Knoxville, Tenn. – September 20, 2026 -- The University of Tennessee, Knoxville's Haslam College of Business rose four places to No. 15 among U.S. public business schools in the Bloomberg Businessweek Best Business Schools Rankings 2026-27. Nationally, Haslam climbed to No. 39, also up four spots from 2025.
Haslam's learning experience score jumps 38 places nationally
Among public institutions, Haslam ranked No. 4 for learning and networking, No. 6 for entrepreneurship and No. 17 for compensation. Nationally, the school placed No. 5 for learning experience, a 38-spot leap from 2025, and No. 10 for networking, up 11 places. Entrepreneurship rose to No. 17 nationally, a 15-spot gain, while compensation improved three spots to No. 43.
Executive director ties gains to corporate-partner curriculum
Mary Goss, the college's executive director of graduate business programs, said the rankings track factors that prepare MBA graduates to perform in senior roles immediately after hiring. "Bloomberg's rankings focuses on the factors in MBA programs that equip graduates to excel quickly in high-level positions when hired, which is what Haslam's MBA program is designed to do," Goss said. She added that faculty bring corporate-partner business issues directly into coursework, while internships and employer, alumni and peer engagement build the networks graduates need after leaving the program.
Bloomberg surveyed nearly 5,000 graduates and 617 employers for the 2026-27 rankings
Bloomberg Businessweek based its 2026-27 rankings on surveys of 4,842 students who graduated between October 1, 2025, and September 30, 2026, and 7,861 alumni who graduated between October 1, 2017, and September 30, 2020. The magazine also surveyed 617 employers that recruited MBA graduates for full-time roles between 2023 and 2025, assessing instruction quality, curriculum relevance, career outcomes and entrepreneurship.