Refer China: CEIBS GEMBA ranked in top 2 globally for sixth consecutive year

Also ranked #1 stand-alone programme worldwide for fourth consecutive year.

The CEIBS Global EMBA (GEMBA) programme has been ranked #2 in the world in the Financial Times 2025 Executive MBA Ranking, marking its sixth consecutive year among the global top two and its fourth consecutive year as the world's highest-ranked stand-alone EMBA programme.

While many other leading institutions in China run joint EMBA programmes with international partners, CEIBS has achieved global leadership through a fully independent model, a testament to over three decades of academic excellence and international recognition.

Established in 1995 as the first English-language Executive MBA on the Chinese mainland, this achievement arrives as the programme celebrates its 30th anniversary, reaffirming its position as both a world-leading international executive programme and a pioneering force in management education in China.

Six Key Differentiators

Leading the world in international management education

Co-founded by the Chinese government and the European Union in 1994, CEIBS has since its inception benchmarked itself against the world's best business schools. In 2001, the school became the first on the Chinese mainland to participate in the Financial Times EMBA Ranking and, over the past 20 years, has steadily risen in global stature and contributed significantly to China's management education landscape.

Wang Hong

CEIBS President

"This remarkable achievement once again validates CEIBS' strategic positioning of 'China Depth, Global Breadth', and embodies the school's commitment to 'Conscientiousness, Innovation, and Excellence'. It also highlights the ongoing relevance and success of CEIBS' educational mission. As the world navigates complex geopolitical shifts, rapid economic change, and the transformative development of AI, the school will continue to lead in the transformation of management education and educate responsible leaders versed in 'China Depth, Global Breadth'. CEIBS will also continue striving to become the world's most respected international business school, contributing intellectual wisdom to the shared development of China and the global business community."

Global Impact

Increases in student salary and overall satisfaction

The CEIBS GEMBA's continued placement in the upper echelons of this globally recognised ranking demonstrates consistency and dedication to quality amid a rapidly changing business environment. While the demands of enterprises and business leaders evolve against a backdrop of economic uncertainty and technological disruption, the CEIBS GEMBA's consistent success reflects its deep commitment to quality and impact for both participants and businesses. Rooted in cutting-edge global management theory and enriched by insight into China's dynamic business environment, the programme equips executives with strategic vision, analytical depth, and cross-cultural leadership capabilities.

This year's ranking clearly demonstrates the tangible benefits the GEMBA programme offers to its participants through individual indicators such as Salary Increase, in which CEIBS rose from #7 in 2024 to #3 in 2025. The programme's Overall Satisfaction score, while not included in the ranking calculation, also rose dramatically from #21 in 2024 to #2 in 2025, indicating the success of the programme's strategy and design through strong alumni endorsement of both quality and experience.

Dominique Turpin

CEIBS President (European)

"The CEIBS Global EMBA programme's continued outstanding performance in the Financial Times global rankings is a testament to CEIBS' international vision and commitment to providing participants with a truly world-class experience. The GEMBA exemplifies this through its highly diverse student and alumni networks, close partnerships with other leading global management education institutions, and peerless overseas study modules across five continents, empowering participants to grow into global leaders who are well-versed in the Chinese market, international perspectives, and cross-cultural management capabilities. The GEMBA's consistent placement among the top two in this most prestigious of rankings reflects our success in this endeavour and firmly establishes the CEIBS Global EMBA as one of the most international and outstanding executive education programmes in the world."

With over 20 overseas immersion modules and exchange partnerships with eight leading business schools across ten countries, the GEMBA programme embodies CEIBS' mission to drive meaningful international exchange between China, Europe, and the rest of the world. Participants explore cutting-edge industries and benchmark enterprises through "China Depth" learning modules, gaining a nuanced understanding of both global and local business dynamics.

World-Leading Faculty

120+ international professors, building academic excellence

Frank Bournois

CEIBS Vice President and Dean

"The ranking of the CEIBS Global EMBA programme as #2 in the world once again underscores the school's strong performance in terms of faculty excellence and academic research. An international and influential faculty is one of the key reasons that many participants choose CEIBS and is the secret to the school's ability to cultivate a remarkable number of outstanding management talents. Over the years, CEIBS has remained committed to building a world-class faculty equipped to deliver a combination of 'China Depth' and 'Global Breadth' in both teaching and research. They consistently produce impactful research and bridge global theory with on-the-ground China experience to ensure students gain benefit from both rigorous knowledge and real-world relevance."

The GEMBA programme's consistent world-leading performance can also be attributed to CEIBS' exceptional faculty. Consisting of 120 renowned scholars from over 20 countries and regions around the world, CEIBS continues to lead amongst business schools on the Chinese mainland in notable rankings such as the Business Administration category of Elsevier's "Most Cited Chinese Researchers" list. Recently, seven CEIBS professors were also recognised among the annual World's Top 2% Scientists list released by Elsevier and Stanford University.

Global Network

33,000 alumni, driving CEIBS' international recognition

Zhu Tian

CEIBS Vice President and Co-dean

"The CEIBS Global EMBA's outstanding achievement of ranking among the top two globally in the Financial Times Executive MBA ranking for the sixth consecutive year is a source of immense pride for our entire community. This result reflects not only the strength of CEIBS' strategic focus on providing a learning experience that brings together participants from around the world and offering unique proximity to both Chinese and international businesses, but also the remarkable success of the school's alumni, whose career progress and strong sense of connection to CEIBS continue to enhance the school's global reputation. 33,000 alumni across 91 countries and regions around the world are living embodiments of the CEIBS spirit. Their achievements and continued engagement are what make the school's reputation truly global."

Equally central to the GEMBA's success is its international alumni network. As Asia's largest international EMBA programme, the CEIBS GEMBA recruits around 100 senior executives and entrepreneurs per year from a wide range of backgrounds to form a global learning community. Of current GEMBA cohorts, 41% of students are international, with 31% based outside mainland China and regularly travelling to Shanghai for classes. This year's ranking highlights further achievements in this regard, with CEIBS climbing from #18 to #8 in Alumni Network and from #9 to #5 in Work Experience, demonstrating the programme's strong appeal to senior global executives. CEIBS' mission is not only to deliver a transformative learning journey for participants during the programme but also to build a lifelong platform for continued professional and personal growth.

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Bala Ramasamy

CEIBS Associate Dean (GEMBA)

"It is a great honour for the CEIBS Global EMBA to be ranked #2 in the world by the Financial Times in 2025. This recognition is more than a ranking. It's an affirmation of our mission to bridge China and the world by developing global leaders who can thrive amid uncertainty and change. In today's turbulent environment, the GEMBA programme combines rigorous academic learning with real-world application, leadership development, and a strong emphasis on sustainability and responsible management. We believe that future managers must not only possess leadership skills but also a sense of responsibility, empathy and agility, and must be courageous enough to confront difficult, even unprecedented challenges to lead their enterprises to success. As the CEIBS GEMBA programme celebrates its 30th anniversary, it remains committed to continuous innovation and to shaping leaders who create lasting value for business and society worldwide."

This ranking recognises a programme operating at the peak of global management education and marks a 30-year journey of innovation, impact, and community building. Looking ahead, CEIBS and the CEIBS GEMBA programme will strive to offer participants ever greater impact, deepen exchange between China and the world, and maintain a position at the pinnacle of global management education.

GEMBA Alumni Thoughts

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About CEIBS Global EMBA (GEMBA)

The CEIBS Global EMBA (GEMBA), is a part-time, English-language Executive MBA programme that balances "China Depth" and "Global Breadth" and develops responsible global business leaders. The programme is a transformational self-development journey, allowing each student to step outside their everyday work environment and see business challenges from a whole new perspective. With modules available in more than 20 destinations worldwide, a diverse student body from over 20 countries and regions, and two integrated tracks running between China, Europe and Africa, the CEIBS GEMBA provides unparalleled opportunities for participants to expand their global network, while plugging into China's largest business school alumni network and to take their career and personal development to the next level.

About CEIBS

CEIBS was co-founded by the Chinese government and European Union (EU) in 1994, with Shanghai Jiao Tong University and the EFMD serving as its executive partners. The school has campuses in Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Accra (Ghana), and Zurich (Switzerland).

CEIBS is committed to educating responsible leaders versed in "China Depth, Global Breadth" and serves as an important platform for exchange and co-operation between China, Europe and the world.

The school offers MBA, Part-time MBA, Finance MBA, MiM (Switzerland), EMBA, Global EMBA, Hospitality EMBA, DBA (Switzerland), PhD, and Executive Education programmes. It has placed in the top tier of the Financial Times' ranking of global MBA programmes for nine consecutive years; its Global EMBA has ranked in the top two of its global ranking of EMBA programmes for six consecutive years.

CEIBS has more than 33,000 alumni from over 91 countries and regions around the world and has provided management training for more than 270,000 executives worldwide.