It is important to find the right MBA Colleges for you as an aspirant. The Mba College you choose has to offer an excellent track record, high-quality education, and opportunities to join some of the best corporations. To simplify your MBA college selection process we have categorized India's top MBA colleges into six clusters. The rundown of MBA colleges in India can go on forever, be that as it may, we have attempted to constrain the categorization to the better and progressively known MBA colleges. As you proceed in the list from top to bottom, the level of differentiation between both the colleges and the clusters significantly diminishes.
When reviewing MBA colleges within a cluster, the preference generally diminishes as you read further from top to bottom. For example, in Cluster 1, while we cannot differentiate between IIM A, B, and C. IIMA tops the list based on its brand value and reputation and C comes in second place since its fees are the lowest amongst the three. Before taking final admission into any of these MBA colleges, please ensure that you speak to some students of the current batch and a few of their alumni, and visit the official website of the respective institutes for detailed information.
Before taking final admission into any of these B-schools, please ensure that you speak to some students of the current batch and a few of their alumni, and visit the official website of the respective institutes for detailed information.
The parameters basis which MBA Colleges are evaluated and listed below:
India is sprawling with quality MBA colleges, but some are better than others in a few aspects. While choosing an MBA college, there are a few parameters that you should keep in mind, which include, its reputation, the alumni network, the faculty, and of course the corporate connection it has. We have categorized India's top MBA Colleges into six clusters based on the above-mentioned parameters which will help you select the ideal B-school that you want to target as your MBA destination. As we all know, there is no dearth of MBA Colleges in India, but for this list, we have chosen only the most progressive and most reputed colleges in the country.
Disclaimer: While this list, designed on the predictions made by CL experts, serves as a guide for selecting a top-level MBA college, do not constrain your research to this list only. We advise you to talk to some of the alumni members, go through the official website of the college and visit the campus if you can before taking admission to any of the below-mentioned institutes.
S.No. |
Sub-Cluster |
Institute |
City |
Fees | Program |
CLUSTER – 1 Undoubtedly, like every year IIM Ahmedabad, Bengaluru and Calcutta acquire the top three positions in the best MBA Colleges’ preference list. With an excellent placement record, great reputation, and endless opportunities these institutes stand as crème de la crème institutes. FMS Delhi, IIM Lucknow, and XLRI are all equally good and one can choose any of these based on one’s specific requirements. If you are a candidate with over 3 years of work experience then you should be looking at ISB Hyderabad which offers a one-year course and accepts a GMAT score for admission. FMS DU, TISS, and JBIMS stand out in terms of excellent “value for money” institutes due to their very low fee and excellent placements however the 85% reservation for Maharashtra pushes JBIMS lower in my order of preference. TISS is a little lower on the list but that’s mostly because it is a specialized program. A general management program is generally preferred (over specialized programs) as it allows you to choose your area of specialization after studying all subjects in the first year. However, if you are interested in a particular stream (in this case HR) then it would rank higher for you. For e.g., if you are looking for a specialization in HR then XLRI and TISS would be your preferences. |
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1 |
1A |
Ahmedabad |
INR 23, 00, 000 | PGP |
|
2 |
1A |
Bengaluru |
INR 23,20,000 | PGP |
|
3 |
1A |
Kolkata |
INR 22,60,000 | PGDM |
|
4 |
1B |
Lucknow |
INR 19,25,000 | PGPM |
|
5 |
1B |
New Delhi |
INR 1,92,000 | MBA |
|
6 |
1B |
Hyderabad |
INR 22,50,000 | PGP |
|
7 |
1B |
Jamshedpur |
INR 23,60,000 | PGP-BM |
|
8 |
1B |
Mumbai |
INR 1,15,000 | MA HRM LR |
|
9 |
1B |
Mumbai |
INR 6,00,000 | MMS |
|
10 |
1C |
Mumbai |
INR 19,00,000 | PGDM |
|
11 |
1C |
Kozhikode |
INR 19,00,000 | PGP |
|
12 |
1C |
Indore |
INR 16,50,000 | PGPM |
|
13 |
1C |
Gurgaon |
20,86,670 | PGPM |
|
14 |
1C |
New Delhi |
INR 18,25,000 | MBA |
|
15 |
1C |
NCR |
INR 11,80,000 | MBA |
S.No. |
Sub-Cluster |
Institute |
City |
Fees | Program |
CLUSTER – 2 This cluster shows that some non-IIMs make their mark as better MBA colleges than most of the IIM colleges in terms of growth, learning, and placements. IIFT Kolkata is listed in cluster 2A above many other older and more established institutes because it has a common placement process with IIFT Delhi and hence there is no disparity among the two institutes. Similarly, IIML ABM is preferred over IIMA FABM because while IIML does not differentiate between ABM and PGP in terms of placement opportunities, IIMA has a separate placement process for PGP and FABM. Three well-known technical institutes (IIT Bombay/Delhi and NITIE) make their presence felt in this cluster, all three are well-known MBA in Operations/Systems/Analytics. The IB programs of MDI Gurgaon are in this cluster and not in Cluster 1 due to cost considerations. Several of the new IIMs like IIM Ranchi, Udaipur, etc. are also appearing on this list.Many other IIMs and non-IIM colleges are part of cluster 2. |
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17 |
2A |
Lucknow |
INR 19,25,000 | PGP ABM |
|
18 |
2A |
Kolkata |
INR 8,85,000 | MBA |
|
19 |
2A |
Mumbai |
INR 8,27,000 | M. Management |
|
20 |
2A |
Mumbai |
INR 14,00,000 | PGDIM |
|
21 |
2A |
Shillong |
INR 1,46,000 | PGPM |
|
22 |
2B |
Ahmedabad |
INR 23,00,000 | PGP FABM |
|
23 |
2B |
New Delhi |
INR 8,80,000 | MBA |
|
24 |
2B |
Gurgaon |
INR 24,34,000 | PGPM HRM |
|
25 |
2B |
Gurgaon |
INR 25,00,000 | PGPM IM |
|
26 |
2C |
Mumbai |
INR 14,63,000 | PGDISEM |
|
27 |
2C |
Pune |
INR 20,50,000 | MBA |
|
28 |
2C |
Ranchi |
INR 15,10,000 | PGDM |
|
29 |
2C |
Tiruchirapalli |
INR 16,50,000 | PGPM |
|
30 |
2C |
Udaipur |
INR 13,54,000 | PGP |
|
31 |
2C |
Mumbai |
INR 17,50,000 | MBA |
S.No. |
Sub-Cluster |
Institute |
City |
Program |
CLUSTER – 3 B-schools such as MICA and IRMA that offer specialized programs find their spot in this cluster. It must be understood that in their specialization, these two MBA colleges are amongst the best in the country. For example, MICA is regarded as one of the topmost MBA colleges in the country for its Marketing and Advertising program. Two old-established good institutes in this cluster are XIMB and IMT Ghaziabad, both provide excellent placement opportunities. For candidates with over 2 years of work experience, the Great Lakes Chennai 1 year program (PGPM) can be considered over others despite a lack of AICTE recognition as it has excellent placements due to industry recognition. In this cluster, the IITs can be preferred over the others due to their low fee and good placements especially if you are interested in specializing in operations/systems/analytics. |
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32 |
3A |
Pune |
MBA |
|
33 |
3A |
Raipur |
PGP |
|
34 |
3A |
Kashipur |
PGP |
|
35 |
3A |
Rohtak |
PGP |
|
36 |
3B |
Kharagpur |
MBA |
|
37 |
3B |
Ahmedabad |
PGDM-C |
|
38 |
3B |
Bhubaneswar |
MBA BM |
|
39 |
3B |
Jamshedpur |
Global MBA |
|
40 |
3C |
Ranchi |
PGDHRM |
|
41 |
3C |
Ghaziabad |
PGDM |
|
42 |
3C |
New Delhi |
PGDM |
|
43 |
3C |
Anand |
PGPRM |
|
44 |
3C |
Mumbai |
PGDBM |
|
45 |
3C |
Chennai |
PGPM – 1 year |
|
46 |
3C |
Chennai |
MBA |
S.No. |
Sub-Cluster |
Institute |
City |
Program |
CLUSTER – 4 Highlights of this cluster are the old established institutes (TAPMI, GIM, KJ Somaiya, BIM Trichy, etc) which are well known regionally, and the latest IIMs like Vizag, Nagpur, and others. This cluster also has specialized programs of some of the top MBA institutes (PGDISEM of NITIE, MSc Finance of JBIMS, HR programs of NMIMS and XIMB, etc.) and the value for money MBA programs of Delhi University (MFC, MHROD, MBE). |
||||
47 |
4A |
Manipal |
MBA |
|
48 |
4A |
Vishakhapatnam |
PGP |
|
49 |
4A |
Nagpur |
PGP |
|
50 |
4A |
Mumbai |
MSc Finance |
|
51 |
4A |
Mumbai |
PGDISEM |
|
52 |
4A |
Indian Institute of Science (IISc) |
Bengaluru |
M.Mmgt (Tech Mgmt) |
53 |
4A |
Amritsar |
PGP |
|
54 |
4A |
Kanpur |
MBA |
|
55 |
4A |
Mumbai |
MBA HR |
|
56 |
4A |
New Delhi |
MBA Fin |
|
57 |
4A |
Bhubaneswar |
MBA HRM |
|
58 |
4B |
Master of HR and Organisational Development, DSE, Delhi Univ. |
New Delhi |
MHROD |
59 |
4B |
Bodh Gaya |
PGP |
|
60 |
4B |
Jammu |
PGP |
|
61 |
4B |
Roorkee |
MBA |
|
62 |
4B |
Goa Institute of Management (GIM) |
Goa |
PGDM |
63 |
4B |
Symbiosis Institute of International Business (SIIB) |
Pune |
MBA IB |
64 |
4B |
K J Somaiya Institute of Management Studies & Research (SIMSR) |
Mumbai |
PGDM, IB, FM, Retail |
65 |
4B |
Tiruchirapalli |
MBA |
|
66 |
4B |
Pilani |
MBA |
|
67 |
4B |
Sirmaur |
PGP |
|
68 |
4C |
Greater Noida |
PGP SM |
|
69 |
4C |
Indian Institute of Management (IIM-Sambalpur) |
Sambalpur |
PGP |
70 |
4C |
New Delhi |
BE |
|
71 |
4C |
Dehradun |
MBA |
|
72 |
4C |
Andhra Pradesh |
MBA |
|
73 |
4C |
Pune |
MBA |
|
74 |
4C |
Mumbai |
MBA |
|
75 |
4C |
Loyola Institute of Business Administration (LIBA) |
Chennai |
PGDM |
76 |
4C |
FORE School of Management |
New Delhi |
PGDM, IB |
77 |
4C |
Greater Noida |
MBA |
|
78 |
4C |
Dehradun |
MBA |
|
79 |
4C |
Greater Noida |
PGDM |
|
80 |
4C |
Bangalore |
MBA |
|
81 |
4C |
TAMILNADU |
PGDM |
|
82 |
4C |
(Gurgaon, Gwalior, Jaipur, Lucknow, Mumbai, Raipur) |
MBA |
|
83 |
4C |
Delhi |
PGDM |
|
84 |
4C |
Bangalore |
MBA |
|
85 |
4C |
Rajasthan |
MBA |
|
86 |
4C |
Andhra Pradesh |
MBA |
S.No. |
Sub-Cluster |
Institute |
City |
Program |
CLUSTER – 5 & 6 If you have not made it to any college up to Cluster 4 and CAT/XAT retake is not an option or you think that in a retake you will not be able to improve your score significantly then it is Cluster 5 and 6 institutes that you are looking at. The colleges included in these two clusters provide good education and decent career opportunities the role profiles and salary levels will be lower than what would be available in a higher cluster institute. For these colleges location is an important criterion – an institute in a metro city is likely to have better industry interaction and better placement opportunities. Also at this level, the majority of the placements are in the same geographical region, e.g. if you are studying in NCR you are unlikely to be placed outside North India. Also given that the salary levels will not be very high, look at keeping the total expense of doing MBA (fee + boarding & lodging) under control. Servicing a 20-lakh loan will be challenging with an 8 lakh salary. |
||||
87 |
5A |
Delhi School of Management – Delhi Technological University (DTU) |
New Delhi |
MBA |
88 |
5A |
Ahmedabad |
MBA |
|
89 |
5A |
Bengaluru |
PGDM |
|
90 |
5A |
Faridabad |
MBA |
|
91 |
5B |
Lal Bahadur Shastri Institute of Management (LBS) |
New Delhi |
PGDM, Finance |
92 |
5B |
Bengaluru |
MBA |
|
93 |
5B |
Symbiosis Institute of Operations Management (SIOM) |
Nasik |
MBA Ops |
94 |
5B |
New Delhi |
PGDHRM |
|
95 |
5B |
Symbiosis Institute of Telecom Management (SITM) |
Pune |
MBA |
96 |
5B |
Symbiosis Institute of Management Studies (SIMS) |
Pune |
MBA |
97 |
5B |
Symbiosis Institute of Mass Communication (SIMC) |
Pune |
MBA CM |
98 |
5C |
Chennai |
PGDM |
|
99 |
5C |
Greater Noida |
MBA |
|
100 |
5C |
Gurgaon |
PGPM 1 year |
|
101 |
5C |
Kolkata |
PGDM |
|
102 |
5C |
New Delhi |
DCP |
|
103 |
5C |
New Delhi |
PGDM BFS |
|
104 |
5C |
Gurgaon |
MBA |
|
105 |
5C |
National Institute of Bank Management |
Pune |
PGDM B & FS |
106 |
5C |
Welingkar Institute of Management |
Mumbai |
MMS, PGDM |
107 |
5C |
Murshidabad |
PGP |
|
108 |
5C |
Greater Noida |
PGDM, IB |
|
109 |
5C |
Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC GBO), Delhi Univ. |
New Delhi |
GBO |
110 |
6A |
Pune |
PGDM |
|
111 |
6A |
Bengaluru |
PGDM |
|
112 |
6A |
Hyderabad |
PGDM |
|
113 |
6A |
Symbiosis Institute of International Business (SIIB) |
Pune |
MBA AB, MBA E&E |
114 |
6A |
Pune |
MBA-IM |
|
115 |
6A |
Symbiosis Center for Information Technology |
Pune |
MBA-ITBM |
116 |
6A |
Hyderabad |
PGDM |
|
117 |
6A |
Gurgaon |
PGPME |
|
118 |
6B |
Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM) |
Bhopal |
PGDFM |
119 |
6B |
Faculty of Management Studies, BHU (FMS BHU) |
Varanasi |
MBA MBA IB |
120 |
6B |
Mysore |
PGDM |
|
121 |
6B |
Nagpur |
PGDM |
|
122 |
6B |
Hyderabad |
MBA/PGPM |
|
123 |
6B |
Xavier Institute of Social Service (XISS) |
Ranchi |
HR |
124 |
6B |
NL Dalmia Institute of Management Studies and Research |
Mumbai |
PGDM |
125 |
6B |
Greater Noida |
PGDM |
|
126 |
6C |
Chandigarh |
MBA |
|
127 |
6C |
Symbiosis Institute of Business Management- Hyderabad |
Hyderabad |
MBA |
128 |
6C |
Gurgaon |
MBA |
|
129 |
6C |
Symbiosis Institute of Computer Studies and Research (SICSR) |
Pune |
MBA-IT |
130 |
6C |
Bhubaneswar |
MBA – Rural Mgmt |
|
131 |
6C |
Xavier Institute of Social Service (XISS) |
Ranchi |
Marketing & Finance |
132 |
6C |
Harihar and Pune |
PGDM |
|
133 |
6C |
Kochi |
PGDM |
|
134 |
6C |
Symbiosis Institute of Health Services (SIHS) |
Pune |
MBA |
135 |
6C |
Symbiosis Institute of Banking and Finance (SSBF) |
Pune |
MBA BF, PGDBF |