Babson College Third in Business Nationally

A recent Businessweek ranking of the nation' business schools puts a Wellesley-based college near the top of its top ten.

The Businessweek piece lists Babson College as the third business school in the country, behind MIT's Sloan school and first place Stanford. The ranking was compiled based on an online survey of the class of 2012 from 82 business schools nationwide. 

Out of a scale of 1 to 6, the average was 4.49 points. Babson College's score was 5.85, according to the Businessweek list. MIT came in at 5.87, Stanford at 5.95. 

"Babson has always been at the forefront of entrepreneurship education, and this ranking confirms that our students see great value in what we do. We're delighted to be near the top of this list of very impressive international universities,” said Dennis Hanno, Vice Provost and Murata Dean of the Graduate School said in a piece on the Babson College website.

In December, the school was also ranked 34th nationwide.

Applications to the school are also up, Babson's website reports an 18.45 percent increase in early admissions applications. In the past six years, it has seen an increase in early applications of 114 percent, and an overall increase of 63 percent.

MIT also reported a record number of applicants this year. In fact, Boston.com reports an increase in Boston-area college applications across the board, with one exception: Boston College. School officials attribute that to a new 400 word essay requirement in the application process.