MBA Program Stats

Annual Tuition: $77,841

Annual Tuition Non-Resident: $74,919

Acceptance Rate: 12.3%

Full-Time Enrollment: 621

Average GPA: 3.6

Median GMAT: 730

International: 37%

Minority: 44.2%

Female: 40%

Male: 60%

What You Need To Know

The mantra of the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business is it’s all about the idea. The B-School was founded in 1898 and became accredited in 1916, and ever since, Booth students have been learning to define problems, ask better questions, and develop better solutions. The B-School earned well-deserved attention this year, ranking No. 2 in the P&Q rankings, and No.1 for Best Business Schools by U.S. News and World Report 2023.

“Chicago has been my favorite city in the world long before I started my MBA application. The fascinating Lake Michigan, the city parks, and unique ways to experience every season make Chicago the most charming city I know. Combined with a rich culture and food scene, anyone who has the chance to live in Chicago for two years will certainly have a blast. Professionally-speaking, MBA students in Chicago have the opportunity to connect with top professionals, executives, and entrepreneurs in almost every field, as the city is home to several offices and headquarters of market leaders of several industries,” says MBA Andre Beda.

Academics And Programs

The full-time 21-month MBA program welcomed 620 students selected from a total of 5,037 applications this year. Although the curriculum is rigorous and can be overwhelming at first, Booth deploys peers to first-year students to guide and assist them. Their renowned ‘Paying-It-Forward’ tradition is handed down between classes as an act of gratitude that extends far beyond graduation.

The flagship of the program is its flexible curriculum. Unlike many other top schools with lockstep first-year MBA programs, Booth does not require its MBAs to go through every class together with the one key exception being the Leadership Effectiveness and Development (LEAD) course which examines the fundamentals of communication and teamwork, which all MBAs must take. The curriculum consists of 20 classes plus LEAD.

“Our multidisciplinary curriculum provides students with analytical frameworks needed to succeed. It evolves and grows to meet the rapidly changing business climate with agility yet maintains the core values that distinguish it from any other MBA program. Whether in Chicago, Hong Kong, or London, our accomplished faculty create knowledge among current and future leaders,” says Starr Marcello, Deputy Dean for MBA programs.

By and large, students design a program tailored to fit their own career goals.

“The Booth MBA empowers students to select courses that fit their experience, interests, and career goals. The flexible curriculum, rooted in the fundamentals of business—accounting, economics, psychology, sociology, and statistics—is delivered by the world’s best faculty members, pillars of the Chicago Booth community,” says Marcello.

Booth is known for its strong quant power. “I knew the school had a reputation for quantitative curriculum,” says Emma Lawler, Class of 2023. “I’m looking forward to learning the hard skills I’ll need to be a business leader throughout my entire career. Yes, maybe I could learn some of these skills over years of hands-on experience, but I believe this two-year program will give me a stronger foundation to achieve my ambitious goals and make a bigger impact.”

In addition to Accounting, Analytical Science, and Behavioral Science, the school offers ten more concentrations in Business Analytics, Econometrics and Statistics, economics, entrepreneurship, finance, general management, international business, marketing management, operations management, and strategic management.

Students are required to participate in a summer internship between their first and second year of the MBA, designed to put their knowledge to the test. Outside of curriculum, most Booth students take advantage of a seemingly endless number of extracurricular opportunities.

“The Management Consulting Group and the Booth Technology Group are student clubs that host large events for professionals, including recruitment and job fairs, meet-and-greets with company representatives, networking with business leaders, info-sharing among peers, as well as conducting mock interviews and educational seminars. These events resonate with students, as these fields are the most popular in which they enter after attending business school,” says Associate Dean Jessica Jaggers.

Rankings Data For Chicago Booth

Booth MBA Rankings

Ranking	Poets&Quants
2023-2024	11
2022-2023	2
2021-2022	2
2020-2021	2
2019-2020	2

Getting Into This School

Tips For Your Chicago Booth Application Essay

Chicago Booth continues to use the application process to identify strong qualitative thinkers who offer a broad diversity of experiences

A Chicago Booth MBA Shares His Journey To B-School And Important Tips For Applicants

Meet Michael, a Booth MBA drawn to his career as a result of what he hopes to ultimately accomplish in life. His goal? To make the world a more efficient place

MBA Program Consideration Set

If you believe you’re a close match to this school–based on your scores, age and work experience, you could look at these other competitive full-time MBA programs as well. We list them by stretch, match, and more to consider. These options are presented on the basis of brand image and ranking status as a general guideline. These are meant to be a starting point for further exploration.

Stretch Schools

Match Schools

More Schools to Consider

Partners who enable Poets&Quants to provide, free to our readers, information, inspiration, and greater access to graduate education opportunities.

Northwestern Kellogg vs. Chicago Booth: The Ultimate Smackdown

Kellogg vs Booth: SBC uses insights from MBA Admissions Officers and more to analyze key differences between two world-class institutions.

Kellogg vs. Booth: The Ultimate Smackdown

How the two Chicago-area giants of business education compare

2023-2024 MBA Admissions Events By School

A school-by-school listing of MBA events for the 2023-2024 admissions cycle

This Is What It Costs To Get An MBA From A Top Business School

All the data on tuition, expenses & total cost when you study for an MBA from a leading business school in the United States or Europe

GMAT Versus GRE: Which Top-50 MBA Programs Prefer Which Test?

Where a GMAT or GRE score is a must for admission — and where you don't have to worry about sitting for an entrance exam

Average GMAT Scores At The Top U.S. MBA Programs

All the score averages for the Class of 2024 at 27 of the leading business schools

Acceptance Rates & Yield At The Top 50 U.S. MBA Programs

Acceptance rates rose at elite U.S. B-schools in 2022, but across all 50 P&Q-ranked schools the average rate was similar to 2021 — and some schools got much more selective

Rankings, Rates, ROI & More: The M7 By The Numbers

All the 2021 school employment report & class profile data — and much more — for the Magnificent Seven B-schools

Why Students Chose

“I’ve been greatly surprised by how welcoming and collaborative the Booth community is. My wife and I are humbled by the kindness and support we have received from the current students and alumni during a challenging (and slightly scary) time of moving to a different country and setting up a completely new life far away from home. We were not expecting such warm and friendly hospitality. We spent hours on Zoom calls to help us understand financial aid, visa bureaucracies and the course bidding system. They also helped us with storing and assembling furniture and letting us crash at their place while waiting for our lease to start.” Andre Beda (‘24)

“Aside from the people, there are two main reasons why I chose Booth. The first was Booth’s ETA (Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition) program offered through the Polsky Center. My goal after business school is to acquire and grow a company. Booth offers an amazing program with resources that can directly help me to achieve that goal. The second was the flexible curriculum. I have a specific goal and come from a non-traditional background, so I am very excited to be able to tailor my courses to build a strong business foundation and simultaneously focus on cultivating the skills and knowledge to be successful buying and growing a company.” Zach Bidner (‘24)

“For me, the flexible curriculum was an incredibly important feature of the Booth MBA. Having already completed an undergraduate degree in Business, I wanted a program that trusted me enough to know what I needed to learn. Booth is unique in allowing me to entirely dedicate my coursework to filling the knowledge gaps I have personally identified for myself and taking classes that build on the academic and professional foundations I have already developed to set me up for success in the next phase of my career.” Bianca DiSanto (‘24)

“I try to choose pursuits that offer an outsized opportunity for growth relative to time spent. Early in my career, I pursued consulting and my work at an education non-profit startup was based on this measure— I knew that if I gave it my all, each opportunity would allow me to experience personal and professional growth at a faster pace than I might have in other environments. This philosophy around growth and time is what brought me to Booth, where the analytical rigor, ability to flexibly take courses from the get-go in subject areas that are new to me, and strong community will push me beyond my limits and deliver the kind of accelerated growth I am looking for in my next chapter.” Kruti Mehta (‘24)

“As a medical student, I wanted to attend a business school that had strong administrative and research connections to a well renowned tertiary care medical center. The fact that Booth’s main campus is strategically located on the South Side of Chicago and adjacent to UChicago Medicine provides a unique opportunity to participate in interdisciplinary work with Booth’s healthcare initiative that will further my career goals in healthcare administration.” Alonzo Jones III (‘24)

Student Features For Chicago Booth

Meet Chicago Booth’s MBA Class Of 2024

An inside look at the the newest Boothies at Chicago

Meet Chicago Booth’s MBA Class Of 2023

A look at this year's promising class of MBAs

Meet Chicago Booth’s MBA Class Of 2022

A look at this fall's most promising first-year MBAs at Chicago Booth

The M7 B-Schools: Everything You Need To Know

All the data on the U.S. B-schools that consistently lead the rankings & spark the imagination of applicants everywhere

MBA Pay By Region: Here’s How Much You’re Worth

A school-by-school look at how much MBAs can expect to earn by region

MBA Pay By Occupation & Industry: Here’s How Much You’re Worth

A school-by-school pay comparison for MBAs in Consulting, Finance, Technology, and more

Big Jump In MBA Tech Jobs In Chicago Booth’s 2021 Report

Interim employment report shows slight decline in total compensation for this year's grads

Which M7 School Parties The Hardest? This Survey Found Out

In new report, 84% say grades are secondary to the social side of school

10 Movies Every Business Student Must Watch

From Wall Street to Norma Rae, a movie marathon for admits to business school, current MBAs and anyone interested in life's great truths

Career Stats

Career Statistics of Booth MBAs

Year	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
% of MBAs with Job Offer 3 months post-graduation	97%	93%	93%	96%	96%

Industry Choices Of Booth MBAs

Compensation	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Median Base Salary	$ 175,000	$ 155,000	$ 150,000	$ 145,000	$ 130,000

Industry Choices Of Booth MBAs

Industry	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Consulting	36%	34%	38%	34%	31%
Consumer Products	2%	4%	5%	4%	4%
Education/Government/Nonprofit	1%	1%	1%	1%	1%
Environment/Natural Resources		0%			0%
Energy	1%	1%	1%	1%	1%
Financial Services	35%	27%	30%	31%	32%
Healthcare	4%	3%	4%	1%	2%
Manufacturing	0%	1%		1%	1%
Media & Entertainment	0%	1%		1%	2%
Other	3%	1%	2%
Real Estate	2%	2%	2%	3%	2%
Retail	1%	1%		1%	1%
Technology	15%	23%	16%	21%	20%
Transportation Services		1%	1%	1%
Technology	22.9%
Transportation Services/Equipment	1.1%

Top Hirers of Booth MBAs

Firm	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
McKinsey & Company, Inc.	61	46	43	48	39
Boston Consulting Group, Inc.	53	36	42	35	19
Bain & Company, Inc.	28	18	27	26	25
Amazon.com, Inc.	22	34	20	23	23
Credit Suisse	11	10	7	8	–
Goldman Sachs Group Inc.	11	8	7	7	–
Google Inc.	11	8	–	14	9
PwC Strategy&/PwC Advisory	9	8	13	9	–
JPMorgan Chase & Co.	8	8	–	11	12
Citigroup, Inc.	7	5	–	7	–
Kearney	7	9
Lazard Freres & Co. LLC	7
Bank of America Corporation	6	8
Adobe Systems Inc.	5	4	–	–	–
Deloitte Consulting	5	7	–	–	–
Guggenheim Partners, LLC	5
Morgan Stanley	5	6	–	–	–
Evercore Partners Inc.	4
Facebook	4
Fidelity	4
Greenhill & Co.	4
Salesforce	4

Admissions For Chicago Booth

Essay Questions For Chicago Booth

All Booth MBA candidates are required to submit responses to the following two questions:

1. How will a Booth MBA help you achieve your immediate and long-term post-MBA career goals? (Minimum 250 words, no maximum.)

2. An MBA is as much about personal growth as it is about professional development. In addition to sharing your experience and goals in terms of career, we’d like to learn more about you outside of the office. Use this opportunity to tell us something about who you are. (Minimum 250 words, no maximum.)

The third question is optional:

3. Is there any unclear information in your application that needs further explanation? (Maximum 300 words.)

School Features And Admissions Analysis

MBA Class Of 2025: What It Took To Get Into This No. 1-Ranked B-School

Women's enrollment grows at this M7 school, which like many of its peers received fewer applications for a second year in a row

MBA Class Of 2024: Full Speed Ahead For Chicago Booth Despite App Decline

Apps are way down, but Booth has kept its class size stable after growing it by 30 seats in the pandemic year of 2020

Chicago Booth’s MBA Class Of 2023: More Apps, Record GMAT & Women

Booth's GMAT mark of 732 represents an 8-point upswing from last fall

2022 MBA Jobs: Finance Powers 10% Pay Bump At Chicago Booth

Median base salary grows 13% to $175K as finance jobs boom & tech jobs plummet

Chicago Booth’s 2021 Jobs Report Shows Big Bump In MBA Compensation

Chicago grads' total compensation climbs nearly 5%

High & Low MBA Salaries And Bonuses At The Top 100 B-Schools

All the most important numbers from the top business schools in the United States

How To Tackle Chicago Booth’s New Essay Question

What Booth is looking for & how to stand out

How To Prepare For The MBA Interview With Chicago Booth

What to expect from Booth and what Booth expects of you

The Charles M. Harper Center at Chicago Booth The Charles M. Harper Center is the global headquarters of the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, home to our faculty, leadership, and many of our administrative, program, and research center offices. The designers of the 415,000-square-foot building—completed in 2004—took their inspiration from Frank Lloyd Wright’s world-famous Robie House and the university’s iconic Rockefeller Chapel, each across the street from Booth’s Hyde Park campus. The building features a continuous band of windows, providing the interior with an abundance of natural light, as well as the six-story Rothman Winter Garden in the center of the building, which is topped by curved steel beams that form stunning Gothic arches. The Charles M. Harper Center The University of Chicago Booth School of Business 5807 S. Woodlawn Ave. Chicago, IL 60637 USA

The Unconventional Guide To Getting Into The Booth MBA

Tried-and-true advice to help you get into one of the M7 schools that dominate the annual rankings

Your MBA Recommender Strategy Starts Now

5 tips to secure a strong recommendation

Positioning Extracurriculars On Your MBA Application

Tips from the MBA admissions experts on how to stand out

5 Tips To Craft A Killer MBA Resume

Insider tips with specific before/after examples

When To Start Your MBA Application

Round one countdown: 7 strategies to start now

what it costs to hire an MBA admissions consultant

What It Now Costs To Hire An MBA Admissions Consultant

The cost can vary from $20K to a three-school package to $195 an hour for one-on-one coaching

The Most Favorably Reviewed MBA Admission Consulting Firms

These nine MBA admissions firms stand out for their success with MBA applicants

The Top MBA Admission Consultants Of 2023

These MBA admission consultants are at the top of their game, winning more favorable client reviews than any other in the world

MBA Watch For Chicago Booth

MBA Watch is where thousands of MBA applicants not only get to tell their story but have John A. Byrne, MBA admissions coaches and our audience, assess their odds of admission and get help to improve their chances of getting in!

Mr. Army Engineer

I'm currently an Army Captain and engineer at heart but am looking to jump into the finance or consulting industry - an MBA seems the best way to start.

Mr. EduTech

An engineering guy with keen interest in what makes or breaks a company and what makes a product successful.

Mr. Marine Pilot

I am a US Marine Corps pilot and have completed one combat deployment to the Middle East.

Mr. Unilever To MBB

- Four years of experience in CPG (P&G and Unilever).

Ms. Engineer In Finance – Deferred MBA

I am a final year Engineering student from the University of Toronto.

Mr. Market Analyst

After working in the software industry for 18 months, I left to take up a role in the finance industry, taking a ~40% cut and leaving behind a stable career path that would have led to senior positions.