P&Q Survey: A Third Of Admits May Defer, While 43% Want Tuition Lowered If Classes Are Online

Meantime, applicants to the top 20 schools who have yet to gain their admission decisions have slightly different concerns. We found that:

• 48.8% believe their ability to apply to and attend the program of their choice will be negatively impacted by the coronavirus outbreak
• 32.4% of current applicants are worried about missing out on the full MBA experience due to the shift toward online learning
• 24.2% express worry about the high level of debt they expect to have and their inability to land a job quickly after graduation
• 12.6% are concerned about their health and that of their families
• 10.0% say they are worried about not being able to get their choice of both an MBA internship and post-MBA job
• 8.7% are concerned about their ability to get a student visa to attend school in the U.S
• 6.3% are worried about travel restrictions that would force them to defer their education or begin classes online.

MBA STUDENTS WORRY ABOUT MISSING OUT ON COMMENCEMENT AND NETWORKING

Current MBA students report that missing out on commencement and network-building are the largest concerns, followed by how their job search might be complicated by the recession, the burden of debt they have accumulated to get the degree, and then other worries such as:

• Difficulty adjusting to online classes, particularly case classes
• Lack of communication from schools
• Economic collapse 
• Losing post-MBA job offer
• Racism against Asians contributing to even fewer job opportunities
• Current students value the MBA degree slightly less than new admits in terms of professional and financial impact but more highly in the area of personal growth.

Source: Poets&Quants’ online survey

Applicants already admitted to a top business school are most confident that the MBA will benefit them professionally, with the average score on the professional value of the degree a 4.11 on a scale of one to five with five being highest. They are a little less certain about the personal value, rating it a 3.9. But their worries over the financial benefits is reflected in an average score of 3.4, well below the overall 3.8 score across all three measurements of value. Current students who responded to our survey value the MBA degree slightly less than new admits in terms of professional, financial impact, and personal growth with an overall rating of 3.1.

DON’T MISS: COMPANPIES BEGIN TO FREEZE & RESCIND MBA INTERNSHIP AND JOB OFFERS or THE NEW COVID-19 ADMISSIONS ROUND