MBA Recruiters & B-Schools Agree On Top AI Skills, But Not On Grads’ Grasp Of The Risks

U.S. business schools and the companies that hire their MBAs largely agree on which AI skills matter most. They differ on whether graduates understand the technology’s risks.

Those are among the findings of GMAC’s second Corporate Recruiters Pulse Survey, conducted with the Graduate Business Curriculum Roundtable. From September 1 to September 25, the survey asked 89 U.S. recruiters of MBA graduates and 61 program directors and deans about 24 AI skills, including how important they are and how prepared graduates are to use them.

The focus marks a shift from last year’s pulse survey, which GMAC conducted with the Career Services & Employer Alliance. That edition examined hiring and salaries rather than AI skills, and half of its 152 respondents reported that MBA hiring had decreased compared with their January projections. Career services professionals were far more likely than recruiters to report a decrease, at 65% versus 37%.

THE SAME 4 SKILLS TOP BOTH LISTS

Both groups in this year’s survey chose the same four skills as most important: synthesizing large volumes of information, understanding AI’s limitations and risks, using AI ethically and responsibly, and analyzing data and interpreting outputs. Among recruiters, 68% selected synthesizing information, while 64% selected each of the other three. Program leaders selected those skills at rates of 75% to 80%.

“As AI becomes embedded in the organizations that hire business school graduates, our annual Corporate Recruiters Survey has tracked rising demand for MBA talent who can use AI tools effectively,” says Andrew Walker, GMAC’s director of industry communications and the report’s author. 

“With the technology evolving so quickly, the Corporate Recruiters Pulse Survey takes a closer look at what employers mean by ‘AI skills’ – and the results show employers want graduates who understand AI’s limits and can apply it ethically.”

GRADUATES LAG ON RESPONSIBLE AI & DATA

Recruiters are the more confident group overall. Thirty-six percent call graduates adequately or very well prepared to use AI at work, compared with 17% of program leaders. Most respondents in both groups stop at “somewhat prepared,” including 48% of recruiters and 69% of program leaders.

That pattern generally holds across the 24 skills, but it reverses on two of the most important. On a scale where 1 means not very prepared, 2 somewhat prepared and 3 adequately prepared, recruiters score graduates at 1.8 on understanding AI’s risks, while program leaders score them at 2.0. On ethical use, the scores are 1.9 and 2.1. GMAC says this perspective is exactly what B-schools should be delivering to future business leaders.

Recruiters also see shortfalls in automating tasks and in analyzing and managing data, though the latter two scores sit right at the “somewhat prepared” mark. No skill reaches “adequately prepared” in their ratings. Drafting written content scores highest at 2.4, yet only 48% of recruiters consider it important. Strategy skills rank low on both measures: 27% selected leading or advising on AI adoption, which scores 1.8, while 35% selected measuring the ROI of AI initiatives, which scores 1.6.

WHERE THE PRIORITIES DIVERGE

Program leaders place more weight on content creation and AI-assisted project management. Seventy percent consider creating presentations or visual materials important, compared with 51% of recruiters. The gap is wider for managing projects with AI tools, at 67% versus 38%.

Automation shows the opposite pattern. Automating repetitive tasks or workflows ranks seventh among recruiters and was their top AI skill in GMAC’s full Corporate Recruiters Survey earlier this year, but it misses program leaders’ top 10.

“For the last few years, our members have been hearing about the need for ‘AI Ready’ students and have been working hard with their employer partners to define exactly what that means,” says Jeff Bieganek, executive director of the Graduate Business Curriculum Roundtable. “This survey surfaces some fascinating commonalities, as well as differences, in key curricular expectations around AI skills development in our MBA programs and what is demanded by employers today.”

Program leaders also project greater importance five years from now for every core curricular topic. The widest gaps are in international affairs (75% versus 38% of recruiters), marketing (73% versus 36%), and building and managing teams (87% versus 51%). Ethics also shows a sizable gap, at 85% versus 60%. Communication, data-driven decision-making and leadership are recruiters’ top three, each selected by at least 71% of recruiters and 87% of program leaders.

Read more from GMAC and download the full report here.

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