Reports from a range of sources indicate that MBA application volume continues to climb, outpacing previous seasons both in the United States and around the globe.
According to Wharton’s MBA Admissions Blog, the Philadelphia school received more than 7,000 applications this year. Because of the unusually high volume, “we were forced to deny many fine applicants who would do well at Wharton and who would contribute to the community,” the Admissions Committee wrote. In fact, because so many candidates were turned away this year, Wharton hosted a series of online chats this summer about the reapplication process, the last of which took place earlier this week. The chats were part of an effort to provide tips to applicants hoping to try again, since Wharton is unable to provide individualized feedback to the applicants it doesn’t accept. Boston-area schools, too, report a significant uptick in applications this year. According to an article in the Boston Herald, Harvard Business School (HBS) is reporting that applications for this fall’s incoming class surged by almost 16 percent, to 8,600. Deidre Leopold, director of MBA admissions at HBS, attributes the increase to the current economic downturn. Two years ago, when the economy was not as bad, HBS saw an applicant volume increase of 10 percent, she told the Herald. And at a recruitment conference in New York in the spring, she reports that more than half those in the “full to capacity” audience cited uncertainties in their economic lives as part of what was making them consider an MBA. According to the Herald report, other Boston-area schools are also reporting double-digit increases over last year, with MIT’s Sloan School of Management showing the largest jump: 28 percent. Test-taking volume stats from the Graduate Management Admissions Council, which administers the GMAT exam, tell much the same story. Year-to-date figures through July 31, 2008, reveal a steady increase both in the number of people registering for and taking the exam. Worldwide, test registration volume rose to 167,692, an 11.69 percent increase over the number of registrations recorded during the same period in 2007 and the largest volume on record for any years studied. Testing volume, meanwhile, rose to 140,638 worldwide, an 11.98 percent increase over last year and also the largest recorded volume for any years previously studied. | 
