Applications to American M.B.A. programs rose for the first time in five years, thanks in part to loosened admissions deadlines and students seeking places to ride out a shaky job market.
U.S.-based students fueled the surge in applications for this fall’s programs as business schools extended application deadlines and loosened their standardized testing requirements amid the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a new report on hundreds of business programs. Higher-ranked schools reported the biggest application gains, particularly among the international students who have become critical to programs’ business models, according to a report from the nonprofit Graduate Management Admission Council released on Tuesday.
Students typically flock to business schools and other graduate programs during economic downturns to sit out a tough job market and gain credentials. M.B.A. program applications had fallen for five straight years because of a hot job market and high tuition costs. In the latest cycle, applications to U.S. business schools increased 21%, according to GMAC.
“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,” said Rahul Choudaha, GMAC’s director of industry insights. “They see business schools as a chance to incubate from this uncertainty.”
Schools’ extended admissions deadlines—into July for some—gave prospective students who might have been laid off or furloughed in the first months of the pandemic a chance to apply to programs and begin classes weeks later. Some schools further eased the way by making optional the main B-school entrance exam.
