MBA Apps At Yale SOM Jump 21.5%

Applications to the MBA program at Yale SOM exploded in 2023-2024

Another top-10 U.S. business school, another big rebound in MBA applications.

Yale School of Management, ranked No. 5 in the U.S. by Poets&Quants, saw a 21.5% jump in applications to its MBA program in 2023-2024, the second top-10 B-school to report a major turnaround in apps after years of declines.

Yale’s 3,738 apps in the last cycle were a huge rebound from the 3,076 for the MBA Class of 2025, and the highest total since the Ivy League school received nearly 3,900 for the Class of 2023. The result: Yale increased its class size to 347 from 339 and dropped its acceptance rate — which last year was its highest-ever at 33% — by more than 17%, to just over 27%. The school increased its yield, as well.

YALE SOM MBA CLASSES BY THE NUMBERS, 2021-2026

Class Stats Class of 2026 Class of 2025 Class of 2024 Class of 2023 Class of 2022 Class of 2021
Applicants 3738 3076 3237 3877 3453 3194
Admits 1021 1013 894 914 1027 806
Enrolled 347 339 347 349 350 345
Acceptance rate 27.3% 33% 28% 24% 30% 25%
Yield 34.0% 33.5% 38.8% 38.2% 34.1% 42.8%
Average GMAT 725 723 723 726 720 721
Median GMAT 730 720 725 730 720 720
GMAT Range 700-760* 580-780 630-780 640-780 640-780 640-780
GRE Average 330 329 329 330 328 329
Average GRE-Verbal 164 164 164 165 164 165
Median GRE-Verbal 164 164 164 166 164 165
GRE Verbal Range 159-170* 153-170 152-170 157-170 152-170 158-170
Average GRE-Quant 166 165 165 165 164 164
Median GRE-Quant 166 166 166 165 164 165
GRE Quant Range 161-170* 152-170 154-170 155-170 153-170 155-170
Percentage of students enrolled with GRE scores 37% 37% 39% 36% 35% 24%
Average GPA 3.65 3.63 3.65 3.66 3.63 3.64
Median GPA 3.68 3.65 3.69 3.69 3.65 3.66
GPA Range 3.31-3.94* 2.94-4.0 2.88-4.0 3.03-4.0 2.91-4.0 3.08-4.0
*80% range
Source: Yale SOM

WOMEN IN THE CLASS DROP BELOW 40%

The Yale SOM MBA program’s big app cycle is more evidence that the full-time, residential MBA is alive and well after years of widespread pessimistic speculation coupled with a troubling trend of declining revenue for top schools like Yale. The app windfall had several noteworthy effects, particularly in leading to a class in which 56% identify as students of color, up from 48% last year — even as those identifying as under-represented minorities declined slightly to 16% from 18%.

Yale’s MBAs are younger this year, at an average age of 26.5, than they have been in many years, and they have slightly less work experience than their predecessors. Twelve percent identify as LGBTQ, down from 13%, and 20% are first-generation college students, a big jump from 16% in the Class of 2025.

Some key metrics were down, however. The new Yale class is 39% women, dropping the school below the 40% threshold for the first time since the fall of 2020, when the first coronavirus pandemic intake had the same level of female representation. Amid a widespread downturn in international apps (more than offset, in Yale’s case, by a surge in domestic interest), the school saw its international cohort decline slightly from 50% to 48%, while the number of countries represented in the class dropped to 42 from 46 — the latter metric once again representing a low mark since the Covid-19 pandemic.

YALE SOM MBA CLASS DEMOGRAPHICS, 2021-2026

Class Demographics Class of 2026 Class of 2025 Class of 2024 Class of 2023 Class of 2022 Class of 2021
Women 39% 40% 43% 43% 39% 42%
U.S. Underrepresented Minorities 16% 18% 24% 20% 11% 13%
International* 48% 50% 48% 44% 40% 33%
Number of Countries Represented 42 46 48 38 46 47
Average Age 26.5 28 27 27 27 28
Average Years of Prior Work Experience 4.9 5.1 4.7 4.4 4.5 5
LGBTQ+ 12% 13% 12% NA NA NA
First-Generation Students 20% 16% 17% NA NA NA
Joint-Degree Students 8% NA NA NA NA NA
*International passport holders; includes U.S. permanent residents & dual citizens
Source: Yale SOM

TEST SCORES ALL MOVE UPWARD

In test scores, for those submitting the old version of the Graduate Management Admission Test, Yale reports a GMAT average of 725, up from 723 last year, and a median of 730, up from 720. Those taking the GMAT Focus, which by a scoring quirk yields lower average overall, reported a median score of 675.

Those taking the Graduate Record Exam (37% of the class, same as last year), reported an average and median verbal score of 164 and an average and median quant score of 166. The overall average of 330 was a point higher than last year.

Average undergraduate GPA ticked up to 3.65 from 3.63, and median was also up, to 3.68 from 3.65.

UNDERGRADUATE MAJORS OF YALE SOM MBA CLASSES, 2021-2026

Undergraduate Majors Class of 2026 Class of 2025 Class of 2024 Class of 2023 Class of 2022 Class of 2021
Business 28% 22% 25% 23% 22% 23%
Economics 18% 18% 18% 22% 20% 19%
Humanities/Social Science 20% 25% 19% 28% 29% 28%
STEM 34% 35% 38% 27% 29% 30%
Source: Yale SOM

TECHIES MAKE UP 13.6% OF CLASS, UP FROM 12%

In terms of undergrad majors, Yale’s new MBA class is business-heavy and humanities-light. Business majors comprise 28% of the class, up from 22% and the most in at least six intakes. Humanities and social sciences majors, meanwhile, dropped to 20% of the class a year after jumping from 19% to 25%.

In work experience, those with a tech background grew for the sixth straight year, an anomaly among top B-schools, while consulting and finance also ticked upward. Government and manufacturing dropped significantly.

Overall, 80% of the class hails from the for-profit sector, 11% from government, and 9% from nonprofits.

PRIOR INDUSTRIES OF YALE SOM MBA CLASSES, 2021-2026

Prior Industries Class of 2026 Class of 2025 Class of 2024 Class of 2023 Class of 2022 Class of 2021
Consulting 22.2% 18% 19% 24% 19% 19%
Consumer Packaged Goods 2.2% 5% 3% 3% 6% 3%
Energy 2.5% 2% 4% 5% 3% 5%
Financial Services 24.4% 24% 20% 17% 23% 20%
Government 7.6% 11% 9% 7% 8% 8%
Healthcare (including products and services) 7% 6% 7% 5% 4% 5%
Manufacturing 2.8% 5% 5% 4% 3% 7%
Media/Entertainment 4.1% 3% 4% 7% 7% 4%
Non-Profit 8.9% 9% 12% 14% 11% 15%
Other 1.6% 2% 1% 2% 1% 2%
Real Estate 0.3% 2% 2% 1% 2%
Retail 1.9% 1% 2% 1% 2% 2%
Technology 13.6% 12% 12% 10% 10% 7%
Source: Yale SOM

DON’T MISS DUKE FUQUA RECEIVED MORE MBA APPS THAN EVER FOR FALL 2026 — AND THE RESULT WAS HISTORIC and THE TOP MASTER IN MANAGEMENT PROGRAMS IN THE UNITED STATES