A More ‘Holistic’ Jobs Report Confirms: It’s Good To Have An MBA

Earlier this year, the Graduate Management Admission Council released its annual Corporate Recruiters Survey showing a strong hiring outlook for MBAs globally in 2024 (and for the immediate future). Now comes an even deeper dive into the jobs numbers, thanks to the additional voice of another major organization dedicated to analyzing them.

GMAC has combined the data gleaned from employers who respond to its survey with data and insights from the Career Services & Employer Alliance to provide a more holistic picture of the employment landscape for business school graduates. The resulting report, Business School Hiring, Recruitment & Skills, shows that after a “leveling-off” of job postings in the aftermath of a post-pandemic hiring peak, MBA graduate hiring over the past five years has “largely matched employer expectations.”

While that may seem like tepid praise where the MBA is concerned, the news is better for holders of specialized business master’s degrees: Across degree types, these grads were hired by a greater share of employers than pre-pandemic 2019, GMAC and CSEA found. Moreover, job postings for all U.S. specialized business master’s talent have been largely stable after an initial leveling off following a pandemic-related peak in 2021. The non-MBA degree that appeals most to firms over the past five years? The Master of Data Analytics.

TOP MBA HIRING SECTORS: HEALTHCARE & MANUFACTURING

Top business schools for the most part report over 90% employment within three months of graduation. That’s the data underpinning the positive outlook in the new report. In the U.S., “the vast majority of employers report hiring MBA graduates as expected,” including nearly two-thirds of employers in 2023-2024. And while no sector was more optimistic about future MBA hiring than healthcare and manufacturing, no sector was less optimistic than tech — with good reason.

The health care and pharmaceutical industries saw a “significant” increase in hiring (which has not fully abated) driven by the Covid-19 pandemic; the manufacturing sector, meanwhile, “has increasingly adopted automation and AI technologies to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance production capabilities” — a shift that has “likely created demand for MBA graduates with expertise in these areas to manage and integrate these technologies effectively.” According to data from CSEA — formerly MBA CSEA — “a plurality of career services offices reported stable recruiting activity (i.e., job opportunities) among manufacturing employers over the past five years. The COVID-19 pandemic exposed vulnerabilities in global supply chains, prompting manufacturers to reassess and strengthen their supply chain resilience and likely explaining the uptick in recruitment activity in 2021.”

While hiring has been stable at companies of every size, mid-sized firms were the leaders in hiring MBAs in the U.S. in the last two years, GMAC/CSEA report. That’s because this stage of a company’s development “necessitates a higher volume of hires to support strategic initiatives, manage increasing operational complexities, and drive business development” and they “offer more defined roles with clearer career paths, making them attractive to MBA candidates seeking stability and professional growth.”

WHAT DO EMPLOYERS WANT IN A NEW HIRE? PROBLEM-SOLVING & STRATEGIC THINKING

In the latest GMAC Corporate Recruiters Survey, U.S. employers revealed that they are not yet looking to hire people with AI skills, with only 13% saying artificial intelligence is an important skill for grads to have. AI was last on a list of 22 skills employers look for.

Instead, employers currently prioritize “problem-solving, strategic thinking, and communication skills,” and they anticipate those skills to remain in demand in the next five years — along with “leadership, innovation (and) advanced technological skills.” Interestingly, AI does jump into the conversation when employers forecast their needs over the next half-decade, placing sixth on the list of 22 skills at that point.

How would employers like hires to leverage their AI skills inside their companies? GMAC’s Corporate Recruiters Survey found that AI-concerned employers  indicated they want talent to be able to use AI in three main ways:

• To acquire knowledge and learn new business skills (66%);
• To use AI to conduct research (59%); and
• To use AI to develop business strategies and make decisions (38%).

AI MAY SAVE THE IN-PERSON CAREER FAIR

AI has had one immediate effect on MBAs and other business school grads: in its increased use in the hiring process itself, and how that has reshaped candidate and employer expectations.

“In recent years, MBA student engagement with in-person and virtual resources has become a critical aspect of recruitment trends,” the report reads, “reflecting the evolving landscape of employer expectations and career services strategies. As organizations seek to attract top MBA talent, the integration of diverse engagement platforms has emerged as a key differentiator.

“Employers are increasingly leveraging virtual resources such as online career fairs, webinars, and digital networking events to reach a wider pool of candidates while maintaining efficiency and cost-effectiveness. Concurrently, career services offices at business schools are enhancing their offerings to include both traditional in-person coaching and innovative virtual tools, ensuring that students are well-prepared for the dynamic job market. This dual approach not only accommodates varying student preferences but also aligns with the flexible, hybrid working environments that have gained prominence post-pandemic—especially in the United States.”

Meanwhile GMAC/CSEA highlight some notable shifts in recruitment strategies, particularly when it comes to career fairs, the virtual versions of which have seen dips in student engagement since 2021. In-person career fairs have found favor again.

“A renewed interest in in-person career fairs among MBA students may reflect a desire for more personal and effective networking opportunities, fatigue
from virtual interactions, or the perceived effectiveness of in-person recruitment,” the report reads. “Employers and recruiters may find in-person career fairs more effective for assessing candidates. Personal meetings may allow for a more comprehensive evaluation of a candidate’s fit within the company culture and team dynamics. Some studies and reports suggest that in-person interactions at career fairs can lead to higher success rates in terms of job offers and hires compared to virtual fairs.”

DON’T MISS STRONG MBA HIRING FORECAST IN NEW GMAC SURVEY OF RECRUITERS and MBA SALARIES, BONUSES & JOB SUCCESS RATES AT 30 TOP U.S. B-SCHOOLS