How Gender Parity Looks On Business School Campuses

Last year, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania made history by enrolling more women than men in its 2023 MBA class. It was the first of the seven elite B-schools to have a class consisting of majority women. This year, Wharton repeated the feat.

Bloomberg recently examined gender parity among top-tier B-schools and explored what Wharton’s majority female MBA programs means for other schools.

REPRESENTATION IS IMPROVING

While B-schools still have a long way to go on reaching true gender parity, many have made an effort to improve over the years.

The Forte Foundation, a nonprofit advocacy and advancement organization, has been tracking gender parity among B-schools for years. When Forte first started, 28% of MBA classes in the US were comprised of women. Just last year, however, that rate grew to about 40% among the 56 schools that Forte tracks. Elissa Sangster, CEO of Forte Foundation, says the chances of being the only women on a team in an MBA program today is “very low.”

ALLYSHIP AND SUPPORT

One of the ways business schools are actively trying to improve the community amongst campus is through allyship and support groups. Wharton was one of the first top-ranked B-schools to add a male ally club. It also helps that in 2020 Wharton appointed the school’s first woman and first person of color, Erika James, to run the MBA program.

“I’m excited, and I do recognize the historic nature of it, and I’m humbled by the opportunity,” James said in 2020. “Frankly, I believe my gender is the least of what I have to offer. Because I’m a woman, I bring a perspective on decision-making and how I engage in the community.”

GENDER PAY GAP

While more women today are pursuing an MBA than years past, men with a business degree still earn more than women with the same credentials. According to a report by the Center on Education and the Workforce, while women had 43% of the master’s degrees among the study’s participants, they earned a median $75,600 a year, or less than the $90,000 for men. It’s a study that aligns with the 83% gender pay gap in the US.

“It’s daunting if you’re a woman to get an MBA and it’s frustrating when you get it and you make less than an equally qualified man,” Martin Van Der Werf, director of editorial and education policy at Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce, says. “That can dissuade people from pursuing these degrees.”

Sources: Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal

Next Page:3 Reasons To Write An Optional Essay

3 Reasons to Write an Optional Essay

Is the optional essay really optional?

It depends, experts say.

“For some prospective business school students, the optional essay is a chance to explain any shortcomings in your application,” Lana Silanteva, an mba.com featured contributor and the Co-Founder and Head of Verbal at 700+CLUB, says. “For others, the optional essay can help set you apart from other applicants and strengthen your candidacy.”

Stacy Blackman, founder of Stacy Blackman Consulting, recently highlighted a few situations where an optional essay might make sense to include.

WEAK GRADES

An optional essay can help explain academic shortcomings, such as a low undergraduate GPA.

“Briefly explain the situation in the optional business school application essay and focus the balance of your essay on looking forward,” Blackman says. “Show what you have done recently to prove your skills and intelligence. For example, if you have a new, higher GMAT score or took classes in calculus or statistics, you have a solid case for improved academics.”

EMPLOYMENT GAPS

If you have month-long gaps in your resume, an optional essay can provide some explanation as to how you spent that time.

“Did you use that time off to volunteer in Guatemala or care for an ailing parent? Perhaps you used the time away to focus on an entrepreneurial dream, unencumbered by the 9-to-5 grind,” Blackman says. “Ideally, you can point to additional education, training, volunteering, or traveling that you engaged in while unemployed.”

ADDITIONAL INFO

While your application as a whole should tell a full-picture story of yourself, there may be situations where additional information can be included in an optional essay.

“If you are a reapplicant, the optional essay is the ideal place to explain what you have done to strengthen your case for admission since your last application,” Blackman says. “Think of things such as receiving a promotion, which would signal career development and leadership. Even if you don’t have a clear-cut story to describe, you can use this space to explain how you have improved your thinking, career goals, or fit.”

Sources: Stacy Blackman Consulting, mba.com

Next Page: Harvard Business School announces new fund for educational diversity.

Harvard Business School

Harvard Business School Announces New Fund for Educational Diversity

Harvard Business School (HBS) has announced a new fund promoting educational diversity and opportunity in business leadership. The Loring Family MBA Pathways Fund will support activities that make the HBS MBA program more accessible to a wider range of students.

The fund is made possible by Ian K. Loring (HBS MBA 1993), a senior managing director and executive chair of Haveli Investments, and Isabelle P. Loring, an active volunteer with nonprofits.

“We are deeply grateful to Ian and Isabelle Loring for their ongoing dedication to the School, which has enabled us to provide scholarships to talented students from a wide array of backgrounds and experiences,” HBS Dean Srikant Datar says in a press release. “This new gift broadens their potential future impact by giving young people an opportunity to see how, through the pursuit of a business education, they can become leaders who will make a difference in the world.”

SUMMER VENTURE IN MANAGEMENT

One of the programs supported by the new fund is Summer Venture in Management (SVMP)—a one-week residential educational program for rising and graduating college seniors designed to increase diversity and opportunity in business education.

Each year, SVMP brings together 180 college students—at no cost to students—to experience HBS for a week during the summer through intensive case studies, career sessions, and interactions with current students and alumni. Additionally, SVMP alumni who later enter the HBS MBA Program will be eligible for an additional $20,000 scholarship on top of their need-based scholarship and will be known as Loring Fellows.

Other initiatives supported by the fund include expanding outreach to first-generation college graduates and prospective students; launching the Forward Fellowship, which offers additional funding to students who provide financial support to family members while attending business school; revising the financial aid formula to factor in socioeconomic background in addition to personal income, assets, and undergraduate debt; and instituting a need-based application fee waiver.

In a press release, the Lorings highlighted their belief in creating opportunities for economic and social mobility.

“Finding ways to provide access for underserved communities has long been a priority for us,” says Isabelle. Ian notes, “To the extent we can find ways to give more people exposure to the business school opportunity and hopefully inspire them in this journey, that was really important for us.”

Sources: Harvard Business School, Harvard Business School

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