The MBA is alive and well, post covid

The world has not fallen apart after Covid-19. Greed is not dead and capitalism is not buried. And the MBA, contrary to forecasts, is alive and well, says an article in the Economist. Although the article is about US B-schools, much of it would apply elsewhere.

During the pandemic, B-schools saw online programmes posing a major threat. They saw applications falling as students felt that an MBA minus the social interaction may not be worthwhile. And foreign applicants to US schools fell following travel restrictions and reports of American universities getting foreign students to leave the campus, which also meant having to leave the country. European,  Chinese and Hong Kong schools benefited as a result.

But the American MBA is now back. The trend towards falling applications has been reversed this year. There is a rise in interest among the usual recruiters. How come? The article explains how US B-schools adapted and learnt:

MBA applications typically rise in recessions, when a weaker job market means lower forgone salaries. But business schools deserve credit for adapting their business models—as their professors preach others to do. Many delayed the start of semesters, offered generous scholarships, waived exam requirements and liberalised policies on deferrals. Harvard Business School allowed students it admitted to postpone studies for one or two years. GMAC reckons that deferrals globally have shot up from about 3% to 7%.

Schools also boosted online and flexible degrees, which are surging, and integrated digital teaching into core MBA courses.

The biggest learning, perhaps, is that online is not the threat it seemed to be. By intelligently combining classroom learning with digital teaching, B-schools can enhance their appeal. Their experience is akin to that of mainstream banks that at one point seemed threatened by online alternatives. By embracing online technology and combining it with brick and mortar branches, the leading commercial banks have strengthened and broadened their appeal. Ditto for B-schools. 

On a slightly different note, an article in the FT suggests that while B-schools may be booming, their appeal to women may be waning. It appears that women are more concerned about the rising cost of MBA education than men are. The move to online also seems to have cheesed off women but, as suggested above, that should not be a factor hereafter.