New research from the Graduate Management Admissions Council
(GMAC), administrators of the GMAT exam, has revealed job prospects for
recent MBA graduates are on the rise in 2011, bolstered by a shift in
business priorities amongst employers.

Interestingly, despite concerns about the global economy, new
research from the Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC),
administrators of the GMAT exam, has revealed job prospects for recent
MBA graduates are on the rise in 2011, bolstered by a shift in business
priorities amongst employers.

Of the 210 employers surveyed globally in the 2010 year-end poll for
employers, 78 percent reported that improving performance and
productivity was their organisational priority for 2011. As the global
economy continues to recover, the outlook in terms of employment and
salary for recent MBA graduates globally is bright, because their
skills are the most aligned with new corporate and strategic goals.
Employers have realised the value in hiring recent MBAs, more so than
those with other educational backgrounds, as they believe they can
provide the most value in contributing to this goal.

One survey participant commented, “The job market for graduating
business students is improving, and more hires are expected next year.
The personnel cuts that took place during the crisis have stopped.
Business is recovering and looking for stability and steady growth.”
Dave Wilson, CEO, GMAC can elaborate further on key findings from this
year-end poll of employers, conducted in November 2010:

Recent MBAs globally top the list of master-level graduates hired in
2010 (60 percent) and prospective hires for 2011 (64 percent). Two
percent more firms globally in 2010 hired MBA graduates than expected,
with 11 percent of companies surveyed hiring a greater number of recent
MBA graduates than planned.

And 34 percent of hiring employers globally reported that in 2011 they
intend to hire more recent MBA graduates. This exceeds the figure for
other categories of master-level graduates. Although average annual
salaries in 2011 are expected to remain at 2010 levels for all types of
new hires, 26 percent of companies plan to offer
higher salaries to recent MBA graduates hired in 2011, a figure which
is higher than that for other master-level graduates and those with a
bachelor’s degree. These statistics suggest the MBA has become a key
differentiator for recruiters, who have realised the value MBA
graduates can deliver in terms of performance and productivity in the
workplace.