On Friday, US News and World Report released their 2008 rankings for top full-time business schools. The top twenty programs are:

1. Harvard
2. Stanford
3. Wharton
4. MIT
5. Kellogg
5. Univ of Chicago
7. Tuck
8. Haas
9. Columbia
10. NYU (Stern)
11. Univ of Michigan (Ross)
12. Duke (Fuqua)
12. Univ of Virginia (Darden)
14. Cornell (Johnson)
14. Yale
16. UCLA (Anderson)
17. Carnegie Mellon (Tepper)
18. UNC (Kenan-Flagler)
18. Univ of Texas - Austin (McCombs)
20. Emory (Goizueta)
The rankings are based on scores in Peer and Recruiter assessments, GPA, GMAT, acceptance rate, starting salary, etc. As such the rankings of the top schools tend not to change significantly from year to year. This year Tuck and Stern made the biggest jumps. You can read about US News and World Report’s full methodology here.

Rankings are certainly interesting to see, however you should never select schools on rankings alone. Instead research schools through websites, school visits, information sessions, and conversations with current students and alums to learn more about the specifics of their programs. Pay attention to academic specialties, size, location, teaching method, career services, and student environment. Selecting schools based on your fit with each program program will increase your chances of admissions because schools are looking to see if you are fit too and, of course, lead to a more satisfying business school experience. So use the rankings as an opportunity to find some schools that you may not have previously considered.

Everyone has their reasons for pursuing an MBA. It may be the network, the need for a change, or the desire to gain a specific skill set. An applicant may feel that an MBA can facilitate the transition to a new role or increase the likelihood of advancement in a current role. Regardless of your reason for pursuing the degree, most applicants agree that they want to go somewhere that can help them land a great job after graduation. Today Fortune published their list of the 50 Best Business Schools for Getting a Job.

The top ten schools are not terribly surprising:
Wharton
Harvard
Sloan
Stanford
Kellogg
Columbia
Chicago
Fuqua
Tuck
Stern

If you are deciding where to apply, or deciding between acceptances, the rankings are worth a look, as they summarize average starting salaries and number of job offers. Rankings are based on strength of reputation with recruiters and strength of career placement.

However, it is important to keep in mind that these are general rankings, and if you are targeting a specific company or industry you will want to do your own research. The best school overall, may not be the best one for you.

A companion article to the rankings featured me, discussing some guidelines for getting in to a top business school. Number 9 in the list of tips provided states, “Do your own research. Don’t choose a B-school just by picking it off a list (not even ours). ‘Every MBA program is different, and you want to focus on the ones that are right for you,’ Blackman says. ‘Compare the schools carefully, and visit as many of the campuses as you can.’”

Here are a few ways to research schools with regards to your job search:
1) Contact HR at target employers and see where they recruit and where most of their employees attended business school.
2) Contact Career Services at schools you are considering and discuss the resources they offer for a job search in your areas of interest. Also ask about companies that recruit on campus.
3) Network with individuals in your target industry to learn their perceptions of a given school.

One of the more challenging admissions essays this year has been HBS question 4: In your career you will have to deal with many ethical issues. What are likely to be the most challenging and what is your plan for developing the competencies you will need to handle these issues effectively? As Cornfed MBA points out, what makes this question so vexing for applicants is the forward looking aspect, asking you to predict future challenges rather than reflect on past experiences like the Wharton and Columbia questions.

While many applicants struggle with this exercise, HBS is not asking this question in vain. In fact, the ethics essay is just the first step in your ethical education should you attend HBS. Last year, Harvard Magazine covered the mandatory, full semester HBS course Leadership and Corporate Accountability. It is an interesting read and will give you insight into what HBS and other business schools are doing to augment future leaders’ standards of ethics. Tuck just announced the addition of a social leadership program. Stanford’s new individualized curriculum includes ethical analysis. Kellogg also requires students to explore the ethical relationship between business and society. Business Ethics magazine has even profiled the top business schools for social stewardship.

In general, as an applicant, it is important to stay abreast of new program developments at business schools. You need to be able to show schools that you are prepared to help them build up academic programs such as Wharton’s international opportunities, professional clubs and conferences such as Columbia Women in Business, or even social organizations like the Haas Culinary Club. That way your essays will include specifics on why you are a great fit for their school and how you will contribute.

Last week BusinessWeek.com reported that several business schools have announced that their classes this Fall will be smaller than in the past. New curriculums at Yale and Stanford mean that both schools will be have slightly smaller classes next year. Stanford will be aiming for a class size of exactly 360. (This has always been their stated target, but they have recently been running up to around 378.) At Yale they are aiming for 195 in the new class of ‘09. Darden and Syracuse’s Whitman School are also reducing class size for various reasons, and Columbia is considering a similar move, though it will not take place this year.

The size of a program is an important consideration when selecting schools. A larger school can, of course, lead to a larger business network once you graduate, and a larger pool of friends and peers while in school. A smaller program can allow for a more customized curriculum, and more personal interactions. This is the reason behind Stanford’s scaling back - small seminar classes and one-on-one advising are important aspects of their new curriculum.

A student experience at HBS, which had full time enrollment of 1,821 in 2005 (first and second years combined), will be completely different than the experience at a school such as Yale, which had enrollment of 438 during the same time. As you consider which schools you will apply to, think about the type of environment that you will enjoy, thrive in, feel comfortable in and benefit from.

US News published a complete list of full time program sizes and part time program sizes, when they published their 2007 Graduate School Rankings. It’s definitely worth a look as you put together your school list.