The true value of an MBA

Each year the Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC) undertakes surveys of the value of an MBA across three dimensions: personal, professional, and financial. Here is an overview of the results across each of the dimensions.

Personal

Of MBA alumni from the classes of 2000-2012:

• 94 percent say their MBA was personally rewarding.
• 93 percent say their MBA prepared them for leadership positions.
• 85 percent say their MBA prepared them to manage work/life balance.

Professional

Of MBA alumni from the class of 2012:

• 77 percent of class of 2012 MBA alumni viewed their degree as essential for obtaining their first job after graduation.
• 72 percent of class of 2012 MBA alumni are satisfied or very satisfied with their current jobs.

Of MBA alumni from the classes of 2000 to 2012:

• 80 percent (87 percent of full-time MBAs) say their promotion came faster than or when they expected.
• 79 percent report that having a graduate management degree offers greater job stability in a weak economy.
• High percentages report good to outstanding career outcomes from their degrees in a variety of professional areas such as qualitative analysis (95 percent); quantitative analysis (92 percent); development of professional network (91 percent); preparation for their chosen career (90 percent); faster career advancement (87 percent); and improved job satisfaction (87 percent).

Financial

Class of 2013 graduating MBAs:

• Expected an average (median) pre- to post-MBA increase in salary of 79 percent for full-time one-year MBAs, 39 percent for executive/part-time MBAs, and 71 percent of combined (full-time, part-time, and executive) for MBA graduating students.

MBA new hires in 2013:

• Were expected to command a US$43,000 salary premium over new bachlor’s degree recipients in the US.
• Were expected to draw a wide range of salaries, varying substantially by job function, experience, industry, and world region. Expected media starting salary for class of 2013 MBA new hires was US$95,000 in the US, US$85,000 in Europe.
  

Class of 2012 MBA alumni:

• Typically recouped 38 percent of their financial investment in the first year after graduation.
• Recouped, on average, their full investment after four years.