In this paper, Joy Jones highlights the persistent gender gap in graduate management education (GME), where women make up about 40% of applicants. She argues that business schools need to improve communication and engagement to better attract women by focusing on three key areas: promoting the positive social impact of business education, emphasising transferable skills for career advancement, and offering flexible learning options. By aligning curricula with women’s interests in sustainability and social impact, and providing flexible formats like online or hybrid programs, schools can better support women in balancing life stages and careers, ultimately helping close the gender gap in business education.

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We are perched at the edge of a precipice with a chance to make a great leap forward for women and other underrepresented people to discover the hidden gem that is graduate management education (GME). Perched rather than teetering in that, despite the attention and investment towards creating gender parity in our classrooms, the share of women applying to graduate business school has remained broadly consistent for the past decade, sitting around just 40% of applications to graduate management programmes worldwide.¹ During this same time, other professional post-graduate education such as medical and law schools have seen a meaningful closing of the gender gap.² So why isn’t GME seeing similar gains and what is the consequence?

Though certainly not the only cause, the persistent lack of female participation in advanced business education has spilled over into corporate arenas. Female representation on corporate boards stagnates around 30%, and in addition to often earning less than men, women are less likely to hold leadership positions in industries that business education caters to such as finance and technology.³ There is no doubt that there are well-documented systemic inequalities that need to be addressed to create more opportunities for women to achieve career success – with or without a graduate business degree. There is also no doubt, in my mind, that this stagnation has created not just challenges but also enormous opportunities for leaders and stakeholders in the business school community to collaborate and innovate, growing together in our relevance and enhancing the value proposition of GME to women.

The leap is, of course, metaphorical and yet we might see significant advancement if we take it a bit more literally. It seems we haven’t quite closed that communication – and perhaps cultural – gap of articulating the value of a degree in business in terms that are meaningful to more women. I’ve had more than one conversation about business and business education having a public relations problem and, while that may be true, it also seems that we still need that grassroots engagement that encourages people to step out of their comfort zone and take this journey that will have them grow in ways beyond their imagination.

To be sure, women are not monolithic. Their ambitions, aspirations, challenges, and needs aren’t entirely uniform nor unique to them, but there are some meaningful differences in perception and interests that we can pick up by looking at them as a cohort which, in turn, provides some insight on where we can create bridges to help more women find a pathway to success through business education. As the head of the Graduate Management Admission Council™ (GMAC), a non-profit organisation created 70 years ago and representing leading business schools around the world, I am fortunate to have access to a wide range of perspectives through our in-depth, longitudinal research on prospective, enrolled and alumni students, corporate recruiters, and business schools to glean insights into how we could attract and prepare business students, in particular women, for the workforce of today and tomorrow while satisfying the fundamental needs of individuals who seek a worthwhile return on their educational investment.

I have personally benefited from and enriched myself through a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from Stanford Graduate School of Business, having leveraged the knowledge, skills and experiences gained to navigate and impact a variety of industries facing transformational change and in need of digital innovation. It has been decades since I was a full-time student, yet it’s remarkable to me how so many of the issues and questions I faced are still present for female candidates today. For example, is this the right time for me to pursue an advanced degree or should I concentrate on work experience and establishing a professional network? Am I academically prepared for an advanced degree in business when my undergraduate major is in a different field? Do I understand what a ‘career in business’ really means? Will it smooth the career impact if and when I decide to start a family? Will the degree help me achieve my holistic goals of doing something for the greater good, in addition to the career advancement and financial security that’s top of mind for me and my peers?

Understanding that my experiences and observations are ones that many women considering graduate business education may find relatable, I identified three key themes that I believe could be particularly informative and useful for the business school community desiring to attract and build an inclusive classroom of more female students: the positive impact, transferable skills, and pathways across life stages created through GME.

Communicating the Positive Impact of Business

When I began my career journey, it wasn’t as clear to me as it is now that an advanced business degree can not only be rewarding personally and financially but also be one of the most versatile development opportunities for making a positive impact regardless of industry. My time working across the consulting and media industries was invaluable to my development before taking up my current role of connecting aspiring people to opportunity through higher education. It was through my consulting experiences that I discovered my passion for navigating times of challenge and transition for clients of all sizes. Since then, more than twenty of my professional years have been in the self-supporting non-profit space where I’ve been fortunate to work with extraordinarily talented people making major strides in meaningful missions. While the dramatic depictions of business in television series like ‘Billions’ and movies like ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’ may be entertaining, there is a clear disconnect from reality where many business graduates put their education to use across various industries for purposes beyond purely financial gain.

Women candidates’ growing interest in creating social impact through business – and business education – has become a key theme emerging from GMAC’s research, with significantly more women than men considering ESG/sustainability (35% vs. 25%), corporate social responsibility (28% vs. 17%), and social entrepreneurship/non-profit (21% vs. 14%) essential knowledge in their academic experience.⁴ Indeed, there has been heightened global attention toward sustainable development aiming to balance industrial development and environmental protection, creating prosperity and reducing poverty without sacrificing people’s health and well-being.

GMAC’s survey of prospective students worldwide leveraged the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a framework by grouping three major themes applicable to the curriculum and operations in a college or university context, namely equity and inclusion, sustainability, and health and well-being.⁵ When we asked prospective students how important each topic is to their academic experience, female prospective students tended to have a higher affinity than their male counterparts (see figure below).

Source: Prospective Students Survey 2024, Graduate Management Admission Council

The research findings and my own experiences help illustrate how business schools could highlight coursework and co-curricular programmes around sustainable development to attract future female business leaders with a sustainability mindset in preparation for the rapidly rising employment opportunities in the non-profit and government sectors, along with the energy, technology and advisory industries which could be the most impactful in sustainability and to which women are particularly drawn. For example, in 2019-2023, more than three-quarters of our surveyed corporate recruiters across all industries have hired MBA graduates, with the nonprofit/government industry boasting the most growth – nearly tripled – in its MBA hiring since 2019, showing a great appreciation of the value of GME and the skillsets GME graduates bring to the table.
⁶ Unprecedented acceleration of investment in renewable energy and advanced technologies are certainly good news for GME students seeking employment in these sectors, benefiting from not just personally fulfilling but also professionally and financially rewarding opportunities.⁷

Transferable Skills for Career Advancement and Transitions

As individuals put a premium on whether investment in education is worthwhile, transferable skills in a time of change are essential to their calculation, as well as to a business school’s value proposition. With the rapid and revolutionary rise of AI and big data dominating headlines and demanding attention from enterprises and schools alike, many individuals interested in advanced business education are contemplating returning to school for skill upgrades in these areas. GMAC’s 2024 survey of prospective students showed that in just over a year, there has been double-digit growth in the share of candidates from across the globe who say AI is essential to their GME curricula.⁸ This finding is consistent with the expectations of corporate recruiters, who, despite concerns about inflation or recession risk, project expanded hiring most likely to occur for data and business analytics graduates.⁹ All the research suggests that there is a clear alignment of expectations among candidates in the pipeline, business schools, and industry. This underscores the promising career advancement and financial opportunities for women GME graduates equipped with sought-after skills.

It is worth noting that while both genders express interest in AI, more men (42%) than women (37%) now view it as essential to their GME classrooms. Some have argued these differences are the result of a perception that women have an underlying lack of interest in business or STEM. We cannot, however, ignore social and economic constructs that have long limited women’s participation in quantitative subjects early in their educational journeys, resulting in women being historically underrepresented in both business and STEM fields.¹⁰ Women make up a smaller share of candidates in business school and a smaller share of the types of undergraduate majors with the most interest in AI in their GME curricula, such as business/economics, engineering/computer science, and science/mathematics.

I would argue that as an industry we need to engage with young women earlier in their educational development and more purposefully help connect the dots between where their interests lie and where GME can take them. I recall being undecided on how to put my undergraduate work in maths and science to use after graduation. I was fortunate to have an industry leader in consumer products reach out to me during my junior year for an internship in field marketing. Through it, I was exposed to the MBA student interns who were trying out their developing brand management skills and leveraging cutting-edge tech toolkits that I was thoroughly eager to learn. The experience turned my attention to the pursuit of an MBA where I would ultimately gain the practical skills exhibited by those interns while learning so much more. Business school gave me an unparalleled chance to grow alongside peers of vastly different worldviews and backgrounds from all over the globe while fully utilising my natural inclination toward numbers. How many more could we nurture at scale across disciplines with these types of intercessions, even as young as high school?

Part of the answer may also lie in amplifying GME’s development of people skills alongside hard skills. While selective college admissions at every level have challenged strong students to stand out beyond academics just to get in,¹¹ GME does a great job of further developing a well-rounded set of competencies and capabilities that will help people be successful leaders as they advance in their careers. Although there is a great deal of merited attention on technology and quantitative skills, it would be a mistake to overlook the traditional, core disciplines taught in business school experiences around collaborative problem-solving and how to manage people in complex environments and situations. Globally, 59% of women candidates said strategy is essential to their GME curriculum while 52% noted leadership and change management, representing the top three curriculum ‘must-haves’ for women besides business analytics/data science.¹² This is very much in line with the skills employers are seeking, especially in today’s AI-affected world where human judgement and power – or soft – skills are more valued than ever before.

Flexibility and Connection Build Pathways Across Life Stages

Considering when, where, and how to obtain an advanced business degree can be daunting. I made that challenging decision relatively fresh out of college and chose to go to an MBA programme close to home which at the time was inherently full-time and in-person. I found my on-campus experience to be exactly the right immersive developmental step for me. Nowadays, individuals are contemplating even more options, and prospective students indicate more interest in flexible, online, and hybrid programmes. In 2023, programmes that offered more flexibility, such as hybrid, online and evening options, benefitted from receiving more applications than in-person, structured formats. Among the flexible offerings, 51% of online MBA programmes reported growth in female applications, compared to just 24% in 2022.¹³

Both younger and older women stress the importance of flexibility, and they are open to wider options. Since 2019, prospective GME students have indicated increasing interest in building skills through certifications, with one-third of candidates now considering them—the largest share over a five-year period.¹⁴ Women who have families or are further along in their career with greater job responsibilities believe professional certificates offered in part-time or online formats allow them to stay engaged with their existing obligations while pursuing business education. These offerings may serve as another avenue to encourage women candidates to find these options as part of their life-long learning journey, giving them the time and space to study and grow at their own pace wherever they are in their career and life stages, which may eventually include stepping toward a richer master’s or doctoral programme.

And while flexibility is attractive, women expect that they won’t have to tradeoff the type of engagement and community building that’s a hallmark of MBA programmes. Whether a person is early or late in their career, studying at home or abroad, starting with a certification or finishing with a degree, one of the most enduring connections will be with their business school network. Many people are particularly attracted to business schools because of their reputation for connecting people with high aspirations and often outstanding professional accomplishments. I have been able to both tap into and give back to my business school network at various stages throughout my career, including crucial connections to other women in management and on boards, in a way that continues to aid in my personal growth. Schools will do well to emphasise this facet of GME across programme types.

Taking Action to Close the Gap

In light of the rise of AI, the innovation required for sustainable development, and the desire for lifelong learning, aspiring women preparing for an increasingly dynamic labour market are looking for many of the unique experiences that management education offers. Alongside the skills, knowledge and professional development that attract most candidates to business school, women have distinct motivations and goals in their journeys to graduate management education. It is crucial to communicate, above all, to women the beauty of GME, which lies in its utility and versatility, and its exceptional ability to encourage the growth of an individual from any background, be it an undergraduate with a STEM major leaning toward business, a future entrepreneur looking for marketing skills at a start-up, or a public health administrator honing managerial know-how.

Early and robust engagement, communication, and guidance are the keys to helping more women move forward. While women candidates are up against entrenched patterns of gender disparity in business and business education, we know that there are good reasons for schools to persist and persevere in their objective to reach gender equity. Indeed, many business schools and industry partners like GMAC have been adapting and evolving their recruitment approaches to be more targeted. With a deeper understanding of motivations and an emphasis on communicating what resonates, I remain hopeful that more women will feel empowered to take the next step toward their ideal of career success, knowing that the business school community is building bridges to support and propel them further.

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References

¹ Application Trends Survey Summary Report 2023, Graduate Management Admission Council, https://www.gmac.com/market-intelligence-and-research/research-library/admissions-and-application-trends/2023-application-trends-survey-report.
² “The Majority of U.S. Medical Students Are Women, New Data Show.” Association of American Medical Colleges, December 9, 2019: https://www.aamc.org/news/press-releases/majority-us-medical-students-are-women-new-data-show. Krinsky, Susan L. “The Incoming Class of 2021 — The Most Diverse Law School Class in History.” Law School Admission Council, December 15, 2021: https://www.lsac.org/blog/incoming-class-2021-most-diverse-law-school-class-history.
³ Purva Khera, Sumiko Ogawa, Ratna Sahay, and Mahima Vasishth, “The Digital Gender Gap,” International Monetary Fund, December 2022: imf.org/en/Publications/fandd/issues/2022/12/the-digital-gender-gap-khera-ogawa-sahay-vasishth.

⁴ Prospective Student Survey Summary Report 2024, Graduate Management Admission Council, https://www.gmac.com/market-intelligence-and-research/research-library/admissions-and-application-trends/2024-gmac-prospective-students-survey-summary-report

⁵ “The 17 Goals.” United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. https://sdgs.un.org/goals.
⁶ Corporate Recruiters Survey Summary Report 2023, Graduate Management Admission Council, https://www.gmac.com/market-intelligence-and-research/research-library/employment-outlook/2023-corporate-recruiters-survey-summary-report
⁷ Renewables 2022, International Energy Agency, December 6, 2022, https://www.iea.org/news/renewable-power-s-growth-is-being-turbocharged-as-countries-seek-to-strengthen-energy-security. 2023 KPMG US Technology Survey Report, 2023, https://kpmg.com/us/en/articles/2023/us-tech-survey-2023.html

⁸ Ibid, p.4.
⁹ Corporate Recruiters Survey Summary Report 2024, Graduate Management Admission Council, https://www.gmac.com/market-intelligence-and-research/research-library/employment-outlook/2024-corporate-recruiters-survey-report
¹⁰ Ibid, p.1.
¹¹ “College Applications Are on the Rise: What to Know,” U.S. News & World Report, June 21, 2022, https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/articles/college-applications-are-on-the-rise-what-to-know