In a recent interview with CNBC, the dean of UCLA’s Anderson School of Management cited a silver lining in the tough economic conditions that today greet many MBA students.
“The economy has required people to be a bit more flexible and a bit broader about the industries that they look at,” Dean Judy Olian told CNBC’s Nicole Lapin. “Instead of just looking at corporate finance in the financial services world, they go into corporate finance in the industries that are growing and that are stronger,” she continued.
Growing industries that are providing flexible MBA students with job opportunities now – especially in California – include entertainment, healthcare and technology, Olian told CNBC.
In fact, California’s economy is very diverse and several sectors are experiencing growth right now, Anderson professor and economic forecaster Jerry Nicholsberg added. “We’re seeing growth in exports, we’re seeing growth in manufacturing, we’re seeing growth in technical services and innovation and green technology, so there’s kind of a whole variety of areas where demand has picked up and soon we’re going to see new job growth,” he said.
Olian went on to cite strong internship placement statistics for Anderson’s most recent MBA class as an encouraging indicator of future job growth. “Internships for our students – for everyone – were much better than last year,” she said, noting that smart companies are snapping up the best talent now rather than waiting until after a boom hits to hire.
Olian’s encouraging anecdotal information is supported by recent statistics out of the Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC), according to the CNBC report. The most recent GMAC Corporate Recruiters Survey found that 55 percent of respondents planned to hire new MBA graduates in 2010, up from 50 percent the year before.
According to Olian, the relative success Anderson students are having in securing internships this year over last foreshadows improvements in the health of the economy as a whole. “This is a place where it’s happening before the rest,” she told CNBC.
Click here to view a video of Lapin’s roundtable discussion with Olian, Nicholsberg and a current UCLA Anderson student.
Read the full article: UCLA Anderson School of Management Dean Credits Recession with Teaching MBAs to Be More Flexible