The Economist has ranked the University of Virginia McIntire School of Commerce’s M.S. in Commerce degree as the top U.S.-based master’s in management program and No. 6 worldwide.

The program achieved the No. 1 rating for range of, and access to, overseas study programs among all 40 programs evaluated. Other high marks include worldwide ratings of No. 2 for education experience, No. 2 for career services, and No. 4 for salary.

“Maintaining the highest ranking among U.S.-based programs is a testament to our vision for an innovative, one-year curriculum for recent liberal arts, sciences and engineering graduates who want to develop real, relevant and focused business expertise,” McIntire Dean Carl Zeithaml said. “As employers are hiring an increasing number of [master’s in management] graduates, our goal is to create an unmatched student experience that delivers an immediate and significant [return on investment].”

Entering its 12th year, McIntire’s M.S. in Commerce program is designed to give students an integrated, enterprise-wide view of business while they develop in-depth skills in a functional specialty. Its foundation is McIntire’s Integrated Core Experience, an intense curriculum that helps students develop their analytic, strategic and behavioral business skills. Blending curriculum innovation and insights from teams of faculty and corporate leaders, the coursework is carefully constructed to give students real-world exposure to the complexities of business.

After the Integrated Core Experience is complete, students select and develop a specialty in one of three areas: business analytics, finance, or marketing and management. To complete their course of study, a Global Immersion Experience – a faculty-led sequence of courses that allows students to explore business in a global context, culminating with an immersion experience – is required of all students. In 2019, McIntire offered six Global Immersion Experience course locations, including Europe, Latin America, Southeast Asia, Greater China, Oceania and Japan, and the Persian Gulf and Indian Subcontinent.  

McIntire reports favorable career outcomes for the past five graduating classes of the M.S. in Commerce, with 94% to 98% of students reporting being employed or seeking further study within three months after graduation. The average total compensation reported for 2018 graduates of the program was $88,327.