PUNE: Nearly 3 in 4 (73 per cent) graduate business programmes with 201 or more seats reported increased application volumes this year as compared to 39 per cent increase in the smallest programmes (50 or fewer class seats) in Southeast Asia, according to a new application trends survey conducted by the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC).
Regardless of the class size, a majority of programmes in Europe, Canada, East and Southeast Asia and India reported growing volumes in 2017, while less than half the programmes in the United States are growing - with the exception of part-time lockstep MBA and Master in Data Analytics programmes.
The GMAC conducted its 18th annual Application Trends Survey from early June to mid-July 2017. The survey findings are based on a record number of responses from 351 business schools and faculties located in 40 countries across the world representing 965 graduate management programmes, including MBA, non-MBA business master’s and doctoral-level programmes.
Participating programmes received a combined total of 4,66,176 applications during the 2017 application cycle. In all, 92 per cent of all participating programmes reported that the applicants were similarly or more academically qualified than candidates last year.
“Demand for graduate business education remains strong, especially among the largest programmes, which tend also to be the most well-known programmes with brand recognition across Southeast Asia,” said Sangeet Chowfla, president and Chief executive officer (CEO) of GMAC.
Women Make Gains in Applicant Pool
“There has been a significant growth in the number of applications for MBA programmes. This demand has been further driven by female candidates for the full-time two-year programmes across Southeast Asia,” said Gaurav Srivastava, Regional Director of South Asia, GMAC.
The results of the GMAC Application Trends Survey Report 2017 showed that women were increasing their representation in the graduate business school pipeline. Today, women represent 42 per cent of the total applications, up from 37 per cent in 2013 across Southeast Asia.
Most programme types have experienced an increase in the representation of women in the application pipeline in Southeast Asia. Specifically, among MBA programmes women represent 39 per cent of applications, up from 33 per cent in 2013. More MBA programmes reported growth in female applicants (44 per cent) as compared with business master’s (39 per cent), whereas the growth rate is similar for men - 40 per cent for MBA and 39 per cent for business masters.
