MBA aspirants today more focused in career planning: GMAC survey

Management students today, are more focused than before in charting out a career path for themselves.

According to a GMAC (Graduate Management Admission Council) survey, MBA aspirants feel that in the present economic scenario pursuing their ‘dream job’ is easier than it was during the years of recession.

GMAC recently released its 2016 mba.com Prospective Students Survey Report, which shows that business school candidates today consider applying to fewer program types and are more focused on a particular postgraduate career path.

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On an average, prospective students considered 2.8 program types in 2015, down from 3.1 in 2014. For their postgraduate careers, 71 percent of those surveyed cited a single industry of interest, compared with 58 percent in 2014. In addition, 61 percent of aspirants cited a single job function of interest, compared with 46 percent in 2014. The survey further suggests that the economy may play a role in this phenomenon as prospective students may find it easier to pursue their “dream job” in this market compared with the post-recession years.

“Each year graduate business programs set admission goals to engage students from around the world who are the most likely to succeed in their classrooms,” said Bob Alig, GMAC’s executive vice president for school products.

“The insights provided within this survey report are timely and actionable and a valuable resource to schools seeking to grow their candidate pipelines,” he added. 

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The survey also lists key findings within the report that focus on preferred program types, school selection criteria, career aspirations, timing, and social media.

Globally, 50 percent of prospective students are considering only MBA programs, while 28 percent are considering both MBA and specialized business master’s programs. 23 percent students are considering only specialized business master’s programs, such as Master of Accounting or Master of Finance, which represents an increase since 2009, when just 15 percent of candidates were considering only specialized master’s programs.

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In Western Europe, however, the pipeline has notably shifted toward specialized (pre-experience) business master’s programs, especially within the past seven years. In 2009, 49 percent of prospective students were considering only MBA programs and 22 percent were considering only specialized business master’s programs. In 2015, 36 percent were considering only MBA programs and 45 percent were considering only specialized master’s programs.

Further, aspiring students begin forming their short lists of schools one year prior to application submission, triggered by three main circumstances.

1) Seeking a new job but lacking skills to be competitive for the positions sought (27 percent).

2) Reaching a plateau at work (17 percent).

3) Lacking knowledge to do a job (17 percent).

“For the first time, members of Generation Z are included in our analysis,” said Alig. “We found that Millennial and Gen Z candidates are more likely than past generations to have ‘stretch schools’ on their short lists. All things considered, these candidates want to get into the best program possible — an indication of their high level of aspiration,” he added.

GMAC’s mba.com Prospective Students Survey was conducted throughout 2015 with 10,000 respondents worldwide.