As the deadline for enrolments in 2025 Master of Business Administration (MBA) programs approaches, young female executives are being urged to put their name forward for a Women in MBA (WIMBA) scholarship.
The scholarships are offered by three different business schools – Curtin Graduate School of Business, University of South Australia and the University of Wollongong’s Sydney Business School – and were designed to address gender imbalance in MBA programs.
When the scholarship launched in 2015, only 30 per cent of students studying an MBA were women; that has now increased to just under 50 per cent.
About the WiMBA program
Time and cost are the primary factors that prevent many women from undertaking tertiary study – factors compounded by the gender gap. The WiMBA scholarship promotes diversity in leadership by partnering with businesses to identify top female employees and supporting them financially and logistically to complete their MBA.
The scholarship is driven by an employer of an industry partner, who nominates female company staff who they believe have the potential to be future leaders in the company.
The Curtin Graduate School of Business offers 10 scholarships to women each year to complete their MBA in a partnership with their employer. Each scholarship covers 60 per cent of course fees (the employer contributes 20 per cent and the Curtin Graduate School of Business contributes 40 per cent).
The 18-month Curtin MBA normally costs just over $60,000.
As part of the WIMBA program the employer also provides the recipient with flexible time arrangements so they can attend classes, undertake additional study and group work, and complete assignments.
The University of South Australia WIMBA scholarship covers 100% of the MBA tuition fees ($62,580) with the universiry poaying 50% and the students’ employer paying 50%.
The Sydney Business School WIMBA scholarship matches dollar for dollar any contribution your employer makes to your MBA tuition fees. In order to qualify, the employer must contribute a minimum of 15 per cent of the total tuition cost. This means for example, that if your employer contributes 50%, you do not have to pay any tuition fees as Sydney Business School contributes the other 50%.
MBA leads to stronger career outcomes
The career benefits of holding an MBA are well known and include promotion, increased responsibility, stronger professional networks and a bigger salary.
For Sarah Kahle, the WiMBA Scholarship opened a career pathway that was otherwise impossible.
“The convenience of the city location and flexibility offered by Curtin made the idea [of an MBA] very tempting, and then the incredibly generous Women in MBA Scholarship made my idea a reality,” Sarah said.
Sarah completed her MBA in 2023 while working in a local government role. She says her exposure to design thinking and innovation techniques in the MBA program proved useful in numerous scenarios at work. Sarah has since progressed her career to Manager of Entrepreneurship Programs and Community at Curtin University.
For Davina Hunter, the WiMBA Scholarship took the financial factor out of her decision to study an MBA.
Women’s work is everyone’s job
The Government’s 2024 Status of Women Report Card shows that women in Australia are diverse, educated and hard working. It also shows that while Australia has the fourth highest level of tertiary-educated women in the OECD, women still earn less than men, do more hours of unpaid care and are less likely to be in leadership positions.
This is despite extensive reports that increasing female workforce participation is key to boosting Australia’s productivity and innovation. A 2018 projection by KPMG found that if the workplace gap between men and women were halved, Australia’s annual GDP would increase by A$60 billion in just 20 years.
The WiMBA Scholarship plays a vital role in getting industry to think in the right way about women’s potential and to back women to achieve that potential.
“As a woman juggling a career, family life and work, having something I was doing just for myself became an important part of my MBA experience,” Sarah says.
“It allowed me to take time out from my other responsibilities and concentrate on what I needed to do for my course – and for me.”
