| College | Percentage |
|---|---|
| University of Rochester, Simon Business School | 44% |
| Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management | 43% |
| University of California – Berkeley, Haas School of Business | 43% |
| University of Pennsylvania, The Wharton School | 43% |
| University of Chicago, Booth School of Business | 42% |
| Dartmouth College, Tuck School of Business | 42% |
| Harvard Business School | 41% |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management | 41% |
| George Washington University, School of Business | 40% |
| Michigan State University, Eli Broad Graduate College of Business | 40% |
| Stanford University, Graduate School of Business | 40% |
| Washington University in St. Louis, Olin Business School | 40% |
| Yale School of Management | 40% |
Female college students have outnumbered male students for more than 35 years. Even when college enrollment dips overall, female enrollment always seems to rise to the top. According to the Institute of Education Sciences’ (IES) National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), females accounted for the majority of college students in fall 2015. Some 11.5 million females attended, compared with 8.7 million males. Women have also outpaced men in overall degree attainment in recent years.
This trend is expected to continue for years to come, and quite a few male-dominated degree programs are heading in the same direction. Take science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) for example. Around 40-45 percent of STEM degrees were conferred to women in 2012, and 58 percent of biology degrees were earned by women that same year. Women also make up the majority of applicants in master of marketing and communications (62%), master of accounting (57%), and master in management (55%) programs.
Another area has also seen tremendous growth in female enrollment—business. Even more impressive is business enrollment figures for women are on the rise at some of the nation’s most elite B-Schools. According to a 2010 Forbes report, women received 44 percent of MBAs in 2007, up from 39 percent a decade earlier. This translated to a 75 percent increase over 10 years. Between 2011 and 2016, full-time MBA enrollment for women increased from 32.3 percent to 36.2 percent, and at the best business schools women now make up an average 40 percent of MBA students. At some schools, women are the majority of MBA students.
Here’s how much things have changed. In 1963, eight female students enrolled in the Harvard MBA Class of 1965. In 1995, women made up 28 percent of Harvard MBA students. By 2010, they made up 38 percent. Today, that figure stands at 41 percent. Female enrollment at The Wharton School at University of Pennsylvania was 32 percent in 2007. Enrollment rose to 40 percent in 2011. Today? Female enrollment at the school stands at 43 percent.
Take a look at the top B-Schools with female enrollment of 40 percent or greater:
University of Rochester, Simon Business School – 44%
Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management – 43%
University of California – Berkeley, Haas School of Business – 43%
University of Pennsylvania, The Wharton School – 43%
University of Chicago, Booth School of Business – 42%
Dartmouth College, Tuck School of Business – 42%
Harvard Business School – 41%
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management – 41%
George Washington University, School of Business – 40%
Michigan State University, Eli Broad Graduate College of Business – 40%
Stanford University, Graduate School of Business – 40%
Washington University in St. Louis, Olin Business School – 40%
Yale School of Management – 40%
These B-Schools had female enrollment of 50 percent or greater:
University of North Carolina—Greensboro, Bryan School of Business and Economics - 65.9%
Duquesne University, John F. Donahue Graduate School of Business - 65.6%
Truman State University, School of Business - 63.6%
University of California—Berkeley, Haas School of Business - 63.4%
Howard University, School of Business - 61.4%
Claremont Graduate University, Drucker School of Management - 58.2%
University of Tulsa, Collins College of Business - 54.8%
San Diego State University, College of Business Administration - 54.3%
Louisiana State University—Baton Rouge, EJ Ourso College of Business - 52.9%
University of California—Riverside, Anderson Graduate School of Management - 51.9%
Rutgers, Rutgers Business School – 51%
So, despite the fact that 63 percent of the women on Fortune’s Most Powerful Women in Business list (MPW 2014) made it there without an MBA, why are women flocking to business school? The reasons are numerous. Some say a weakened economy led to their decision to pursue an MBA, while others were attracted to the flexibility of the degree. Increased efforts to attract female students have contributed the jump in enrollment as well, along with women’s desire to break into the nonprofit sector or to start their own business. In fact, female entrepreneurship is at an all-time high with more than eight million U.S. businesses currently majority women-owned, accounting for more than $3 trillion in sales annually.
Sources
Anderson, Nick. "The Gender Factor in College Admissions: Do Men or Women Have an Edge?" Washington Post. The Washington Post, 26 Mar. 2014. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
"Back to School Statistics." Fast Facts. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences (IES), National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
Davis, Elliot. "A 5 Year Comparison of MBA/Master's Specialist Degree Program Disciplines." AACSB Data and Research Blog. The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) International, 01 Sept. 2015. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
Goudreau, Jenna, and Ruchika Tulshyan. "Why More Women Are Heading To Business School." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 16 Apr. 2010. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
Moran, Gwen. "Women Now Make Up 40% of Students at Top MBA Programs." Fortune. Time Inc. Network, 09 Nov. 2015. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
"Most Powerful Women 2014." Fortune. Time Inc. Network, 18 Sept. 2014. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
Nobel, Carmen. "HBS Cases: Women MBAs at Harvard Business School." HBS Working Knowledge - Research & Ideas. Harvard Business School, 06 Mar. 2013. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
Noyes, Katherine. "For Women MBA Students, It's Getting Better." Fortune. Time Inc. Network, 13 Oct. 2014. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
Olson, Dr. Randall S. "Percentage of Bachelor’s Degrees Conferred to Women, by Major (1970-2012)." Randal Olson. Dr. Randal S. Olson, 14 June 2014. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
Peck, Emily. "Finally, More Women Are Going To Business School." Huffington Post Business. Huffington Post, 09 Nov. 2015. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
Smith-Barrow, Delece. "Business Schools That Enroll the Most Female MBA Students." U.S. News & World Report Education. U.S. News & World Report, 27 July 2015. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
The Economic Impact of Women-Owned Businesses in the United States. PDF. McLean: Center for Women's Business Research, 2009. Web.
"Women Entrepreneurs - Women Business Owner Statistics." Entrepreneur. Entrepreneur Media, Inc., n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2016.
