GMAC Prospective Students Survey Finds Candidates Seek Business Degree to “Enrich Life and Develop Potential.”

The latest GMAC Prospective Students survey results provide a view into the shifting values and preferences of business school hopefuls. This year’s results show how Gen Z, who now make up the majority of business school applicants, and Millennials overlap and differ in their motivations, expectations, preferences, and career aspirations. 

The global survey includes over 2700 respondents from more than 130 countries. 

Key findings include:

Most candidates reported that they were seeking a business degree “to enrich their life and develop their potential.” 

• When respondents were asked to select their key motivation for attending business school, 79 percent of respondents chose “enrich life and develop potential.” GMAC’s report notes that this motivation was the top option selected across gender, generation, and region. 

• The next most frequently selected motivations included: Increase income (64 percent), Gain business knowledge (61 percent), and Enhance network (60 percent). 

• Gen Z respondents were much more likely than millennials (about 10 percentage points) to select “increase income” and “expand network” as top motivators.

Most candidates believe that businesses have a social responsibility to their communities. 

• Just over four in ten respondents globally, 42 percent, view Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) as essential components of graduate management education. While there were no noteworthy differences between generations, female respondents were more likely (52 percent) than males (36 percent) to hold this view.

• The majority of respondents agreed that corporations have a social responsibility to the countries where they operate and the people who support them. Among those who view CSR as essential to the business school curriculum, 80 percent agreed that corporations have a social responsibility. 

• Among U.S. respondents, differences emerged in views on corporate social responsibility between those who do and who do not identify as part of an underrepresented population. Among respondents who did not identify as an underrepresented population, 61 percent agreed that corporations have a social responsibility, whereas just 35 percent of respondents who identified with an underrepresented group agreed. 

The one-year MBA emerged as the most preferred program type. 

• Globally, candidates expressed the greatest preference for full-time, in-person MBA programs (of either one or two-year durations) over flexible or executive MBA programs or specialized master’s programs. 

• Gen Z respondents (87 percent) were more likely than Millennials (72 percent) to express a preference for in-person programs. 

• Women, Millennials, and first-generation candidates remained the most likely groups to express a preference for online and hybrid programs.

• North American respondents expressed a greater preference for longer programs (39 percent), over shorter programs that were 13-18 months (29 percent), or one-year or less (13 percent).  

Gen Z candidates expressed less interest in pursuing tech careers. 

• Among all prospective students, consulting continues to be the most sought-after industry for post-graduate work followed by technology. Interest in tech has leveled off among women and members of underrepresented populations.

• Gen Z respondents reported a greater interest in finance and accounting (41 percent) over tech careers (35 percent).

• A greater proportion of Millennials remain interested in tech (47 percent) versus finance and accounting (41 percent).

Elite MBA Programs Incorporate Online Learning

Even the most elite MBA programs continue to embrace online learning. A recent Business Because article highlighted a few of the recently added options.  

• The University of Pennsylvania (Wharton) Global Executive MBA will launch in May and provide a predominantly online experience for participants. Just 25 percent of the program will take place in-person, while the remainder of the content will be provided online. The program intends to cater to a global cohort of participants and will confer the same Executive MBA degree, at the same cost, as the in-person Executive MBA.

• The NYU (Stern) Part-Time MBA will provide online modules (asynchronous online learning combined with an in-person component) and course options for those in the part-time MBA program. The online offerings are intended to provide additional flexibility, however, the program will still require students to take at least nine classes in-person. The tuition and degree conferred are the same for part-time students taking courses in-person or using the hybrid learning model.

• The University of California Berkeley (Haas) Part-Time Flex MBA will allow students to complete the majority of their coursework online, but do require participation in at least three in-person immersion events. The tuition and degree conferred are the same for the in-person and online part-time programs.

• The Georgetown (McDonough) Flex MBA Online will offer students the option to complete the majority of their coursework online. In addition to the virtual classes, the program requires students to participate in a two-week on-campus residency as well as a one-week study abroad program. The tuition and degree conferred are the same for the Flex MBA and Flex MBA Online.

Post-Pandemic, Prospective MBA Students Express Greater Interest in Hybrid Learning and One-Year Full-Time MBA Programs

The Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC) recently released the 2022 results summary from its Prospective Students Survey. The survey, which was issued in 2021, garnered over 6,500 responses from prospective MBA students around the world. The resulting summary examines the shifting preferences of prospective students as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the delivery models of graduate management education. 

Below we provide a high-level summary of the findings. The full GMAC results summary is available here. 

While respondents do not feel that online and in-person formats provide the same value, there is growing interest in hybrid models. 

• Globally, respondents are still more likely to disagree that an online and an in-person graduate management degree offers the same level of opportunity in terms of networking (79 percent), value (73 percent), and career prospects (66 percent). But respondents are slightly less negative in 2021 than they were in 2020.   

• Globally, 20 percent of respondents in 2021 prefer a hybrid delivery model, an uptick from 14 percent in 2019. 

• Hybrid programs are particularly attractive to prospective students interested in an Executive MBA, Part-time MBA, or Flexible MBA, although interest in hybrid models increased significantly for all program types between 2019 and 2021.  

Consulting continues to top prospective students’ industry and job function preference lists, though interest in the technology industry continues to grow. 

• While both men and women express interest in consulting, men are more likely than women to select consulting as their industry (+8 percentage points) and job function (+9 percentage points) of choice. 

• Women are more likely than men to express interest in the marketing (+12 percentage points), media and communication (+9 percentage points), media/entertainment (+7 percentage points), and non-profit (+6 percentage points) industries.  

• Globally, interest in the technology industry increased three percentage points from 2019 to 39 percent in 2021. Among non-business undergraduate majors, technology is the most sought-after industry (49 percent). In 2021, a growing number of women expressed interest in technology compared to 2019 (+5 percentage points). 

• Prospective students most frequently list their post-degree career goals as: obtain a senior level position, get a raise/salary increase, obtain an executive level position, manage people, manage projects, and work for a company where they can travel internationally. 

• “Become the CEO of a company” provides a notable gender disparity within career goals. Globally, 31 percent of males list this as a career goal, while just 24 percent of females do. In general, U.S.-based respondents are less likely to name this as a goal (21 percent). 

• In 2021, the number of prospective students interested in changing industries or job functions (32 percent) returned to pre-pandemic levels after an uptick in 2020 (36 percent). Among U.S. respondents, a higher percentage are looking to make a career change (42 percent) which is, again, consistent with pre-pandemic levels (41 percent in 2019). 

International prospective students are more favorable on the use of standardized admissions tests.  

• Similar to pre-pandemic levels, about ten percent of prospective students say that having to take a standardized admissions test may deter them from applying. 

• About 60 percent of international students agree that standardized admissions tests improve fairness and reliability in evaluating applicants, and that they allow candidates to demonstrate academic readiness. Among U.S.-based prospective students, the number agreeing with those statements hovers closer to 50 percent. Similarly, while 63 percent of international respondents feel that standardized admissions tests increase transparency, just 55 percent of domestic respondents do. 

• While about half of respondents (52 percent) agree that test waivers make it easier to apply to a program, fewer agree that test waivers make it easier for applicants to gain admission (44 percent). 

• About 40 percent agree that the criteria to obtain a test waiver does not apply to a large proportion of applicants (43 percent) and the criteria to obtain a waiver is complex (40 percent). About one in five feel that schools should not offer test waivers for the 2021 admissions cycle.