Challenges has published its top ten French business schools ranking at http://www.challenges.fr/galeries-photos/classement/20111213.CHA8174/le-top-10-des-ecoles-de-commerce-classement-2012.html

HEC (1)
EM Lyon (2)
ESCP Europe (3)
Essec (4)
Edhec Lille-Nice (5)
Grenoble EM (6)
Rouen BS (7)
Audencia (8)
Reims MS (9)
Euromed Marseille (10)

A follow up article gives the rankings of some of the schools which did not get into the top ten: http://www.challenges.fr/emploi/20111214.CHA8354/decouvrez-le-palmares-des-meilleures-ecoles-de-commerce.html

Télécom EM (11)
Toulouse (12)
BEM (13)
Skema (14)
ESC Montpellier (16)
ESC Rennes (18)
EM Strasbourg (20)
ICN (21)
ESC Troyes (24)

Challenges is an influential international business magazine published by Le Nouvel Observateur, the most prominent French general information magazine.

PS Comments on the article make interesting reading. One protests against EM Lyon overtaking ESSEC and ESCP, but another accepts the idea of a top tier with the Paris schools, EDHEC and EM Lyon; then a second tier of Grenoble, Bordeux and some of the ESCs; and then a third tier. A third complains that the university business schools (the network of IAEs) are absent.

PPS Comparing this ranking to the one from Le Point, the top five schools are the same and the top ten schools are also the same. That other ranking includes these other schools in the second half of the top 20:
IESEG
ESCEM Tours-Poitiers
ESSCA
ESC Clermont

ehehe... not vey good comments for the journalist ... :-)

AIX never mentionned here...

Perhaps it's number 15 ;-)

There is a ranking for everybody :-)

http://www.lepoint.fr/palmares/grandes-ecoles/finances.php

The main ranking makes more sense, but of course the IAE are excluded from both ranking http://www.lepoint.fr/palmares/grandes-ecoles/grade-de-masters.php

There is a major difference in the raking for Rouen Business School and Audencia Nantes between challenges and lepoint. I have got placed in both these institutions, and is a bit confused on which one to choose.

The Le Point ranking is here: http://www.lepoint.fr/grandes-ecoles-de-commerce/les-ecoles-de-commerce-au-scanner-18-02-2011-1297099_123.php. Both rankings put the two schools in the top ten, and put Audencia close to Rouen. That's not a major difference to me. However, do remember that these rankings focus on the Francophone master of science programmes at these schools, not the English-language MBAs.

Thanks a lot Duncan for the prompt response.
In your opinion how are these schools growing in the English language MBA?

I don't think there is much growth in the market for Anglophone MBAs in France. There will always be a high supply of students wanting to go there. France is great value for money, and the grande ecole system is an amazing experience. But French business need French speakers, and that limits the demand.

There is a significant change in the bringing for Rouen Enterprise University and Audencia Nantes between difficulties and lepoint. I have got placed in both these organizations, and is a bit puzzled on which one to select.

See my reply above dated Thu Dec 22, 2011 11:13 PM

You are probably looking at the ranking for MSc in finance, not the overall ranking for management. They are actually very similarly ranked overall.

How good HEC is for international students who dont speak French? I hear that if you dont speak French forget about HEC.

I don't think that's a specific issue to HEC, or to France. Generally, it's really hard to find a job in a country if you don't speak the business language. But HEC one of the most internationally diverse French schools and, alongside Sciences Po and the ENA, one of the most internationally-oriented.

I don't think that's a specific issue to HEC, or to France. Generally, it's really hard to find a job in a country if you don't speak the business language. But HEC one of the most internationally diverse French schools and, alongside Sciences Po and the ENA, one of the most internationally-oriented.

Indeed, but it's a language, not playing the guitar. If you don't know French on arrival in the HEC MBA, and you're not a native speaker of a Romance language, when you won't have professional fluency in French by the end of it: a good rule of thumb is that around 900 hours of classroom time are used to take a beginner to fluency in French, with twice or three times that time in private study. At HEC, the weekly French classes are 90 minutes long, giving you less than 10% of what you'd need for fluency and not much time for private study.

It's like walking from France to India. With applied dedication, it's just a question of putting one foot in front of the other.

A much better way to find work in France will be to study French full-time for a year, and then take a masters programme in French, to improve your accent, network and local knowledge.