B-school demand increases amid COVID-19 - GMAC

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 11 -- The Graduate Management Admission Council™ (GMAC™), a global association of leading graduate business schools, has released its annual 2020 Application Trends Survey.

“The opportunity cost of leaving a job to pursue an MBA or business master’s lessens as economies begin to regress, as a result we are now seeing more people thinking about b-school to grow or improve their career prospects,” said GMAC President and Chief Executive Officer Sangeet Chowfla.

GMAC delayed the release of this year’s report, initially scheduled for publication in mid-October, to further gauge the impact of COVID-19 on application trends in regions worldwide, according to a statement.

New research shows applications to graduate business school programmes are up, with variations in growth rates by region and programme due to online learning, travel, and visa concerns.

As institutions adopted a range of admission policies to aid candidates amid COVID-19, the report, known for assessing growth trends with an emphasis on the flow of international students crossing borders, highlights shifts in enrollment trends across Asia Pacific, Canada, Europe and the United States.

Overall, 67 per cent of the more than 1,000 programmes participating in this year’s survey report an increase in application volume. This includes 66 per cent of MBA programmes and 67 per cent of business master’s programmes.

Recent GMAC Application Trends reports have noted the disparity in application growth rates across competing regions.

This year, growth is present in some form across nearly all geographies and programme types, but this increased demand is realised in a context of increased deferments due to concerns about online learning, travel, and the ability to secure visas.

More details at www.gmac.com

-- BERNAMA