McCormack Sport Management Program Earns Top Ranking

The Mark H. McCormack Department of Sport Management, housed in the Isenberg School of Management at UMass Amherst, has been named the world’s No. 1 ranked postgraduate sport management program by SportBusiness magazine, which has compiled and published its global rankings for the past 11 years.

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With more than 50 years of thought leadership in sport management, the McCormack Department — which offers both a two-year MBA/M.S. in sport management dual degree and a one-year M.S. in sport management — returns to the top of the overall global rankings for the first time since 2019. The McCormack program, which is the second-oldest program in the world, was ranked second overall in 2020 and 2021.

“We are honored to be recognized as the No. 1-ranked program in the world,” said Will Norton, director of graduate programs. “This ranking reflects our tireless pursuit of excellence in delivering innovative, best-in-class sport management education, and in preparing our students for successful and rewarding careers in the sports industry.”

“This No. 1 ranking is a testament to the job our faculty and staff do in ensuring that our graduate students have an exceptional experience during their time on campus,” said Steve McKelvey, the McCormack department chair, noting that student feedback is one of the primary metrics in the rankings. McKelvey pointed out that annual initiatives like the Graduate Mentor Program (in which every graduate student is provided a year-long industry mentor), frequent professional development trips, and many hands-on experiential learning–based projects with industry clients help ensure a positive response from the students who participate in the SportBusiness annual survey.

The SportBusiness Postgraduate Rankings report measures master’s-level sport management programs across 28 metrics, examining a range of quantitative and qualitative benchmarks. The 2022 edition features an article about McCormack Assistant Professor Katie Sveinson’s research on consumer behavior relating to women’s sports apparel, as well as an article about Dom Macklin, a 2015 MBA/M.S. alumnus of the program, who currently is manager of football operations for City Football Group.

In addition to the global recognition, the surveys ranked McCormack as the top sport management postgraduate program in North America, and as graduates’ top choice. The winning program was also “the only example of an institution which had graduates progress into positions within the Research & Analysis category,” according to SportBusiness.

The publication also praised the McCormack Department’s interdepartmental research labs, which study rivalry, diversity and inclusion in sport. The publication notes that graduate students get opportunities to work with these labs and collaborate with external organizations including the Wasserman agency and Japan’s Pacific League.