The University of Melbourne has finally claimed the top position in the 2025 AFR BOSS Business School Rankings, ending UNSW’s three-year reign. Melbourne excelled across all four assessment pillars: teaching, research, reputation, and career impact. Teaching is weighted at 40% of the final score, demonstrating sustained excellence in business education.
The Australian Financial Review (AFR) BOSS Best Business Schools are the largest rankings of higher education institutions in Australia. For the first time in three years, the University of Melbourne took the top spot, outdoing rivals across all key categories. UNSW dropped back to second, followed by the University of Queensland, Monash University, and the University of Western Australia, making up the top five.
Here is the list of the top ten business schools in Australia, according to the 2025 AFR BOSS Best Business Schools Ranking:
2. University of New South Wales
5. University of Western Australia
7. University of South Australia
10. Queensland University of Technology
Let’s take a look at what is happening in the highly competitive world of business education in the land down under.
The AFR BOSS Business School Rankings provide a comprehensive evaluation of postgraduate business programs across Australia. They assess schools on a mix of academic reputation, teaching quality, research strength, and graduate outcomes, including career progression and salary prospects.
These rankings serve prospective international students, educators, and industry professionals by offering clear, evidence-based insights to support informed decisions about postgraduate business education.
Let’s examine the methodology behind the rankings and some of the changes we saw in 2025.
In 2025, the AFR BOSS rankings employed a refined methodology based on publicly available data, assessing business schools across four pillars: Teaching, Research, University Reputation, and Career Impact.
The weighting favours teaching, with an equal emphasis on all other pillars:
The methodology employs principal component analysis to optimize differentiation between the world’s top universities, allowing data to highlight each pillar’s core focus. International rankings data from Times Higher Education (THE), Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), and Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) provide subject-specific and degree-level insights across multiple categories.
Key refinements include removing outdated measures like the 2018 Excellence in Research for Australia data and 2016-2017 graduate salary information. The rankings now use published score components rather than ranks from international agencies. This improves accuracy by avoiding broad ranking bands that group multiple institutions together.
The Teaching pillar incorporates six student satisfaction measures from ComparED, five international teaching scores, and enhanced accreditation recognition. Career Impact includes employment data and salary outcomes, with a new emphasis on graduates entering full-time employment rather than continuing study.
These methodological improvements, combined with updated teaching data, contributed to Melbourne’s rise above UNSW while maintaining representation from both Group of Eight universities and other institutions in the top rankings.
The 2025 AFR BOSS Business School rankings witnessed a significant shift as Melbourne Business School dethroned the University of New South Wales, ending UNSW’s three-year dominance at the summit. Furthermore, this achievement reflects Melbourne’s sustained excellence across multiple performance indicators.
Melbourne’s ascension to first place demonstrates the power of strategic consistency over flashy innovations. Dean Jenny George emphasizes that their success stems from an unwavering commitment to quality rather than revolutionary changes, highlighting steady investment in faculty recruitment, program development, and student experience enhancement.
Overall, the ranking methodology’s heavy emphasis on teaching excellence particularly favored institutions prioritizing pedagogical quality. As a result, Melbourne’s comprehensive performance saw them lead in reputation and research categories while securing strong positions in teaching and career outcomes, creating a well-rounded institutional profile.
This transition occurs against challenging sectoral headwinds, including governance scandals, financial pressures, and regulatory uncertainties. Melbourne’s ability to maintain a growth trajectory through online MBA expansion and executive education demonstrates their institutional resilience.
In essence, the results reinforce the Group of Eight universities‘ continued dominance, occupying six top-ten positions, while highlighting the competitive intensity within Australian business education. Melbourne’s corporate partnerships and distinguished alumni network, spanning from political leadership to entrepreneurial success, underscore the practical value proposition driving their ranking success.
When selecting a top business school in Australia, prospective students should prioritize institutions that excel across the four key dimensions measured by the rankings.
In addition, consider schools that align with your specific career goals. Whether that’s entrepreneurship, corporate leadership, or specialized fields, evaluate factors like alumni networks, industry partnerships, and international exchange opportunities that can enhance your professional development.
Additionally, assess practical considerations such as program flexibility (full-time versus part-time options), campus location, and the school’s track record in supporting graduates’ salary progression and employment outcomes in your desired industry.
Get access to firsthand accounts from those who have experienced the program that you want to study. Visit the MASTERGRADSCHOOL ambassador page to get insights directly from current students and alumni.
Thinking of studying abroad? Australia offers world-ranked universities, generous scholarships, and exciting post-study work opportunities. Explore top master’s programs, the cost of living, visa insights, and student life Down Under, and see why Australia could be the perfect place to launch your global career.
