Meet Cornell Johnson’s MBA Class Of 2022

Cascadilla Gorge on the campus of Cornell University

MAJOR UPTICK IN APPLICATIONS

By the numbers, you would hardly know the Class of 2022 arrived in Ithaca during a pandemic. The number of applications rose from 1,535 to 1,872, a 22% increase over the Class of 2021 (and 17% over the graduating class of 2020). Along the same lines, class size increased 10 students to 292 this fall. One big difference: it is easier to earn a seat at the Cornell MBA. This year’s acceptance rate is 39.6%. To put that in perspective, the number was 33% in 2018 and 27% in 2016.

Median GMAT scores also held steady at 700. While many American MBA programs welcomed fewer overseas candidates, the percentage of international students climbed from 32% to 34% during the 2019-2020 application cycle at Cornell Johnson. However, that growth was offset by the percentage of women, which slipped from 35% to 31%.

Academically, Cornell Johnson remains attractive to graduates who hold business-related degrees. 33% of the class majored in Business or Commerce (down 3%), with Economics majors accounting for 14% (equal to the previous year). Engineering (15%) and Math and Physical Sciences (9%) make up a quarter of the class, followed by Social Sciences (11%) and Arts and Humanities (9%).

Looking at professional experience, 31% of the class falls outside the school’s normal classification. However, the clear winner is Financial Services, which composes 30% of the class. Consulting and Technology professionals each take up 11% of the seats, followed by Government and Non-Profits (8%), Manufacturing (5%), and Healthcare (3%). Overall, Consulting and Financial Services fell five and three points respectively, with Technology gaining four points over the previous year.

PAY EXCEEDS RANKING

Overall, it has been an upbeat year in Ithaca. The Class of 2019, for example, saw its total first year pay jump to $161,823. On average, Johnson MBAs made more starting out than peers from MIT Sloan, Berkeley Haas, Michigan Ross, and Yale SOM. This pay also represents a 22% improvement over what Johnson MBAs earned in 2014. Last year, the financial services industry hired 37% of Cornell MBAs, with consulting firms attracting another 28%. Despite the program’s reputation for world-class finance faculty and programming, it would be a mistake to dismiss Cornell Johnson as a “finance school.”

“We have great preparation for—and pedigree in—consulting, tech, entrepreneurship, and many other industries and functions,” explains Deon Provost, a 2020 P&Q Best & Brightest MBA. “I came to Johnson in part because I was unsure if I wanted to pursue a career as a product manager in tech or management consulting. I knew that whatever I chose, I’d have the resources and support to be successful given Johnson’s strong track record.”

That track record extends to top-notch academics across the major fields, along with a flexible curriculum structure that includes a top-tier one year program and access to the Cornell Tech resources in New York City. This summer, P&Q reached out to Dr. Mark Nelson, the Anne and Elmer Lindseth Dean at the Johnson Graduate School of Management and the College of Business. In an exclusive interview, Nelson outlines the latest developments of the program, along with sharing insights on the program’s fabled Immersion Program and how the faculty infuses innovation and creative thought across the MBA program. Here are Nelson’s thoughts on the state of the Cornell MBA.

Sage Hall awaits MBA students.

AN INTERVIEW WITH DEAN MARK NELSON

P&Q: What are the most exciting new developments at your program?

MN: “Our three full-time Cornell MBAs are now STEM designated, which means that all classes of 2020 and 2021 graduates will have the option to pursue this pathway. The benefit to students is that the curriculum has been enhanced to incorporate greater business and data analytics across all areas of study. Students pursuing careers in consulting, for instance, will have an improved set of strategic, people, and problem-solving skills to help fix the massive issues facing corporates in the wake of the pandemic.”

P&Q: What are the two most unique or differentiating features of your full-time program? How do they enrich the MBA experience?

MN: “We have a performance learning approach to business education; Immersions are a prominent example. Following the first semester of our business core curriculum, students enter into one of eight immersion programs for an intense, hands-on semester of integrated courses and field work in a specific industry or career interest. Immersions combine cutting-edge course work, outstanding faculty, coaching by leading business practitioners, and problem-solving actual business issues. Immersions are a key reason why our students convert their summer internships to full time offers at an exceptionally high rate.

We also have dual-campuses in Ithaca, NY and in the heart of New York City on the Cornell Tech campus. Our dual campuses give students access to two of the most beautiful campuses in the world, one located in one of the best college towns in the U.S., and the other located in the economic and cultural hub of the western hemisphere. This is truly a best of both worlds scenario for our MBA students.”

Cornell Johnson Dean Mark Nelson

P&Q: How has COVID-19 impacted your business school?

MN: “Tactically speaking, we are quite fortunate; we have an EMBA Program (the Executive MBA Americas program) which has been taught live from Television studios in a distance-learning format since 2005. We were able to port our curricular and co-curricular best practices from that program to our residential programs in a matter of weeks. This allowed us to continue to deliver excellence to our students in the wake of this unprecedented disruption.

We also just plain hustled and got creative. We virtualized our weekly “Sage Social”, which brings faculty, staff and students together as a community. We launched an executive speaker series that helped students understand, in the moment, how the pandemic was affecting all aspects of the economy and beyond. We brought more executives into the classroom, leveraging accessibility and convenience for them and creating a more personal and one-to-one interaction. We have much more of this programming planned for this year.

More strategically, we have taken COVID-19 as an experience to enhance and fast-track growth, innovation, and collaboration that was already underway. We are using class time more effectively by packaging intro content for students to access asynchronously, such that the value of the interaction between a student and a professor is maximized. We also are making investments in virtual programming that further develops our two-campus model.  Cornell MBAs already were accessing both the Ithaca campus as well as the new Cornell Tech campus in NYC, but the increase in virtual programming in response to COVID-19 further enhanced student access to faculty and programming across both campuses.”

P&Q:  In the newest Bloomberg Businessweek student and alumni survey, Johnson ranked among the top programs for Innovation and Creativity. How does the MBA program deliberately incorporate these qualities across its programming?

MN: “Cornell, as one of the top STEM universities in the world, is an entrepreneurial university. At Johnson, we harness this strength and embed entrepreneurship throughout the Cornell MBA experience. We realize that entrepreneurship means different things to our students, so we ensure we provide opportunities for students across a broad spectrum. Some students come to Johnson to start a company, either by commercializing next-gen technology in our STEM labs or by ideating on a new idea developed under the guidance of our Entrepreneurs in Residence. Other students want to work with startups, either in a consulting or investment capacity, so we have a startup consulting organization (Big Red Tech Strategy) and a live VC fund (Big Red Ventures) that provides for those incredible experiences. Still others plan to start companies down the line in their career, so they take advantage of our world-class entrepreneurial curriculum to build their foundations as they simultaneously plan for an initial career in finance, tech, consulting, marketing, etc. And, of course, many are intrigued by opportunities in FinTech, digital marketing, and other fields that focus on the digital economy, and those students enjoy opportunities in Ithaca as well as on the Cornell Tech campus in NYC. You can go to our website for more information about our strengths in entrepreneurship.

P&Q: One of your MBA program’s hallmarks is your Immersion Semester. What is it and how does it help prepare MBA students for the challenges ahead? What do your students say about the Immersion Semester?

MN: “Immersions are concentrated, applied knowledge in a chosen field of interest. Students gain access to direct networking with premier companies, faculty, alumni and practitioners. As part of the immersions, students benefit from problem-solving experiences in real-life situations, which in turn translates into preferred status with summer recruiters and long-term employers. We lead many of our peers with high placement rates in investment banking and consulting as a direct correlation to the immersion, internship, placement pathway.”

  • “An important component of the Digital Technology Immersion is the practicum project, which allows you to work directly with some of the biggest technology companies to help them take on their business challenges.” Shreya Bajaj, MBA ’18, Digital Technology Immersion (DTI).

The Cornell Tech campus on Roosevelt Island is just across the East River from the Queens location where Amazon plan s to build half of its second North America HQ. Cornell photo

P&Q: What makes Ithaca and the Finger Lakes region such a great place to spend two years?

MN: “Ithaca is a city like no other. It’s the perfect place to find your focus and be inspired. Just a short walk from Cornell you’ll find hiking paths, gorges, a bustling city center, a farmers market, and a 40-mile long Cayuga Lake, all within a few miles. Cornell MBAs will gain a cutting-edge education and remarkable professional experiences, in addition to countless opportunities to take advantage of the natural beauty and sense of community that Ithaca has to offer.

Get a taste for adventure and swim beside a waterfall. Immerse yourself in local art and culture. With awe-inspiring outdoors activities, a diverse and eclectic culture, a huge foodie scene, and a constant flow of intellectual energy, it’s no surprise why Ithaca and Cornell make so many best-of lists.

Cornell MBA students can discover global connections and take advantage of Cornell’s footprint in New York City. Cornell Tech’s incredible Roosevelt Island campus includes state-of-the-art resources and facilities for Johnson students. Its location means direct access to midtown for networking with peers, alumni, and top recruiters.”

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