Business is something SMU has always been known for.

According to BusinessWeek’s recent business school rankings, SMU Cox’s Executive MBA is ranked No. 9 in the world, and its Part-time MBA is ranked No. 15 in the U.S.

In 2007, the last time the rankings came out, the EMBA was No. 11 and PMBA was No. 13.

Last year, the magazine ranked Cox’s full-time MBA program No. 18.

Marci Armstrong, associate dean of graduate programs at SMU’s Cox School of Business, said SMU has worked very hard to achieve this level of recognition because it was not always true.

“We are really pleased that is true now,” she said. “We can credit having great faculty, great students, great facilities and great curriculum, it’s sort of everything aligning to get us where we are.”

She said the ranking, however, was not the goal of the business school.

“The objective is to have the best MBA experience for our students that is possible,” she said. “If you do the right things over and over, eventually you will be recognized by rankings. Whenever we are recognized, it’s not only good for us [the business school], but also for SMU.”

“BusinessWeek is a very well-respected publication among business people and so that’s why I think it’s recognized as the most important rankings out there,” Armstrong said.

The EMBA ranking is based on three surveys of EMBA graduates in 2009, 2007 and 2005, and a survey of EMBA program directors. The students were measured on several components, including teaching quality, curriculum and career services. Program directors were asked to list to the top 10 programs.

The PMBA rankings were based on three measures: a student survey, academic quality and post-MBA outcomes. SMU was one of the schools rated best for career advancers.

“BusinessWeek, for whatever reason, is the one that prospective students, those looking for schools, take more seriously,” Armstrong said.

She said business school applications were up about 40 percent this year, partially as a result of the full-time MBA ranking last year.

“Texas is also a great place to be because we are not hit as hard as other areas of the country,” she said.