MBA Review 2025: The Year of Transformation in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland

MBA Review 2025: AI Leadership, Green Management and Hybrid Models – the most important developments in the DACH region.

The year 2025 leaves behind an MBA landscape in the DACH region that has presented itself as dynamically as rarely before. While twelve months ago we were still speculating about the potential of Artificial Intelligence, today we look back on a year in which AI leadership, green management, and hybrid study models finally became the gold standard.

In our major annual review, we analyze which programs were able to win over students in 2025 and how business schools in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland performed in international rankings.

A Year of Innovation and Resilience

Those who started or completed their MBA in 2025 did so in an environment characterized by technological upheaval. Business schools responded to economic challenges: curricula were adapted in record time to integrate topics such as the EU AI Act and sustainable supply chains . The focus shifted away from purely theoretical knowledge towards "Actionable Intelligence" – the ability to strategically apply complex technologies in management.

1. Germany: Technology and Leadership as an MBA Success Duo

In 2025, Germany solidified its position as a European powerhouse for practice-oriented management education. The combination of its strong Mittelstand (SMEs) and new tech requirements particularly shaped the most popular programs.

The Top Performers of the Year:

ESMT Berlin: The year 2025 was a triumph for ESMT. It secured 1st place in Germany in the Financial Times European Business School Ranking and particularly excelled in the entrepreneurship category (5th globally according to Poets & Quants).