Banks and brokerages on Wall Street have increased their MBA hiring, reports a Fins.com article from last week.
Maryellen Reilly Lamb, senior associate director of MBA career management of Wharton, explains, "Two years ago, I couldn't get a bank to take our calls, last year they were taking them and this year, they're calling us. That speaks a lot to the cautious optimism of Wall Street at the moment."
In 2008, about 59% of companies in all industries hired MBAs. In 2009 that number dropped to 50%, and this year, that number is likely to bounce back up to 55%.
Also trending back up are signing deals and salaries, which increased 3.2% this year to $89,200.
More recent statistics:
- Wharton saw a 20% increase this year over last in the number of students offered summer banking internships.
- NYU Stern hosted 10% more recruiting events this fall for full-time and summer banking positions.
- Columbia Business School recorded a 45% increase in full-time job postings.
- Harvard Business School, which as of last week had not published their totals, expects "a flurry of offer letters for MBA candidates approaching graduation."
- JPMorgan and Credit Suisse plan to visit more schools and increase their hiring this year. Credit Suisse has already hired about 10% more people than it did last year.
How have the hiring changes affected MBA students and graduates? For one, explains the Fins article, candidates are showing more devotion to their chosen industry; fewer students are undecided in their career paths by the time they graduate. They are also not taking for granted what few job opportunities come their way.
