2016 To Be Another Strong Year For MBA Job Seekers: GMAC

Three in four employers plan to hire MBAs in the new year as per the findings of the Graduate Management Admission Council 2015 year-end poll of employers

The Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) today released the findings of its 2015 Year-End Poll of Employers, which reveal solid 2015 hiring numbers and robust 2016 hiring projections that reflect a continued healthy demand for recent graduates of master-level business programs – especially MBAs.

Among the survey’s other findings: Ninety-six percent of responding employers agree that hiring business school graduates creates value for their companies and 68 percent agree that recruiting graduates of MBA and business master’s programs is a priority in their company’s hiring plans.

“Employer demand for graduate management talent is projected to remain strong in 2016 for MBAs and other master’s-level business candidates,” said Bob Alig, GMAC’s executive vice president for school products.

“Recent graduates from business and management programs should see high demand for their skills because employers understand that they are valuable assets to their organizations.”

Findings in this report represent survey responses from 179 recruiters from across 159 companies of varying sizes and industry sectors located in 31 countries or regions worldwide.

A majority of the employers participating in this year’s survey indicate that they will be striving towards improving performance and productivity, expanding their customer base, and launching new products and services and less focused on overcoming economic challenges and cutting costs than in recent years.

A greater share of employers intend to hire graduates of Master of Accounting and Master in Management programs in 2016 than did so last year.

In addition, 73 percent of responding employers plan to offer internships to MBA candidates in 2016 – GMAC surveys have indicated that internships remain one of the most successful ways for master’s-level business school graduates to receive job offers.

Ninety-two percent of the responding employers that offered MBA internships in 2015 plan to increase (26 percent) or maintain (66 percent) the number of MBA internship openings in 2016.

These positive developments echo what recent business school graduates say about the value of their degrees.

In a September 2015 GMAC poll of recent graduates, a vast majority of alumni from the class of 2015 said their graduate management degree helped prepare them for the job market.

In fact, three to four months after graduation, full-time two-year MBA alumni in the class of 2015 reported an employment rate of 91 percent – five percentage points greater than the class of 2014 reported in September 2014.