Last week BusinessWeek published an article about the increase in post-MBA career opportunities. This time the job market focus is on Europe.
At top business schools around Europe recruiting rates are up, and more and more MBA grads are landing jobs faster than graduates from the same programs last year. For example, job offers for INSEAD's December 2009 class increased 7% compared to the offers for the July 2009 class.
A few reasons account for such improvements, explains Ellen Groves, author of the BW article.
First, the economy is finally picking up, even though improvements may still be hard to see. The financial industry in particular has experienced a pick-up, and so banking and consulting firms are offering more summer internship opportunities this year, as compared to last. The healthcare and pharmaceutical sector is also picking up, increasing recruitment, and increasing sign-on bonuses. Popular fields within that sector include biotech, public administration, renewable energy, and nonprofits.
Second, MBA students and MBA graduates have been forced to become more flexible in their career paths and to undergo more challenging interview processes. Those willing to take on these challenges will receive more job offers.
Third, career services departments at these top European b-schools are working extremely hard to get their students jobs. They're maintaining relationships with companies that were once recruiting at their school but are no longer (which will pay off once these companies resume recruitment), and are building relationships with new companies.
Fourth, students are opting for longer MBA programs, to increase their job prospects later on.
While the economy may be picking up, the job market is still extremely hard to penetrate—no one is denying that. But, as Diane Morgan, Director of Career Services at London Business School says, "We're very cautious but it just makes you work harder. Overall it's been really promising. Companies still want good people."
The good news is that this article is not a lone opinion on the subject. See below for more articles on the increase of MBA job opportunities.
Related Accepted.com blog posts:
- Good News for MBAs: Job Opportunities Abound!
- B-School Students See Light at the End of the Job Market Tunnel
- Passionate Optimism: It's Nice, but Will it Land You a Job?
- GMAC: MBA Employers Express Job Market Optimism
- The Make-Your-Own-Job Solution
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