expedition and a five-month sustainability challenge.
Being part of such a diverse MBA cohort leads to networking opportunities and relationships across industries and countries, increased awareness of cultural differences in business, and appreciation of diverse leadership.
MBA Diversity Ranking: Top 5
5. Grenoble Ecole de Management
International Students: 100%, Female Students: 45%
Located in the technological and innovation hub of Grenoble, France, this full-time MBA offers a unique global perspective designed to shape students’ careers for the future.
During the MBA, students can access an international cohort of professionals and faculty, and a global network of 47,000 alumni including 2,000 graduates of the MBA program.
Students receive hands-on learning experiences with local and international companies with live business cases and can immerse themselves in Grenoble's vibrant tech ecosystem.
4. University of Oxford: Saïd
International Students: 98%, Female Students: 51%
The first school on the list with more women than men, the UK’s Oxford University Saïd Business School has a full-time MBA that is fourth on our list of the most diverse classrooms.
Saïd's approach to business is relatively traditional compared with other schools on the list. It looks to provide students with a solid foundation in core business principles while developing a broadened mindset and understanding of the role of business in society.
The class represents a breadth of diversity, perspectives and expertise, through crafting a cohort of professionals from a range of industries, from finance to consulting, and tech to healthcare.
3. ESSEC Business School
International Students: 100%, Female Students: 51%
Entering the top three of this list of the most diverse MBA programs, we have the French Grande Ecole ESSEC Business School.
ESSEC’s full-time MBA program boasts a program that gives students a pathway to become an innovative, responsible, and digital-savvy business leader.
Within the program the key topics of choice are Sustainability, Digital Leadership, Innovation and Entrepreneurship. It also offers career accelerator options through internships, a global field project, a venturing project, as well as career and networking study trips to European hubs.
=1. Audencia
International Students: 100%, Female Students: 50%
The only of two schools that achieved gender parity and a completely international cohort, and therefore tied in first position in this list, Audencia is located in Nantes, France.
Audencia works in tandem with the corporate world and is a leader in advanced management practices and corporate social responsibility. As a result, graduates work with major corporations across the globe–and 85% are employed before graduation.
Program graduates have found work in Europe (54%), Asia and the Pacific (29%), and Latin America (9%).
The diversity of the class allows students to develop ideas within a close-knit cohort of roughly 30 peers.
=1. ESCP Business School
International Students: 100%, Female Students: 50%
Another French Grande Ecole, located in Paris, ESCP Business School ties with Audencia as the most diverse MBA program on our list. While it has the same statistics as Audencia it scored higher–25th–in the Financial Times 2024 MBA ranking.
Through core modules, a specialization, and two Company Consultancy Projects, students learn all the skills and knowledge needed in order to become an international business leader.
The MBA covers all the functional areas of management, and the internationality of the program provides a rich multicultural experience.
*Methodology: We have ranked the schools in this order based on the average combined score of female and international students
