What Is an M7 Business School?

Business education is constantly changing — and a group of elite U.S. business schools has long been a leader in that landscape.

The magic or magnificent seven (M7) business schools are an informal group of selective, high-power institutions that have long steered the course of business education in the United States.

The schools have brought major innovations to global business education, like Harvard University’s introduction of the master of business administration (MBA) degree.

The M7 schools aren’t the only major power players in U.S. business education. Other public and private business schools, like the University of Michigan Ross School of Business or the University of California, Berkeley’s Haas School of Business have also surged into top rankings and made major contributions to education.

However, the vast resources and historic achievements of the M7 have led the group to a permanent place in the business education landscape.

The University of Chicago Booth School of Business is one of the country’s oldest business schools, and it has a track record of introducing notable innovations within business education. That includes introducing the first executive MBA program in 1943.

These degrees, which are geared toward professionals with longtime work experience, are now widely available across business schools. Booth also introduced the world’s first Ph.D. program in business in the 1920s.

The school has also been on top of current trends in business education, including launching a new joint MBA and master’s in applied data science program amid soaring demand for data specialists.

Columbia Business School offers a host of options for students, including MBA programs, specialized business master’s programs, and dual degree options.

In fact, this includes a three-year Juris Doctor and MBA program that allows students to take advantage of both Columbia’s prestigious law school and M7 business school.

Columbia is also a leader in sustainability instruction and recently received a donation to establish a new institute for social enterprise and climate change.

Harvard Business School is the original home of the MBA, the most sought-after and lucrative graduate business degree.

Harvard launched the first MBA program in 1908 and has since made major strides in leading the business education landscape.

The highly selective and sought-after MBA program features several joint degrees, as well as executive education and certification programs.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Sloan School of Management has a long history of producing influential management research and high-power alumni.

The school offers both undergraduate programs and a vaunted MBA program, as well as various specialized master’s degrees in areas that intersect with MIT’s other specialties like analytics and system design.

MIT Sloan is another key player in climate change and sustainability instruction — a topic that is increasingly important to business school students and employers alike. The school announced plans to launch a new climate policy center earlier this year.

The Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management is a major trendsetter in business education. The school was the first to launch a one-year MBA program, an accelerated format that has since become widely popular throughout the business education world.

Kellogg still regularly launches business education innovations. Its MBAi program, a collaboration with the McCormick School of Engineering, prepares students to adapt artificial intelligence (AI) into their work.

The school also heavily focuses on research. Earlier this year, it launched a new institute to use the growing field of complexity science to tackle business and market issues.

The sole West Coast M7 program, the Stanford Graduate School of Business is the most selective in the country.

The school offers both MBA programs and a one-year master of science, or MSx, program that features a highly customizable curriculum.

The school also recently announced an ecopreneurship program as part of a collaboration with Stanford’s new Doerr School of Sustainability. It will include grants and hands-on projects to help students create sustainable ventures.

The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania has long been a leader in business education trends and recently announced major investments in AI.

Wharton offers both graduate and undergraduate programs, and it has regularly made major waves in business education.

The school is also a leader in representation. Wharton achieved its first female majority with its MBA class of 2023, becoming one of the first major business schools to do so.