Demand for MBA's Increasing

For those contemplating an academic path to career success, business at the master’s level is quickly becoming one of the most lucrative options once again. Of postgraduate educational opportunities, few offer the certainty of a rewarding career that an MBA affords. For this reason, enrollment in MBA programs is on the rise. According to the National Center for Education Statistics – Digest of Education Statistics for 2005, not only are the enrollemnt numbers of business majors with graduate degrees climbing steadily, but also the number of students from unrelated disciplines as well. Although some are required to take additional coursework to meet entrance requirements which can delay their entry into an MBA program, the expected payoff is well worth it for most. The late 1990’s were marked by all time highs in terms of job availability and recruitment efforts for MBA graduates. This was curtailed post 9/11, however, when hiring freezes and investor uncertainty were commonplace. Business analysts hold high hopes that the remaining years of the current decade will bring about MBA demand that exceeds the hiring frenzy last seen before the turn of the century. Compared to the last few years, current MBA graduates can expect substantially more job opportunities and better compensation packages upon entering the workforce – a fact that has contributed to increased enrollment numbers. Investment firms, insurance companies and financial institutions constitute the greatest majority of employers actively recruiting MBA graduates. Recruiting efforts are no longer limited to the traditional methods of campus career days and other remnants of the recent past. Today, recruiters are focusing their efforts on reaching not only campus based, but online students as well. Several firms are now utilizing distance learning colleges and universities to contact their soon to be graduates in an effort to expand the talent pool from which to choose. The next crop of MBA program graduates across the nation, whether campus based or attending college online, will have far more choices when it comes to their careers.