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#33 The Top 100 MBA Programs
Minnesota Carlson School of Management
University of Minnesota · Minneapolis, Minnesota · Public
“Sixteen Fortune 500s in one metro, and one small MBA class to serve them.”
Reviewed by David Krug · July 2026
Data anchored to the 2026 U.S. News table, Poets&Quants reporting, and school-published class profiles
81.5
Very goodBP Score
$115,000Tuition, total
680Avg. GMAT
42%Acceptance rate
88%Placed at 3 months
$135,000Median base salary
Our review
The Twin Cities host one of the densest Fortune 500 clusters in America, and Carlson operates as its management farm system. The enterprise-consulting program embeds students inside those companies for credit, brand management at General Mills and Target has Carlson fingerprints going back decades, and UnitedHealth’s rise added a health-ops lane.
Placement runs in the high 80s with the metro absorbing most of the class — the flip side being that Minneapolis winters and Midwest gravity define the experience. In-state tuition near $72,000 keeps the value equation comfortable.
What impressed us
- F500 density. Sixteen headquarters within commuting distance.
- Embedded consulting. Credit-bearing projects inside the local giants.
What gave us pause
- Metro dependence. The class largely stays where it studies.
- Winter, honestly. Recruiting season is indoors.
The verdict
The strongest headquarters-economy MBA in the upper Midwest, especially for brand, retail, and health operations. National mobility takes deliberate effort.
81.5
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