Kingston, Ontario, CA · 12 months · class of 63
Queen's Smith MBA: cost, salary and payback
A 12-month MBA in Kingston, Ontario, whose class of 2025 reported an average base salary of CA$104,496 and stayed 86% in Canada.
Paid back after graduation in
26.1 years
Total cost $181,707 · 10-year NPV -$284,289
| Tuition and fees, whole program | $78,365 |
| Living budget | $13,342 |
| Salary given up, 12 months | $90,000 |
| Total cost | $181,707 |
| Salary after: average base salary | $73,376 |
| 10-year net present value | -$284,289 |
| Return on the cost (present values) | -156% |
US dollars at the ECB rate of the last update. Raises of 5% a year with the MBA and 3% without, discounted at 5%, before tax. How this is calculated.
Fees and budget read on October 13, 2026 · employment: Class of 2025 (MBA CSEA standard) · Built by Radif Partners · Method
- Tuition and fees
- CA$111,600
- Total cost, salary given up included
- $181,707
- average base salary
- CA$104,496
- Payback, reference person
- 26.1 years
Smith School of Business at Queen's University charges international students an all-inclusive fee of CA$110,000 for its 12-month MBA, January 2027 intake, covering books, case materials and executive coaching, plus about CA$1,600 of student activity fees; Canadian students pay less. The school's estimate of a year of living in Kingston is CA$19,000, the middle of its range, for CA$130,600 in all. For the reference person earning $90,000 today, the total reaches $181,707. The class of 2025 reported an average base salary of CA$104,496, about $73,376. That is less than the $90,000 our reference person already earns, so the model's payback for that person stretches to 26.1 years: the result says more about the reference salary than about the school. What sets Smith apart is its market: 86% of graduates took jobs in Canada, most of them in Toronto, with the large Canadian banks among the main employers.
Read the payback in Canadian dollars
Our rankings price every school for one reference person, earning $90,000 before the MBA, about CA$128,000. The Smith class is early in its career, arriving at 28 years of age on average with about 4 years of work experience. For that person, an average post-MBA salary of CA$104,496 is a pay cut, which is why the reference payback looks so long even though Smith ranks first of 2 for placing graduates in Canada. Type your own current salary in the calculator at the top: for someone earning $44,000 today, the same school average gives a payback of 4.2 years. The program lasts 12 months, so the salary given up is one year of pay, and for a Canadian candidate the fairer test compares a Canadian salary before the program with the Canadian average after it.
Queen's Smith: when the MBA pays back, for your salary
Payback after graduation
26.1 years
| Total cost with the salary given up | $181,707 |
| Salary after (average base salary) | $73,376 |
| 10-year NPV | -$284,289 |
Same assumptions as the main calculator; US dollars.
Finance and the big Canadian banks
Financial services took 35% of the class at an average of CA$98,938, and finance was the largest function at 31%, with accounting roles adding 8%. The employers the school names include RBC, Scotiabank, BMO Financial Group, CIBC and TD Bank Group, together with consulting firms such as EY-Parthenon and Deloitte. Consulting took 15% at CA$111,688. The best paid sectors were small: healthcare at CA$137,373 for 9% of the class and technology at CA$129,750 for 8%. A candidate aiming at those sectors should type their average in the salary field, since it sits well above the school-wide figure and shortens the payback. Outside Canada the class is thinly spread, a few graduates each in Asia, the United States, Europe and Latin America, so the report gives no salary for any foreign market.
Queen's Smith: where the class went
Share of the class
15%
| Salary reported | $78,426 |
| Graduates, about | 9 |
| Payback with that salary | 21.8 years |
Reference person earning $90,000 before the MBA.
Scholarships and a small class
The school reports that most students receive a merit-based entrance scholarship, with awards within a published range, and no average. Any award comes straight off the bill, and with a class of 63, each hire moves a sector share by about 1.6 points. Outcomes follow the CSEA standard, which hides salaries for groups too small to report. 75% of graduates accepted an offer within three months. An optional internship track stretches the program over a longer period for a similar fee.
Queen's Smith: what a scholarship changes
Payback with the scholarship
25.5 years
| Without it | 26.1 years |
| Total cost with it | $151,707 |
Reference person earning $90,000 before the MBA.
Where Queen's Smith stands in our rankings
- #39 of 40 · Any industry (whole class)
- #38 of 38 · Consulting
- #26 of 39 · Finance, all segments
- #39 of 40 · Technology
- #18 of 18 · Working in Asia
Our fit score, reference person earning $90,000 before the MBA (method). Third-party rankings play no part in it. For reference, Queen's Smith was ranked 92 in the FT Global MBA 2026.
What the Queen's Smith MBA costs
| Item | CAD, and US dollars |
|---|---|
| Tuition, whole program | CA$110,000 $77,241 |
| Mandatory fees | CA$1,600 $1,124 |
| Living budget, whole program | CA$19,000 $13,342 |
| Salary given up: $90,000 a year for 12 months | $90,000 |
| Total cost, reference person | $181,707 |
Queen's Smith employment report: Class of 2025
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Average base salary | CA$104,496 $73,376 |
| Signing bonus (mean) | CA$10,167 |
| Graduates who accepted an offer within three months | 75% |
Queen's Smith graduates by industry
| Industry, as the school names it | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Financial Services | 35% | CA$98,938 (average) |
| Consulting | 15% | CA$111,688 (average) |
| Human Resources + Media & Entertainment + Other | 11% | not published |
| Healthcare | 9% | CA$137,373 (average) |
| Energy & Resources | 8% | CA$90,814 (average) |
| Technology | 8% | CA$129,750 (average) |
| Consumer Goods + Retail | 8% | not published |
| Government | 4% | not published |
| Manufacturing | 2% | not published |
Where Queen's Smith graduates went to work
| Region | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| US | 2% | not published |
| Canada | 86% | not published |
| Europe | 2% | not published |
| Asia | 6% | not published |
| Middle East | 2% | not published |
| Latin America | 2% | not published |
Queen's Smith graduates by job function
| Function | Share | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Finance | 31% | CA$107,321 |
| Consulting | 17% | CA$117,767 |
| Business Development | 9% | CA$88,361 |
| Accounting | 8% | CA$92,307 |
| Strategy | 6% | CA$110,833 |
| Marketing | 6% | not published |
| Data & Analytics | 4% | not published |
| General Management | 4% | not published |
| Digital Transformation | 2% | not published |
| Innovation | 2% | not published |
| Operations & Logistics | 2% | not published |
| Sales | 2% | not published |
| Other | 7% | not published |
Employers named by Queen's Smith
EY-Parthenon · RBC · Scotiabank · BMO Financial Group · CIBC · TD Bank Group · Deloitte · Amazon
Names only: the school gives no hire counts.
The Queen's Smith class
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| International students | 16% |
| Average age | 28 |
| Average years of work experience | 4 |
| Class size | 63 |