MBA Trends Report: Most in Demand MBAs? Highest Salaries and

The latest QS MBA Jobs & Salary Trends report is out. If you were to summarize the report’s content as a whole with a thumbs up or thumbs down, it would be thumbs up.

I’ve listed some of the key findings below. You can read the full report here.

MBA Demand

· In the States, MBA hiring was up 9 percent last year.

· The hottest MBA market is Asia, followed by Russia, then Latin America, and the U.S.

What Industries are Hiring?

· “MBA consulting jobs are forecast to be back at record levels by 2011, with a 19% jump in demand in 2010, followed by a substantial 37% forecast jump in demand in 2011.”

·“MBA jobs in financial services won’t be far behind with a 22% actual increase in 2010 and a further forecast increase of 11% in 2011.”

· Some industries do not have a good outlook, with MBA jobs in pharmaceuticals and healthcare set to decline in 2010. MBA jobs in telecoms will also fall by 4% in 2010 but then recover in 2011, though this decline is concentrated in the USA, with several markets showing growth in telecoms demand for MBAs.

Employers Want

· MBAs with three to five years experience are most in demand. There’s also demand for MBAs with over five years of experience, less so for MBAs with less than three years experience.

·Soft skills over technical skills

Salaries

· “Around the world, MBA salaries have slipped by an average of 5% in 2010 compared to 2009. Despite the world emerging from the financial crisis, an upturn in MBA salaries has yet to feed through in the market for MBAs.”

· “Pharmaceuticals and healthcare reported the highest average base salary this year at $92,264. Financial services companies are paying salaries of $90,926 in 2010, ahead of consulting firms which average $87,627, technology firms which average $85,815.”

Bonuses

· Energy is tops: $73,300, on average; Financial services: $39,323; Recruitment services $29,700. The lowest bonuses are in the public sector, utilities, retail and construction.

[QS]