2018 Forté Foundation Data Reveals Women’s MBA Enrollment at 38 Percent
2018 was a big year for female MBA students. According to the latest membership school data from the Forté Foundation, women’s enrollment at full-time MBA programs reached 38 percent on average. In addition, one Forté school reached gender parity (50 percent male/female enrollment) for the first time, and more than one-third of schools reached 40 percent enrollment.
“While the number of Fortune 500 women CEOs has declined in the last year, it’s heartening to see women’s enrollment in business school continues to increase, albeit at a slower pace than last year,” Elissa Sangster, Forté Foundation CEO, said in a press release. “We continue to aim for 40% women’s enrollment by 2020 at our member schools as an MBA provides an economic mobility engine for women, and helps build the pipeline of women leaders. And countless research shows that having more women in senior leadership improves corporate financial performance.”
Key Forté Foundation Statistics
- Over the last five years, from 2014, female MBA enrollment at Forté schools has steadily risen with 19 out of 52 schools reaching the 40 percent mark this year. That’s a significant improvement from just three schools at 40 percent in 2014.
- The USC Marshall School of Business was the first Forté school to achieve gender parity this year with 52 percent women. Three other schools got close: Northwestern Kellogg (46 percent), Dartmouth Tuck (45 percent), and Imperial College Business School (45 percent).
- More than half of Forté schools (29 schools) reached 35 percent female MBA enrollment.
A Few Surprises
Interesting enough, some of the Forté numbers were a reversal of last year mainly when it came to international MBA programs. While the U.S. school enrollment went up by close to 1 percent (38.7 percent in 2018 from 37.8 percent in 2017), the opposite was true for Forté schools abroad. Those schools saw a decline of a little over 1 percent (going from 36.2 percent last fall to 35.1 percent this fall). Whereas last year, international schools saw considerable gains in female enrollment with an almost 3.5 percent increase. However, overall, female MBA enrollment in the U.S. and abroad increased slightly to 37.8 percent from 37.4 percent last year.
To learn more about what’s going on at the Forté Foundation and to see how it’s impacting female MBA enrollment around the globe, read the original press release.
This article has been edited and republished with permissions by its original source, Clear Admit.
Who are the Most Important Female Leaders in Business School Today?
Being a woman in business isn’t easy. While the industry works to improve gender equality, there is still a long way to go. Currently, women only hold 18.1 percent of directorships at publicly held companies. According to the latest report from MSCI, a research and analytics firm for investors, it could be until 2027 before women fill 30 percent of those roles.
And women in business school face similar struggles. Just five years ago, only three of the top 25 schools in the United States had 40 percent or more women enrolled in its MBA programs. And while, currently, nearly half have reached that mark, gender parity is still a ways off. Part of the struggle has to do with female leaders in business school. Currently, there’s only one female dean at a top-tier business school, and there are few other women who’ve made it to the top of their business schools as deans.
The challenges faced by female business school leaders are myriad, which is why we felt it was so important to recognize those women who’ve become prominent leaders in business schools around the world. Continue reading…
Finding Your Dream MBA Career at Barclays
For over 300 years, Barclays has been one of the leading international banks for both consumer corporate investments. MBA candidates are drawn to Barclays not only for its stature in the global finance industry but also for the vast array of professional opportunities it offers. Within business banking, corporate banking, customer banking solutions, marketing, investment banking, and technology career paths, Barclays’ training, mentorship, networking, and travel opportunities are often unparalleled in the financial industry.
Barclays’ MBA Recruitment Program
At Barclays, one major key to continued growth and success consists of building strong interdisciplinary business networks. As part of Barclays’ ongoing development opportunities, the company maintains a robust campus recruiting system. Barclays makes a point to develop relationships with their future prospects as early as possible in their educational and professional careers.
For students pursuing an MBA, Barclays offers the MBA Ambition Diversity Program, a summer internship program dedicated to talented and motivated MBA candidates. Within the MBA Ambition Diversity Program, Barclays initially gives a candidate a “condensed version of our on-campus recruiting process during the summer before you start your MBA, culminating in interviews at our New York office.” Successful candidates will then be offered an internship position the following summer after the first year of business school is completed. Once a candidate has been accepted, Barclays offers a fellowship program that “provides $45,000 toward first-year tuition and academic expenses.”
Barclays prides itself in seeking out women, men, and non-binary individuals of all backgrounds to cultivate a diverse environment for employees to learn from one another. The idea is that this multifaceted workspace will help employees expand their cultural perspective as they embark on a career in global finance.
As of October 2017, Barclays has begun to offer free accommodation for graduates taking job interviews in London, Birmingham, and Manchester. This is for all graduates—not only Barclays applicants.
The Barclays Career
In 2016, Barclays’ head of banking associate recruitment, Kristi Robson, explained in an interview that MBAs are commonly hired into their banking division where Barclays has its largest intake. Banking interns and employees generally move into a product or coverage role within Equity Capital Markets or Technology, Media & Telecommunication, for example. Robson explains, “We do hire a small number of MBAs into our research business but this is dependent on business need.”
According to the 2017 WSO Investment Banking Industry Report, first-year analysts earn between $70,000 and $150,000 USD based on experience and by year three average between $120,000 and $350,000. “At the analyst level, it is not uncommon to work between 80 to 120-hour weeks at some firms. Most analysts start in the summer and receive their first investment banking analyst bonus around June or July, approximately one year after the analyst starts working. Analysts also often receive a signing bonus from $5,000 to $20,000, as well as a moving bonus if they are transferring laterally to a different bank.” For these reasons and more, Barclays strives to provide their candidates with every opportunity to grow professionally.
Education Opportunities
The following London MBA programs are reputable feeders for roles at Barclays. They are all remarkable schools for distinct reasons but each provides a formidable mix of business education and valuable alumni networks:
- Ashridge Executive Education
- Cass Business School – City University London
- Cranfield School of Management
- Henley Business School – University of Reading
- Imperial College Business School – Imperial College London
- Judge Business School – University of Cambridge
- London Business School
- Saïd Business School – University of Oxford
If you’re driven and wish to work for a large organization that still believes in “small-business”-style relationships and offers unique opportunities to develop business skill-sets and global perspectives, then Barclays could be the perfect fit.
New Dean of the Imperial College Business School Talks Innovation
On August 1, Professor Francisco Veloso celebrated his first day as dean of the Imperial College Business School. To kick off his tenure, he spoke about his appointment, experience and business ideas with Laura Singleton, the Media and PR Officer at Imperial College. His thoughts were captured in an article on the school website. Continue reading…
Imperial College MBA Graduates Offer Valuable Advice to Incoming Students
Getting accepted into an MBA program and graduating an MBA program are two very different experiences. When it comes to the former, gathering information is the most important thing you can do. You have little to no experience to speak of, and every bit of knowledge helps. For the latter, you’re walking away with a wealth of experience and knowledge that you probably wish you could have shared with your prior self.
Your Guide To London’s Executive MBA Programs
Even after many years on-the-job learning, many business professionals may choose to pursue a formal advanced business education. With the chance to earn an Executive MBA, experienced professionals can pursue a degree more tailored to their particular experience level and career goals. EMBA graduates may find other benefits as well, including a 11.6 percent salary increase after graduation. Other tangible benefits can be seen in the form of career growth and increased leadership opportunities, development of a global business mindset and the establishment of a strong peer network.
