West Chester University’s online Master of Business Administration has achieved a solid ranking on the newly released 2021 U.S. News Online MBA Programs list, checking in at No. 51 nationally. More than 320 eligible institutions are on the list.

U.S. News also released its list of the top Online MBA Programs for Veterans, placing WCU at No. 32, tied with William & Mary and the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth. Only 78 institutions are ranked on this list. 

MBA Coordinator Brian J. Halsey, WCU professor of business law, said he was pleased with the ranking: “We’ve generally maintained our status in a fiercely competitive environment.” 

WCU shares the No. 51 spot with Hofstra University and six other institutions.

“The schools that ranked at No. 45 scored just one point more than us on the scale, and the schools that ranked at No. 40 scored just two points more. It is a very competitive environment where one point means large moves in the rankings,” said Halsey.

U.S. News lists the tied universities alphabetically.

Tuition for WCU’s online MBA has been frozen since 2019. The program has been online for more than 10 years and is offered in an asynchronous format with respected faculty, many of whom have taught online for more than 20 years. 

For the 2021 rankings, U.S. News evaluated institutions using five categories: engagement (30 percent), expert opinion (25 percent), faculty credentials and training (15 percent), student excellence (15 percent), and student services and technologies (15 percent).  

U.S. News surveys schools annually to collect the data necessary for its rankings. 

For the second consecutive year, U.S. News administered a separate peer assessment survey directly to deans of business schools with online MBA programs and top distance-learning officials at those institutions. To increase the number of ratings for a better representation of schools for the “expert opinion” category, U.S. News aggregated the peer assessment data collected in 2020 with data collected in 2019 and 2018.

Their methodology states: “A survey of high-ranking academic officials at MBA programs helps account for intangible factors affecting program quality that statistics do not capture.” 

The complete rankings are available online from U.S. News.