Historic: Why 2021 Was The Best Year Ever For Women’s MBA Enrollment

Erika James took over as dean of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in July 2020. A year later, the school reported 52% of its incoming MBA class would be women — the first M7 school to achieve gender parity in the MBA

The news of women’s gains comes at a time when the Graduate Management Admission Council reports accelerated demand for graduate business degrees in 2021 amid declining concerns about Covid-19. This is in sharp contrast to GMAC research in April 2020 that found more than half of women respondents (55%) were very or extremely concerned about the impact of the pandemic on their pursuit of an MBA, versus only 37% of men.