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GMAT Application Trends 2021
Around 18,00 students have shown interest in the GMAT application trends as shown in the new GMAC survey. The survey shows that more than half of the prospective students affirm that admission exams improve reliability, fairness, and transparency in evaluating the students of B-schools.
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The annual survey of GMAT application trends shows the current market and the volume of applications from diverse regions. The students who are considering business master’s programs show that the journeys of domestic and international candidates vary in the context of pandemic-induced uncertainty. This suggests that business schools need to design data-informed strategies to balance growth in GMAT applications with the quality and diversity of enrolled students.
GMAT Application Trends in 2021
The GMAC survey shows the decline in the proportion of candidates applying for overseas Graduate Management Education. The report claims that they are concerned about the impact of COVID19 on their pursuit of GME in 2021. Also, the demand for GME in 2021 has increased as candidates show a willingness to explore different paths to achieve their career goals. This report identifies three notable drivers of growth in demand for GME which are employability, flexibility, and regional mobility.
- Employability: Skills gap triggers consideration of GME for job market competitiveness
- Flexibility: Flexibility expands the consideration of online learning among women
- Regional Mobility: Mobility restrictions drive consideration of alternatives closer to home
Reconfiguration of the enrollment funnel
Tracking Diversification of Applicants
The GMAC report is based on data collected between July and December 2020 from a total of 2,515 individuals worldwide who indicated plans to enroll in a GME program in 2021.
This report also illustrates the diverse candidate journeys, emphasizing variations by putting forward the study destination (domestic vs. international) and wants program type (MBA vs. business master’s).
- MBA-Domestic: Candidates want to enroll in an MBA program within their country of citizenship. For instance., an Indian citizen indicating a preference to pursue an MBA program in India.
- MBA-International: Candidates favor enrolling in an MBA program outside their country of citizenship. For instance, an Indian citizen indicating a preference to pursue an MBA program in the US.
- Business Master's-Domestic: Candidates prefer to enroll in a business master’s program within their country of citizenship. E.g., an Indian citizen indicating a preference to pursue a business master’s program in Germany.
- Business Master's-International: Candidates wanting to enroll in a business master’s program outside their country of citizenship. E.g., an Indian citizen indicating a preference to pursue a business master’s program in the US.
Applicants concerned about the Covid-19 pandemic
The students preferring to pursue GME in 2021 is seen that the level of concern about the impact of COVID-19 has been declining over time. The proportion of respondents has declined from 41 percent in July to 33 percent in December.
Specifically, 41 percent of international candidates planning to pursue a business master’s program report that they are very or extremely concerned about the impact of COVID-19 as compared to 27 percent of domestic candidates.
Candidates aspiring to pursue GME 2021
The pandemic situation has expanded the number of students considering GME as they discovered a lack of competitive skills in a job market. Overall, more than one-third of the prospective candidates (37%) reported that they wanted to apply for a job but lacked the required skills and/or degrees to be competitive. To be specific, Business Master’s-Domestic candidates were most likely to report a skill gap (50%), perhaps because they had zero or insufficient work experience to demonstrate skills for the job they wanted.
Here is the chart showing students considering GME:
Gender-specific applicants for GMAT
These days women are embracing online learning at a higher level than men. Despite the challenges, many female candidates recognized the need to invest in GME for career advantage and were willing to adapt their plans to obtain the degree.
Here is the percentage of candidates reporting willingness to complete more than 30 percent of their graduate business degree online due to COVID-19
| Gender | MBA-Domestic | MBA-International | Business Master’s Domestic | Business Master’s International |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Female | 60% | 30% | 66% | 43% |
| Male | 52% | 24% | 59% | 38% |
There is a certain percentage of students who strongly disagree with the fact that online classes provide the same importance and campus placement is done as the on-campus classes.
| Gender | MBA-Domestic | MBA-International | Business Master’s Domestic | Business Master’s International |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Female | 17% | 24% | 10% | 20% |
| Male | 24% | 35% | 24% | 29% |
Different aspirants pursuing GME
Around 37% of all candidates report that they are prompted to apply for a graduate business degree as they wish to apply for the job but they lack the appropriate skills to be competitive. Here is a table showing different triggers for pursuing GME:
| Triggers | Overall | MBA-Domestic | MBA-International | Business Master’s Domestic | Business Master’s International |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I always planned to pursue a graduate business education at this point | 58% | 52% | 61% | 48% | 65% |
| Wanted to apply for a job, but lacked required skill, and/or degree to competitive | 37% | 39% | 33% | 50% | 36% |
| Convenient time to go to school | 30% | 37% | 26% | 35% | 23% |
| I realized I lacked specific knowledge in my current job | 21% | 18% | 24% | 24% | 21% |
| I had the financial resources to apply | 20% | 22% | 18% | 29% | 19% |
Growth or Decay in the Number of Candidates in Different Countries and Courses
From the survey, it is undeniable that the number of candidates aspiring for an overseas business degree has decreased a little bit. Check the details in the graph below here:
GMAT 2024 : 27 Answered QuestionsView All
Ans. Generally speaking anything above 750 is a good score for admission to IBS Hyderabad. But even a high GMAT score does not guarantee admission to IBS Hyderabad because the shortlisting is profile-based. GMAT score is just a part of the entire selection process. You need to improvise your profile by working on other aspects also like essays profile academics extracurricular activities Academics: Your 12th class marks graduation grades, post-graduation, and certification scores along with the GMAT cutoff is considered in your academic profile. Leadership: The leadership skills of the aspirants are tested on the basis of their prior achievements and roles. Personal attributes: This comprises your personal qualities like hobbies, talents, and extracurricular skills. Aspirants from diverse work experiences, cultures, and educational backgrounds are welcomed at IBS Hyderabad. So along with preparing well for GMAT, give importance to these parameters as well to increase your chances of admission. Read more
Ans. In case you are enquiring about the CAT percentile let me clarify that ISB Hyderabad does not take into consideration CAT scores. It accepts GMAT/GRE scores only. Most importantly, the ISB Shortlisting process is profile-based. This means even with a lower percentile you can manage to get shortlisted provided you have an excellent profile. There is no fixed cutoff for GMAT. However, a 700+ GMAT score isn't a must-have for ISB if your application is strong in other areas. According to an ISB spokesperson, candidates were admitted to the 2021 cohort with scores as low as 580, and as high as 780. So the GMAT score range for ISB is 580-780. Read more
Ans. Yes, it certainly is worth paying a hefty fee of 30k for GMAT coaching at Crack ISB Hyderabad. The quality of trainers and the certainty of admission is what draw the candidates here. While there are many institutes that specialize in training for the CAT, very few institutes offer training for GMAT. Crack ISB Hyderabad has many features that have made it so popular and demanding among GMAT aspirants The peer group is a productive and effective group discussion is possible The institute gives the admission essay reviews free of cost while most institutes charge around 20-25k The quality of editing is much better at this Institute mainly because the faculty comprises alumni of top B Schools So it’s better to pay more for quality education than pay less or the same for substandard education. But remember an Institute can just prepare you for your entrance exam. It’s upon you to put in maximum effort and achieve your goals. Read more
Ans. There is hardly any B-school in India that accepts GMAT scores for full-time MBA. IIMs, FMS, XLRI, JBIMS, IIFT, MDI, etc. are some of the institutions that accept GMAT scores. However, students applying through a foreign national quota or NRI quota are eligible for GMAT score. ISB on the other hand accepts the GMAT for its full-time program MBA program. Here is the list of some B-Schools that accepts GMAT scores in India XLRI, Jamshedpur XIM, Bhubaneswar VIT Business School TISS, Mumbai TERI School of Advanced Sciences, TERI University TASMAC, Pune TAPMI, Manipal School of Management, Udaipur School of Management, NMIMS, Mumbai School of Management, International Institute of Management This is why most students go for CAT, XAT, SNAP, and other management exams for admission in MBA. Only foreign nationals or students with NRI Quota can apply through GMAT. Read more
Ans. Yes, ISB Hyderabad’s PGP program requires a minimum of 2 years of full-time paid work experience. This criteria came into force on 31st March 2016 and is still a necessity. For candidates who lack in this aspect, there is a back door entry called the Early Entry Option or the EEOs. Under this, you can apply right away, go through the selection process, and receive the admission offer but join only after working for 2 years. This can also be referred to as Deferred admission. Read more
Ans. More than 140 Business Schools in India accept GMAT scores. Here is a list of popular B-School that accept GMAT scores. IIM Ahmedabad (PGPX) IIM Bangalore (EPGP) IIM Calcutta (PGPEx) IIM Indore (EPGP) IIM Kozhikode (EPGP) IIM Lucknow (IPMAX) XLRI Jamshedpur MDI Gurgaon IMT Ghaziabad IIFT Delhi FMS Deli ISB Hyderabad/Mohali Many other reputed B-School across the country also accept GMAT scores. Read more
Ans. Very few universities in Canada offer MBA without GMAT scores. They will consider other factors as eligibility criteria such as work experience for selection. York University’s Schulich of School of Business, McMaster University’s Degroote School of Business are some of the most reputed business schools in Canada that offer MBA without GMAT. Other than these, other universities offering MBA without GMAT are New York Institute of Technology, Thompson Rivers University, Lakehead University, Wilfrid Laurier University. You have the option to apply for executive MBAs without a GMAT score, too. Read more
Ans. IIM Shillong accepts GMAT scores of only for International students for the PGP flagship program The Executive PGP program For International students who are targeting the PGP flagship program, the cutoff is as follows Category SSC Percentage HSC percentage General 80 80 EWS 80 80 DA 50 50 ST 50 50 SC 55 55 So a good GMAT score for an International student is anything above 700. For the Executive program too, a GMAT score of 700+ is a good target. If your profile is average you can target a higher GMAT score. Read more
Ans. There are many business schools in India that require GMAT scores at the time of admission. Some of the top business schools with requiring GMAT scores in India are: Institute Name GMAT Score ISB, Hyderabad & Mohali 730 or higher S.P. Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai 550 IIM Ahmedabad 711 School of Management, NMIMS Mumbai 600 IIM Bangalore 710 Great Lakes Institute of Management 600 IIM Calcutta 701 XLRI Jamshedpur 710 IIM Lucknow 680 IMT (All campuses) 720 IIM Indore 700 ICFAI Business School (Hyderabad & Mumbai) 700 IIM Kozhikode 700 A few other institutes include - MDI Gurgaon, FMS Delhi, Sunstone Business School Noida, ISB Indore, and more. Read more
Ans. I know this decision is a bit difficult to make. What you need to keep in mind is that these two colleges should not be compared to other great IIMs or even ISBs. Those B Schools are at another level and cannot be on par with Kashipur or Raipur. To facilitate a better decision, I will mention the circumstances of these B Schools then you can choose after considering all options. IIM Indore and IIM Kashipur: Both these colleges are not worth a year drop as they will help you earn only an extra 1.5-2 LPA. Moreover, in the coming years, Kashipur and Raipur will have almost the same brand value as that Indore and Kozhikode. IIM Ahmedabad, Calcutta, Lucknow and Bangalore: All these top IIMs are definitely worth a year's drop provided that you are confident enough to cope with the cutoff. All these IIMs consider your academics while selecting so if that is your reason for the year drop I don’t think it will help. There is no surety of admission even after a percentile of 100. ISB: This one is at a whole different level and is in the category of elite B Schools like UCB, NYU, HBS, etc. The top-notch faculty offers amazing pedagogy at relatively low fees. CAT is sufficient for IIMs. But if you want to go for ISB, a work experience of 4+ years and a GMAT are a must. Read more
*The article might have information for the previous academic years, which will be updated soon subject to the notification issued by the University/College
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