Shortly after the global recession hit, college and universities around the world noted an interesting trend. It seemed that the worse the economic numbers got, the more students applied for business schools. Was this a simple coincidence? Any statistician would of course tell you that there is no such things as a coincidence, there are simply anomalies. But this was no anomaly.

The truth is that whenever the economy goes into recession, students naturally begin to redefine their career goals. Suddenly, majoring in 18th century Scandinavian poetry doesn’t seem like such an interesting or attractive proposition. The reason for this is simple: most people are pretty practical, and if the market tells them that business jobs are in demand while others are not, then that is where they go.

The fact is that students that earn their business degrees not only have higher rates of employment, but they also have higher starting salaries. And in the midst of an economic recession the number one priority for any college graduate is to find a job, any job. Honestly, who wants to end up in their parents’ basement making motel reservations for a living? That was a rhetorical question. (more...)