EBS Ranked Europe’s Most Efficient Startup Producer Among Business Schools

The study, conducted by Redstone in collaboration with the Technical University of Munich and Trier University, does not measure academic visibility or the volume of scientific publications. Instead, it evaluates how effectively higher education institutions convert their resources into entrepreneurship and economically viable startups. According to EBS Rector Meelis Kitsing, this does not mean that academic rankings are unimportant, but rather that they do not provide a complete picture of a university’s real-world impact.

“If we look only at traditional university rankings, part of Estonia’s strength remains invisible. Unfortunately, Estonia cannot compete with the world’s largest universities in terms of budgets or research volume. However, as is often the case with Estonia as a country, we can be exceptionally strong where speed, practicality, entrepreneurial spirit, and the ability to connect education with the real economy matter most,” said Kitsing.

Redstone’s ranking evaluates higher education institutions based on the number of economically viable startups created per €100 million of institutional budget. This metric makes it possible to compare schools of vastly different sizes and funding levels. The authors of the study emphasize that a large budget does not automatically translate into a significant entrepreneurial impact. On the contrary, smaller institutions with a strong entrepreneurial culture stand out in several categories.

The report highlights that EBS is located at the heart of one of Europe’s most densely concentrated startup ecosystems and actively integrates this advantage into its educational approach. The study identifies EBS’s key strengths as practice-oriented teaching, close ties with the startup community, lecturers with entrepreneurial backgrounds, and an alumni network that supports early-stage founders through both mentorship and capital.

The study’s findings contribute to the broader discussion about the role of universities in Estonia. While international academic rankings often focus on research awards, publications, and institutional reputation, entrepreneurship indicators examine how higher education contributes to the creation of new companies, jobs, and economic value. This is particularly important for Estonia, whose economy requires a new wave of growth and where universities can play a significant role in shaping that future.

According to the Redstone report, a large share of Europe’s entrepreneurial potential within higher education remains untapped. The study concludes that if all European academic institutions were able to generate startups at the level of the top performers in their respective categories, the next decade could see hundreds of thousands of additional startups, millions of new jobs, and economic value measured in trillions of euros.

According to Kitsing, Estonia should not view research, teaching, and entrepreneurship as competing priorities but should instead seek ways to make them work together more effectively.

“A strong university can mean more than academic excellence. It can also mean that graduates create new businesses, bring ideas developed at the university to market, and contribute to economic growth. The strength of Estonian higher education may lie precisely in the fact that we do not attempt to copy the university models of larger countries but instead build our advantage where we have genuinely fertile ground,” he said.