Who

The 2007 GMAC Global MBA Graduate Survey includes responses from 5,641 graduating MBA students representing 158 business schools around the world. About 65 percent of the respondents were actively seeking employment at the time the survey was conducted.

Why

The study focuses on understanding the respondents’ education, including their satisfaction with the MBA, the overall value, and the way in which the MBA would increase their career options. Additionally, respondents were asked to provide their impressions with regard to their school, including the criteria used in selecting the school, schools’ recruitment and communication activities that affected their decisions, the quality of their program, and the likelihood of recommending the school. Furthermore, the study probes the respondents’ employment plans and career future.

The Results

• Respondents were seeking engaging classroom settings with fellow students contributing to the learning process, rather than passive learning strictly from their professors.
• Three-fifths of the respondents considered their degrees an outstanding or excellent value, driven primarily by the quality of the curriculum, the faculty, and the program management.
• More than three-quarters of the respondents improved a great deal or a good amount in their knowledge of general business functions, their abilities to manage strategy and innovation, and their ability to manage decision-making.
• There has been an uninterrupted upward trend in the percentage of respondents who had received or accepted offers of employment at the time of the survey since 2003. Fifty-three percent of graduating business school students who were looking for a job landed offers of employment in advance of completing their degrees in 2007.
• The class of 2007 had slightly higher salary expectations than did previous classes. On average, respondents from full-time programs expected a salary increase of 54%; part-time program respondents expected a 43% increase; and executive program respondents expected a 33% increase in salary.