The Johnson School's Executive MBA program, which allows mid-career professionals to earn business degrees while they work, has earned the No. 7 spot in a new ranking by The Wall Street Journal.

Published in the Sept. 30 issue, the report on the top 25 best executive MBA programs was based on surveys of thousands of students and hundreds of companies. Respondents considered such categories as classmate quality, corporate rank and immediate applicability of coursework. In student surveys, the Johnson School was ranked No. 5 for the quality of its faculty -- a result not surprising to Tom Hambury, director of executive programs.

"When you look at graduates of the Johnson School, one thing they always talk about is the faculty," Hambury said. "I think that carries over into the executive MBA program."

The Johnson School was also ranked No. 8 in a major part of the survey that asked specifically about how well students learned leadership and management skills.

Cornell's Executive MBA program is based in Palisades, N.Y. The average student age is 35, and the students often juggle family, work and school obligations to complete the 22-month degree. The program enrolls about 65 new students every year.

The Johnson School also runs the Cornell-Queen's Executive MBA Program, not included in the rankings. That program offers MBA degrees via distance-learning coursework in several locations around the country, including New York state, Washington, D.C., Ohio, Georgia, Texas, Oregon, Washington and across Canada.