Better Job Market for MBA Grads, Survey Finds
The Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) has good news for graduates of MBA programs. According to two recent surveys, the majority of companies hiring MBA grads are focused on growth. Among key findings of the surveys are the following:
- In 2010, 58 percent of the job offers that companies extended to MBAs were for newly created positions.
- Sixty-seven percent of employers expect to hire graduates of MBA programs during the coming year, up from 62 percent in 2010 and 50 percent in 2009.
- More than half (54 percent) of business school students polled by the GMAC worldwide in March had at least one job offer, compared to 32 percent of respondents last year.
"There is a clear connection between the optimism employers are expressing and the improving job prospects business school graduates are seeing," Dave Wilson, GMAC president and CEO, said in a press release. "Organizations need smart managers to deal with challenges--and they rely on them to seize opportunities."
Results of the two GMAC surveys, the Corporate Recruiters Survey (CRS) and the Global Management Education Graduate Survey (GMEGS), were released in May. Conducted between mid-February and mid-March 2011, the Corporate Recruiters Survey polled 1,509 MBA employers representing 905 companies in 51 countries worldwide. The 2011 Global Management Education Graduate Survey is based on the responses of 4,794 graduates at 156 business schools worldwide.
The GMAC is a global business school association that administers the GMAT exam, which is required by more than 5,000 graduate business school programs worldwide for admissions.
Where are the MBA jobs?
According to the CRS, the following industries are expected to offer the most jobs for graduates of MBA programs in the U.S.:
- Finance/accounting
- Health care/pharmaceutical
- Consulting
- High technology
Graduates of European MBA programs should see the greatest number of jobs in the energy/utilities sector, while Asian business school graduates should see the highest demand in high technology, finance/accounting, and the products and services industries, the CRS survey reports.
What type of business school graduates do employers seek?
The top goal of MBA employers in the coming year is to improve performance and productivity, according to the CRS. They also plan to expand their customer base and launch new products or services while seeking to reduce costs.
To achieve their goals, employers want business school graduates proficient in core business disciplines, change management, decision making, and technical and quantitative subjects, the CRS reports.
Foreign students may face extra hurdles when seeking employment in the U.S. In 2010, the CRS survey found that 73 percent of U.S.-based employers did not hire graduates of MBA programs who required extra legal documentation to work in the country.
By contrast, in Europe, business school graduates need strong language and cultural skills. According to the CRS survey, European companies are "significantly more likely" to seek graduates of MBA programs who speak the languages and know the cultures of the countries where they will work.
Companies want graduates of MBA programs with an average of three to four years of work experience, and the survey shows that one of the best ways to get experience is through internships. According to the CRS, companies in the United States and Europe have the highest hiring rates for interns, 65 percent and 64 percent respectively, while companies in Asia have the lowest at 40 percent.
How much should graduates of MBA programs expect to make?
In the United States, business school graduates earned an average starting salary of $91,433 in 2011, up from $89,141 in 2010 and $86,299 in 2009, according to the GMEGS survey. Survey respondents reported the following average annual starting salaries for MBAs by industry in the United States:
- Consulting: $93,246
- Technology: $88,938
- Health care/pharmaceutical: $88,405
- Energy/utilities: $87,293
- Manufacturing: $85,015
- Finance/accounting: $84,409
- Non-profit or government: $78,290
- Products and services: $76,883
In Europe, the average starting salary of graduates of MBA programs could reach $91,693, slightly exceeding the average salary calculated for the United States. Besides salary, graduates of MBA programs could enjoy benefits packages, company-sponsored social events or volunteer opportunities, starting and performance-based bonuses, and access to health and fitness clubs.
The CRS reports that employers are recruiting most graduates of MBA programs through employee referrals, the company website, and campus recruiting. Business school graduates could also connect with employers via social media or online job boards, career fairs and networking events, and recruitment agencies.
