An Ivy League US B-School educated was considered as being from a different world. But off late, US B-Schools are losing their sheen. This fact can be judged from the trends in GMAT Test and worldwide B-School rankings.
For the first time in the history of GMAT Exam, the number of non-US GMAT Test takers was more in 2011. The total proportion of non-US GMAT takers reached 55 percent. As per GMAC, although, U.S. remains the most popular study destination with 77% of the total GMAT Scores sent to US B-Schools in 2011, the share of total GMAT scores sent to U.S. decreased from 83% in 2007. This is also supported by the fact that in 2007, 39% of the GMAT Scores were sent to US from Western Europe, but this nosedived to 27% in 2011. The main reason behind this decrease is the growing up of quality business schools around the world making wider and geographically diverse choices available to management studies aspirants.
Other reason for concern is availability of a number of substitutes for an MBA or easy access to other management-related degree. For example, one year masters degree is gaining quite popularity among college graduates with little or no work experience. But, no doubt the job market for such students is not as rosy as for those from regular MBA.
The sub-prime crisis of 2008 raised fingers at the studies in B-Schools. Even the current recession which has engulfed the whole world is being blamed as misdeed of MBAs. A recent report from the European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD), titled The Unfulfilled Promise of Management Education?, includes some of the criticisms of business schools, including that business schools are too market driven, theyre guilty of propagating and teaching amoral theories, that their emphasis on analytical methodology and science . . . is misplaced, and that management research has fallen short of good scientific traditions. The report also dwells upon the stakeholders in management education students, business/organization, followed by employers. But in actual, B-School education is influenced by faculty, then business/organization, lastly by students.
But the reality is that the need for management education is unlikely to go away anytime soon. Moreover, the B-Schools are making all out efforts to shed away the blame. They are changing the curriculum and introducing courses which can sensitize the students to social issues.
