The Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAT) recently stated that for the third year in a row, applications to full-time, 2 year MBA programs dropped over the previous year. As a matter of fact, over two thirds of business schools offering full-time, 2 year programs report a decline in applications.
These recent statistics, though obviously bad news, come as no surprise to schools and the industry as the record highs of applications in 2008 was due to those hit by the financial crisis and recession picking up the pieces and moving on- some through education. But since then, applications have decreased.
Possibly even more telling, one of the world’s most popular business schools, Harvard Business School claims that the number of applicants to this year’s Fall 2011 class declined 4% from the 2010 class. As a result, the schools acceptance rate improved from 11% to 12%.
That said, there were a few bright spots. One being that, as we previously reported, there is an increase in International Students applying to American business schools. This report states that 46% of business schools saw an increase in international applications. Furthermore, a majority of the business schools GMAC surveyed said that their 2011 applicants were generally more qualified- including having better academic credentials. And finally, specific Masters level programs, such as finance, management, and accounting have seen increases as compared to 2010.
For the full report, please see the GMAC website.
