Applications to Harvard Business School increased 21% this year compared to 2023|Roger W|CC BY-SA 2.0
White-collar workers are increasingly applying to business schools amid a slowdown in corporate hiring, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Applications to MBA programs in the country are up 12% in 2024, reversing two years of decline, according to a new survey of colleges by the Graduate Management Admission Council.
Full-time courses saw a 32% surge in applications. The non-profit also reported higher demand for online and part-time programs. Interest from women increased 10% in flexible MBA courses from last year.
People turn to MBA programs to stay competitive when they think there could be economic uncertainty.
While the US job market remains strong and unemployment is low, at 4.1%, opportunities for white-collar jobs have decreased, especially for younger workers.
New employees and bachelor’s degree graduates face fewer openings due to layoffs in sectors such as tech and banking. The use of AI in the workplace has also exacerbated the problem. So, young college grads as well as old workers are upscaling by pursuing MBAs to boost their career prospects.
As a result, top schools like Stanford, Yale and Wharton are seeing double-digit increases in applications.
Columbia Business School has seen the number of applications rise 27%, Harvard Business School registered a 21% increase, and the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business saw a 22% rise over last year.
Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management reported a 23% rise, reaching levels not seen since 2020.
Notably, international interest in MBA degrees in America, Canada and the UK has dropped as more people apply to local or online programs.