LANG Continues Building on Global Recognition for Positive Impact and Student Engagement
For the third year in a row, the Gordon S. Lang School of Business and Economics has been recognized by students as a Level 4 Transforming School in the 2026 Positive Impact Rating (PIR), reaffirming its commitment to responsible management education, meaningful student engagement and positive societal impact.
The Positive Impact Rating is a student-led assessment that evaluates how effectively business schools prepare future leaders to address societal challenges and create positive change.
The 2026 edition gathered nearly 20,000 student responses from 87 business schools across 32 countries, making it one of the world's largest student-led assessments of business education. The published rating is based entirely on student feedback, offering a unique perspective on the impact schools are having on their learners and communities.
For LANG, this year's recognition builds on the school's first awarded Level 4 designation in 2020 and reflects its continued efforts to embed sustainability, responsibility and purpose throughout the student experience. The recognition reflects years of intentional work to position LANG as a leader in responsible business education, with students continuing to identify the school's commitment to positive impact as a defining part of the learning experience.
Level 4 schools are defined by the Positive Impact Rating as institutions that demonstrate a positive-impact culture embedded in governance and systems, with visible results across multiple dimensions of impact. The PIR uses survey-based measures to assess how business schools embed responsible management principles across key institutional attributes, including governance, culture, academic programs, learning methods, student support, public engagement, and role modelling.
"Receiving this recognition is especially meaningful because it comes directly from LANG students," says Dr. Sara Mann, dean of the LANG School. "Their feedback affirms our commitment to educating leaders who understand that business can and should be a force for good. It also reinforces the importance of continually listening, learning, and evolving alongside our students as we work to address the complex challenges facing our communities and our world.”
This year's global PIR report highlighted LANG as an example of how schools can move beyond collecting student feedback and create meaningful opportunities for student participation in institutional change. The report specifically recognized the school's co-created curriculum initiatives and student-led equity, diversity and inclusion case competitions as examples of students helping shape learning experiences and school priorities.
The recognition reflects LANG's broader commitment to responsible management education and experiential learning. Across its undergraduate and graduate programs, students engage with real-world challenges through community partnerships, applied learning opportunities, sustainability-focused initiatives and research that address pressing societal issues.
For LANG, the 2026 results represent another milestone in an ongoing journey.
"LANG student voices help shape the future of our school, strengthen our programs and ensure we remain focused on developing leaders who create meaningful impact in their organizations, communities and beyond,." says Mann.
As business schools around the world continue to examine their role in creating positive societal impact, the Positive Impact Rating has evolved from a student-led ranking into a platform for institutional learning and transformation. Schools that participate over multiple years are increasingly using the results to inform strategy, curriculum development and stakeholder engagement.
The Positive Impact Rating was established by an international coalition of business school experts, student organizations and non-governmental organizations committed to advancing responsible management education. The 2026 edition included 87 rated schools from 32 countries and collected 19,789 valid student responses worldwide.