Applications to business schools applications rose by 2.4% globally last year, despite the world being shut down by a pandemic. Notably, applications to Columbia Business School and the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, jumped a whopping 18% and 21%, respectively.That increase in MBA admissions, experts say, is here to stay. Bloomberg Businessweek recently looked into how business schools are set to sustain their pandemic admissions boosts for the next few years.

ECONOMY DOWN, APPLICATIONS UP

One of the key reasons why business schools saw such a large jump in applications last year was due to the effect that the COVID-19 pandemic had on the global economy.

“As the economy was taking a U-turn from high growth to a complete screeching halt, that led to a lot of midcareer professionals to start hedging their careers,” Rahul Choudaha, GMAC’s director of industry insights, tells The Wall Street Journal. “They see business schools as a chance to incubate from this uncertainty.”

With campuses closing up last March, business schools had to come up with innovative ways to attract potential applicants. For many schools, this meant extending application deadlines, offering deferred admission options, and waiving GMAT and GRE requirements for admission – strategies that many experts say helped the MBA degree become an attractive option in an economic recession.

“Suddenly, going back to school was not a bad thing, because of the threat of job losses and actual job losses,” Brad Staats, a professor and associate dean of MBA programs at the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School, tells Bloomberg Business.

Kenan-Flagler saw a massive 43% jump in MBA applications last year. To accommodate the increase, the school increased its class size by 37%. Additionally, Kenan-Flagler extended its final round 4 application deadline by more than three months – a key strategy that helped bring in additional applications.

“It’s definitely one for the books,” Danielle Richie, the school’s senior associate director of MBA admissions and student recruitment, tells P&Q. “We increased the size of the class because we had so many strong, quality candidates that we really wanted to build a diverse class out of the increased pool. Some of the innovative things we did were able to attract a larger applicant pool.”

At IE Business School in Madrid, the full-time MBA program saw a boost in applications last year as well. Mar Hurtado, vice president for global recruitment and marketing at IE, says that growth was only accelerated by the pandemic as applicants began to understand the importance that an MBA degree holds in trying times.

“So many people who lost their jobs didn’t take care of training themselves; they thought their company was going to be around to provide forever,” Hurtado tells Bloomberg Businessweek.

Sources: Bloomberg Businessweek, GMAC, P&Q, The Wall Street Journal, P&Q

Next Page: Chicago Booth MBA Application Essays

The University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business

How to Approach Chicago Booth’s MBA Essays

The University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business ranked number two in Poets&Quants’ latest Top Business Schools ranking.

The school seeks out applicants who can demonstrate leadership potential, team-building skills, and community involvement. Its 2021-2022 MBA essays are designed to gauge an applicant’s qualities and aspirations outside of the academic numbers. Stacy Blackman, founder of Stacy Blackman Consulting, recently broke down this year’s Booth essays and how applicants can set themselves apart.

ESSAY 1

The first essay prompt asks applicants the following:

How will a Booth MBA help you achieve your immediate and long-term post-MBA career goals? (Minimum 250 words, no maximum.)

The word minimum is of important note, Blackman says, given that many B-schools often have a word maximum. With its 250 word minimum, Booth admission officers are “asking you to be thoughtful in your responses to these MBA essays and make sure you have enough space to answer the question.”

When it comes to essay one, Blackman recommends thinking about realistic career expectations that you have and demonstrating how the Booth MBA fits into those goals.

“Think about what you have done so far in your career,” Blackman writes. “What have you learned? How can you use your experiences to inform your future goals? Then, think about how a Booth MBA can fill in any gaps. What classes will you take? Professors that can help you advance your goals? How will you engage with clubs and peers?”

ESSAY 2

The second essay prompt asks applicants the following:

An MBA is as much about personal growth as it is about professional development. In addition to sharing your experience and goals in terms of career, we’d like to learn more about you outside of the office. Use this opportunity to tell us something about who you are. (250-word minimum)

While essay one focuses on professional goals, essay two is more about self-awareness. Blackman suggests applicants to think about their own sense of purpose.

“To focus this essay, consider using stories about your life,” Blackman writes. “Have you done something in a volunteer capacity that shows who you are? Or, does your cultural background have an impact on your personality? What experiences have made an impact on you?”

Together, your essays should demonstrate who you are and where you’re going.

“Overall, your goal with both essays is to give the admissions committee a holistic sense of your potential,” Blackman writes.

Sources: Stacy Blackman Consulting, P&Q, Chicago Booth

Next Page: Business Schools lacking in diversity

Business Schools Are Still Lacking in Diversity

Business schools hold diversity in high regard. Many top schools, such as Wharton and Columbia Business School, highlight the importance of diversity—both in a cultural and professional sense—in fostering a quality business education.

Back in 2018, GMAC’s Alumni Perspectives Survey found that over 70% of respondents said their business school experience prepared them to work in culturally diverse organizations. The findings highlighted an important point of discussion: the role that diversity plays in MBA programs and the workforce.

Now, nearly three years later, it seems diversity still has a ways to go within MBA programs.

A new Financial Times analysis of over 100,000 respondents from top B-schools over the past decade finds that nearly half of MBAs came from and returned to a narrow range of careers in finance, consulting, and technology. In a sample of more than 7,000 alumni of the class of 2018, FT found that less than 6% came from backgrounds in government, charities, and social enterprises. As of 2021, only 2.7% ended up working in those fields.

“Greater diversity in the workforce may make good business as well as ethical sense — but it remains limited in the classrooms of leading business schools,” Andrew Jack and Sam Stephens, of FT, write.

THE OBSTACLE OF STANDARDIZED TESTING

At many B-schools, admissions officers are starting to see that standardized testing is not an accurate, nor fair, way to assess whether a candidate will succeed in an MBA program.

“Standardized tests have always been just one indication of a student’s ability to succeed at Darden, and we continue to broaden our criteria for consideration, accepting a number of standardized tests and offering test waivers to create flexibility for applicants,” Dawna Clarke, executive director of admissions at University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business, says. “Our message to applicants is to find the approach that’s right for you. Our Admissions Committee stands ready to help you consider your options and put your best foot forward in our application process.”

Darden is one of several business schools that decided to waive GMAT and GRE tests for admission during the COVID-19 pandemic in response to the closure of testing centers and the difficulty of at-home exams. As of today, nearly 67 of the top 100 B-schools are test-optional with schools, like Darden, looking into the possibility of waiving standardized testing for good.

In an interview with The Financial Times, Sharoni Little, associate dean and chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer at the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business, highlights the importance of diversity both in the B-school setting and post-grad.

“We lose sight of what is the value-add of a business school, which is educating leaders,” she tells FT. “Organizations are saying ‘we need you, the business schools, to do this so that we can have a broad pool of talented people to choose from’.”

While B-schools have taken steps toward attracting more diverse talent, it seems that there is still a long road ahead.

Sources: Financial Times, GMAC, P&Q, P&Q, Financial Times

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