London Business School's MBA programme has been ranked number one in the world for the third year running in the annual Financial Times (FT) MBA ranking.

The school has been in the top ten since the ranking was launched in 1999 and shares the top spot this year with University of Pennsylvania: Wharton.

Professor Sir Andrew Likierman, dean of London Business School, said: “We are very proud to have retained the top spot.  This is a great tribute to everyone associated with the School who has helped us maintain our quality.”

The rankings highlight the global nature of the school, with specific reference to the high proportion of international students (92 per cent) and faculty (85 per cent), a statement said.

Ahmed Abdulrahim, a current London Business School MBA student from Bahrain, said: "London Business School is the perfect environment to get the right mix of top quality education, true international exposure, excellent career opportunities, and loads of fun. It has truly been a great experience."

Hamad M. Al Rugaib, also a current student from Saudi Arabia who worked for seven years in the oil and gas downstream industry in different roles at Saudi Aramco, said: “I feel very privileged to be part of a community which offers unlimited opportunities for learning and building a life lasting international network.”

“London Business School’s truly world class faculty bring not only the latest and most relevant academics but also significant focus on how to apply the learning and create value in the business world. I aspire to employ the learning in the MBA to improve lives and create opportunities for the people in my region,” he added.

The ranking also draws out earning potential, with London Business School students earning a 132 per cent increase in salary three years after graduating compared to when they started their degree.

The school reported an employment rate of 91 per cent for MBA graduates within three months of graduating in 2010, a ten percentage point increase on the 2009 figures. The School also took the second spot for aims achieved, highlighting that the school delivered on the students’ objectives.

The top ten business schools worldwide, as ranked by the Financial Times are: London Business School (1), University of Pennsylvania: Wharton (1), Harvard Business School (3), Insead (4), Stanford University GSB (5), Hong Kong UST Business School (6), Columbia Business School (7), IE Business School (8), MIT Sloan School of Management (9) and Iese Business School (10).

This ranking's methodology uses data provided by business schools and their alumni who graduated three years ago, examining three categories: alumni salaries and career development, diversity and international reach of the business school and the MBA programme, and the research capabilities of each school.

London Business School also has a base in the Middle East and opened its doors to a campus in Dubai in 2006 at the Dubai International Financial Centre. – TradeArabia News Service