MIT ranked No. 1 university worldwide for economics and business
Times Higher Education awards top honors to fields in MIT SHASS and MIT Sloan for second year in a row.
 

“The work of both MIT SHASS and MIT Sloan continues to advance the highest areas of scholarship and practical application. From poverty alleviation to the future of work, the combined knowledge and experience of MIT’s experts helps shape economic policy, drive business growth, and prepare future leaders.

— Melissa Nobles, Kenan Sahin Dean, MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences



For the second year in a row, The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has achieved the top ranking globally for the Business and Economics subject category in the 2020 Times Higher Education World University Rankings.

MIT has also been ranked No. 1 in the world for Social Sciences and No. 4 for Arts and Humanities for 2020 by Times Higher Education (THE), a leading British education magazine.

AT MIT, Business and Economic studies are housed in the MIT Department of Economics, within the MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (MIT SHASS) and in the MIT Sloan School of Management (MIT Sloan).

Using a set of 13 rigorous performance indicators, THE compiles and publishes its annual World University Rankings. These rankings evaluate schools as a whole and within individual fields. THE discerns a university’s quality in a given subject area through five area metrics: the learning environment; the volume, income, and reputation of its research; the influence of its citations in other research; the international outlook of its staff, students, and research; and its knowledge transfer to various industries.

“The work of both MIT SHASS and MIT Sloan continues to advance the highest areas of scholarship and practical application,” said Melissa Nobles, the Kenan Sahin Dean of the MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences. “We warmly congratulate our colleagues in MIT Sloan with whom we share this honor. From poverty alleviation to the future of work, the combined knowledge and experience of MIT’s experts helps shape economic policy, drive business growth, and prepare future leaders.
 

The MIT Sloan School of Management

The MIT Sloan School of Management, which evolved out of Course XV/Engineering Administration, is a powerful force within MIT’s entrepreneurial environment, training alumni whose businesses — which include HubSpot, ZipCar, Akamai, and E*Trade — have created millions of jobs and generate nearly $2 trillion a year in revenue. At the intersection of business and technology, Sloan is exploring the future of work and launching companies that kick-start local economies in the developing world. The School is retooling systems to make health care work better and to engage people around the world in addressing climate change. For students, this means different kinds of opportunities, hands-on learning, global experience – and a relentless focus on impact.

“We are thrilled to share the honors of being first in business and management for the second year in a row with our colleagues in the MIT Department of Economics and MIT SHASS,” said David Schmittlein, Dean of MIT Sloan.
 

The MIT Department of Economics

For more than a century, MIT’s Department of Economics, located in MIT SHASS, has been at the forefront of economics education, research, and public service. Its Masters and Doctoral programs are renowned worldwide, and graduates of the department are well-represented on the faculties of virtually all leading economics departments. 

“We’re proud of this recognition of the contributions of MIT Economics” said Nancy L. Rose, department head and the Charlies P. Kindleberger Professor of Applied Economics. “MIT Economics continues to play a key role in advancing the frontier in economics research and education, with four of our faculty recognized with Nobel Prizes over just the past decade, and eight more of our graduate alumni among the Nobel ranks since 2001. Our undergraduate and graduate alumni amplify the reach of our research and education program,” adds Rose, “through their impact on industry, public policy, and the economics profession.”

Last month, the department was honored with two new Nobel Prizes, awarded to professors Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo, who lead the department’s Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab, for their transformative work in poverty alleviation and development economics.

Dean Nobles notes that MIT's longstanding commitment to cross-disciplinary thinking and collaboration fosters the strength of the collective business and economics programs across the Institute.  

 

Suggested Links

THE World University Rankings

MIT Department of Economics

MIT Sloan School of Management

MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences