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CONTACT: communications@mail.cox.smu.edu

SMU’s Cox School of Business is pleased to announce that once again Business Week Magazine ranks its Executive MBA program among the top 20 in the nation. Business Week’s special report, "Executive Education: Learning to Lead" surveyed 100 select programs across the country.

The special report will be included in the October 18^th issue of Business Week, and lists the top 20 schools alphabetically and unranked. The magazine made special note of the Cox School’s use of a professional in retained executive search to counsel EMBA students on maximizing their career success and satisfaction. Compared to other top 20 programs, the Cox Executive MBA participants tied for first in years of professional experience and ranked 5^th in average manager salary. At Cox, the average years of professional experience is 18 and average salary of entering students is $138,346. Compared to the other top 20 programs, the Cox Executive MBA total tuition is a great value at $13,000 less than the other school’s average tuition, while Cox School participants are more experienced and make $50,000 more than the average salaries of other school’s participants.

Dean Al Niemi says, "Dallas represents the third largest concentration of corporate headquarters in America, so we have an excellent pool of high level executives to fill our EMBA program. The Business Week survey confirms we are one of the top Executive MBA programs in the nation."

"Due to the strength of the Cox Executive MBA, the strong applicant pool in Dallas, and the continued support of the Dallas business community, we plan to expand EMBA next fall by doubling the number of people accepted," says Marci Armstrong, Associate Dean of Masters Programs. The average number of graduates from Executive MBA programs nationwide has risen sharply over the last decade. In 1988, only 55 schools awarded EMBAs. Today there are 190 accredited EMBA programs.

Cox’s Executive Education and Management Development Division also received recognition from Business Week for specialized courses. Cox’s executive education program ranked 5^th worldwide in Accounting and 5^th worldwide in Industry Specific Programs. Cox’s specialized courses focus on the oil and gas and telecommunications industries.

The Business Week commendation follows U.S. News & World Report’s ranking of the Executive MBA program as #14 in the nation. The Cox School of Business is one of only 23 in the nation that is consistently ranked among the top schools by Business Week, U.S. News & World Report, and the Financial Times. Business Week’s special report can be found on the magazine’s website at http://www.businessweek.com

The Cox Executive MBA program has been in existence since 1976. Students are required to have a minimum of ten years professional experience with significant managerial experience and measurable career success. The 21-month program is conducted at the Cox School on alternating Fridays and Saturdays.