Demand still high for MBA graduates

Publish date	2008-07-31
Available Articles	Full articles without membership

Every passing week brings more gloom for the US economy. But the latest snapshot of application trends from business schools finds that the demand for MBAs is still bullish.

The latest Corporate Recruiters Survey from the Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC) found that 70 percent of recruiters worldwide are looking for new recruits with an MBA, compared with 64 percent last year.

Though it sounds counterintuitive, a rise in applications to business school is a by-product of economic downturn. Some candidates are those spending their redundancy money on making themselves more employable for when the economy begins its next upward trajectory. Others simply want to educate themselves to a point where they become indispensable.

According to GMAC, 85 percent of the 55 reporting business schools saw increases in the number of applications for full-time admission in the last economic slump in 2002. More than 59 percent of the schools saw jumps of more than 10 percent. Part-time programmes also experienced increasing numbers of applicants, to the tune of 61 per cent increase.

This time round, online programmes are expected see the sharpest rise in applications, on account of their relative affordability and flexibility. The fact that the distance education market has matured to the point where an online degree is as acceptable in the corporate workplace as a full-time qualification makes it an even more attractive option for professionals keen to make their resumés stand out.

The survey included responses from 2,307 recruiters and others involved in the hiring process at 1,552 companies around the world. GMAC, which sponsors the GMAT exam, also conducted the survey with help from the MBA Career Services Council and the European Foundation for Management Development.

The survey found that most employers expect salaries to rise at the rate of inflation or higher. The projected starting annual salary for new MBA hires in 2008 is up 3.8 per cent to an average of $83,541.

Encouragingly for business schools, most recruiters said MBA graduates who they had hired were well worth the money.

Almost ninety per cent of recruiters polled said they were very or extremely satisfied with their employees who have the qualification.

MBA hires were particularly prized by recruiters for their management knowledge and communications skills.

The expected projected number of new hires per employer has risen slightly to an average of 13 new MBA hires, compared to an average of 12 last year.

The story was not the same everywhere, however. The survey showed that the percentage of Canadian recruiters who said they hired MBAs declined to 73 per cent in 2008, compared with 80 per cent in 2007.

GMAC chief executive David Wilson said: “Through economic slowdowns, as well as expansions, organizations see value in the skills that MBAs bring to the table. Even as there is serious retrenchment going on at investment houses, more companies in the finance and accounting industry plan to hire MBAs than did last year.”

Keywords: GMAC, employer, MBA, recruiters. online learning.

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