Most business schools aspire to be in top-tier media outlets, including the Financial Times, Forbes, and Bloomberg. And with AI search prioritising high authority news sources, many schools are doubling down on their PR activities.
But getting into top-tier media is hard.
Newsrooms are shrinking.
Journalists are being bombarded with content, and they have to sift through “AI slop”.
Competition for column inches or airtime is tighter than ever.
The strategies that DON’T work
In this environment, it’s understandable that business schools reach for “volume tactics”.
More press releases.
Pushing out “non-stories”.
“Spray and pray” without much targeting or personalisation.
Unfortunately, in today’s media environment, these strategies are becoming increasingly ineffective. They usually end up in the delete folder, or worse, give you a reputation for wasting their time.
The positive news is that top-tier media outlets want big, relevant stories, and business schools are in a strong position to provide them.
They need to stop thinking like “schools” and start acting like sources on how business, work and the global economy are changing.
Look from the outside in
Consider how a typical journalist would describe their day:
- I work long hours and often work outside the normal working day.
- I have an inbox overflowing with pitches (many of which are irrelevant to my beat and or generated by AI).
- I am under pressure to find compelling stories that matter to my audience.
- I need to show my editor evidence that my story stacks up: data, real case studies, verified experts.
- Every day, I must switch between writing, researching, monitoring, reporting and editing.
- I am probably juggling several pieces at once – short-form news and longer, feature-style pieces.
- I need to attend editorial meetings and meet multiple deadlines.
- I may have to produce multimedia formats and help with promotional duties (e.g. talks).
The takeaway for business school communicators? Think about how you can be a help, not a hindrance.
Here are five clear strategies to get your business school into top-tier media.
1. Think audiences and challenges, not “getting our name in”
Stop asking “how do we get into the FT / BBC / Forbes?” and start asking “what problems are their readers worrying about – and what evidence or expertise do we have that genuinely helps?”
For a national business desk, that might be productivity, skills gaps, AI and jobs, the cost of living, or climate risk; for a general news outlet, it could be social mobility, regional inequality, technological transformation or the future of work.
Once you understand their agenda, you can align faculty research, career data, commentary and alumni stories with it instead of pushing internal news that only matters on campus.
Jumping onto the back of a breaking news story is also legitimate, but it needs to be done quickly, and you need to say something genuinely different.
2. Lead with data
Journalists, particularly those writing features, need to show how data supports their stories.
This is a great opportunity for business schools. Not only do they produce significant amounts of academic research, but they also have interesting data on areas such as careers and employment.
But data doesn’t always have to be generated by the school itself. They can also use other organisations’ data to back up their own observations.
Tip: use data from reputable sources such as trade associations or government reports.
3. Be surprising
“Applications to our MBA are up” is not a story; “applications from laid‑off tech workers in their 40s have doubled – here’s what they are doing next” is better.
The best business school stories pair a strong angle (“what’s changing, and why it matters now”) with one or two named experts who can talk in plain English.
Dig a bit deeper into your stories.
- Is there an unusual or counterintuitive angle you can offer to what everyone else is saying?
- Can you cut the data in a different way to show a new angle on an existing topic? This could be by gender or geography, for example.
4. Make life easy for time‑poor journalists
National and international newsrooms are lean and under pressure. They want pitches that are short, relevant and ready to use. That means:
- A tight subject line (no more than 50 characters) and a two-paragraph pitch that spells out what’s new, why now and why it matters.
- Clear, non-jargony background on any research or data, with transparent basics (sample, dates, what you measured).
- Fast access to spokespeople within deadline, plus good-quality headshots and infographics, where relevant.
- Choosing the best time to pitch and being able to respond quickly and respect deadlines.
5. Build relationships before you need them
Finally, top-tier coverage is much easier if journalists already see your school as a reliable source. That means:
- Getting to know who covers which beats (workplace, management, SMEs, tech, climate, business education e.g.) and what they’ve written lately.
- Offering faculty experts, context or data without always asking for a name check.
- Being honest when you’re not the right fit builds trust when you are the right fit.
- Engage with journalists’ stories online, share their work, and say thank you if you are covered in their piece.
Consistency counts
Over time, you move from “cold‑pitching a big name” to being on a journalist’s list of people they call when a major story breaks.
That’s the real route into top-tier media for business schools – not a single magic pitch, but a steady flow of sharp ideas, strong evidence and expert voices that fit what those outlets are trying to do for their readers.
Summary
- Top-tier media want big, relevant stories on business, work and the global economy, not “school news” or high-volume, low-value press releases.
- Put yourself in a journalist’s shoes: help time-poor reporters with relevant, evidence-backed ideas rather than adding to their inbox noise.
- Start with audiences and their challenges (productivity, AI and jobs, cost of living, climate risk, social mobility, future of work) and align your research, data and stories to those issues.
- Lead with robust data and surprising, specific angles, using clear, non-jargony language and real-world case studies or experts.
