The Truth about Application Volume

The market for graduate management education is constantly evolving, and with it, application volume to MBA programs changes too.

To keep up, the Graduate Management Admission Council® (GMAC®) surveys business schools each June to track application trends, acceptance and enrollment rates, and the applicant pool composition.

Our most recent data suggests application volume is on the rise for the majority of programs surveyed, which include full-time, part-time, executive, flexible, and online MBA programs around the world.

• Full-time MBA programs reported the greatest proportion of international applicants among MBA programs—51%, on average.
• Part-time MBA programs in the U.S. reported the greatest percentage of racial minority candidates in their applicant pool (18%).
• Proportionally more women applied to flexible MBA programs (37%) than to other types of MBA programs.
• Executive programs reported applicants with the most work experience—nearly 9 in 10 applicants (89%) had 6 or more years of work experience, including 6 in 10 applicants (61%) that have been in the workforce for 10 years or more.

Applications from all subgroups have increased somewhat over the previous year. However, while par-time programs surveyed reported a stronger application volume from women, full-time MBA programs also reported a higher turnout from international students.

Though some might wonder if the quality of applicants has been negatively affected by these changes, the answer is clearly “no.” In fact, in 2008, at least half of MBA programs, including 67% of full-time programs, reported that applicants were more qualified than the year before.

But don’t despair. In response to this increase, some, particularly among part-time programs, have opted to increase their class sizes to accommodate more students.

The annual GMAC Application Trends Survey asks business schools’ graduate programs to report the volume of applications they have received in the current year. In 2008, we surveyed 521 graduate management programs from 273 schools around the world, including 410 MBA programs.

Here’s how many applications MBA programs received, how their application volume changed from 2007 to 2008, and how many candidates were accepted for different types of MBA programs:

• The average number of applications to full-time programs is the highest at 628 applications per program. Nearly eight in 10 programs (77%)—the highest percentage in the past five years—reported an increase in the number of 2008 applicants. Admission professionals estimated that an average of 46% of full-time MBA program applicants received an offer of acceptance.
• Part-time programs received on average 207 applications per program with 6 in 10 programs (60%) reporting an increase in the number of applications compared with 2007. Part-time MBA programs extended an offer of acceptance to 67% of their applicants, on average.
• Executive MBA programs received 125 applications per program, on average, mainly from applicants with 10 or more years of work experience (61%). Three-fourth of EMBA applicants (75%) received an offer of acceptance.
• Flexible MBA programs that combine full-time and part-time on-campus options for students received on average 201 applications per program. Flexible MBA programs accepted on average 61% of their applicants in 2008.

To read the most recent GMAC 2008 Application Trends Survey, click here.