Application Trends 2016: Regional Spotlight on India

A record total of 872 graduate business school programs at 336 universities around the world participated in the 2016 Application Trends Survey. This regional spotlight provides a close examination of data submitted by 11 MBA programs located at 10 universities in India. The sample consists of survey responses from six full-time two-year MBA programs and five full-time one-year MBA programs. 

Note: Due to the small number of programs responding, findings should be interpreted with caution. 

Application Volume Trends 

Overall, nearly 2 in 3 responding Indian MBA programs (64%) report receiving more applications in 2016 than they did in 2015. Just nine percent of programs report receiving fewer applications this year compared with last year, and 27 percent indicate no change in their application volume. Nine of the 11 responding programs expect to grow their class size this year, seating a median of 14 more students this year compared with 2015. 

The 11 responding Indian MBA programs received a median of 6,300 applications each. With a median estimated class size of 238, this means programs received a median of 16.7 applications per seat. The estimated acceptance rate—the number of acceptance offers divided by the number of total completed applications—is 13 percent. The estimated enrollment rate— the number of accepted applicants who enroll divided by the number of all accepted applicants—is 59 percent. 

Applicant Profile 

In 2016, the vast majority of applications (97%) to Indian MBA programs are from domestic candidates (Indian citizens); the remaining three percent are international candidates (citizens of other countries). By world region, international applicants to Indian MBA programs most often are from the Middle East (1% of total applicants), Western Europe (1%), and the United States (1%). 

Overall, in 2016, a quarter of applicants to responding Indian MBA programs have no prior work experience and a third have six or more years of work experience. Work experience levels differ noticeably between applicants to full-time two-year MBA programs and candidates for full-time one-year MBA programs. Nearly all (92%) applicants to full-time two-year MBA programs have less than three years’ experience; the same is true of just nine percent of full-time one-year MBA applicants. In sharp contrast, 71 percent of full-time one-year MBA applicants have six or more years of work experience compared with zero percent of full-time two-year MBA applicants.  

Overall, 74 percent of applicants to Indian MBA programs are male and 26 percent are female. This gender split is more male dominant than the global average for MBA programs (63 percent male and 37 percent female). This year’s data indicate this demographic may be changing, however. The vast majority of reporting Indian MBA programs (90%) received more applications from women in 2016 than in 2015. A majority of reporting programs (60%) also received more applications from men this year compared with last year.