After being ranked no. 1 from 2015-18, Temple’s Online MBA program has dropped to no. 88 in the annual U.S. News and World Report rankings.
The program has returned to the list after being absent in 2019, as reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer. U.S. News and World Report removed the program after the university admitted to falsifying data for several of the business school’s graduate programs in 2018.
The scandal triggered investigations by the U.S. Department of Education and the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office. Temple pledged to fund $250,000 in scholarships for Fox students as part of a settlement with the attorney general’s office in December 2019.
“While the results of the U.S. News rankings published today are disappointing, they are not surprising,” wrote Stephen Orbanek, a spokesperson for Fox, in an email to The Temple News. “When Temple first reported issues with submitted data to the publication in January 2018, we understood that it would take time to restore the inevitable damage to the ranking and reputation of the Fox School.”
Compared to the year before, enrollment in masters-level programs at Fox was down around 15 percent entering Fall 2019, though applications to graduate business programs also declined nationally, The Temple News reported.
Be the first to comment