FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Overall MBA Enrollment Climbs 6% From Last Year, Women Maintain 42% Share
(Austin, TX, October 31, 2024) – Women’s enrollment in full-time MBA programs climbed to over 6,000 for the first time and a record eight schools reached gender parity at the 61-member business schools of Forté Foundation.
Forté member schools are the top-rated MBA programs in the U.S., Europe, and Canada, including the Stanford Graduate School of Business, London Business School and the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. Forté is a non-profit founded to increase opportunities for women in leadership through access to business education and professional development.
While Forté found MBA enrollment for women and men increased 6% this fall at its member schools, the percentage of women held steady at 42%, the same as 2023. The last time Forté reported the percentage of women enrolled in full-time MBA programs had flat growth was in 2020 during the height of the pandemic. In the last five years, women’s enrollment in full-time MBA programs has climbed close to four percentage points. When Forté was founded in 2002, only 28% of MBA students were women.
“A rising tide lifts all boats and the same is true for women’s MBA enrollment this year,” said Forté CEO Elissa Sangster. “Historically, in an economy with slower hiring, more people head back to school to earn an MBA. Women are typically more risk averse than men about pursuing an MBA — in part because they earn less and have more undergrad student loan debt as a result. So, we are heartened to find they are still applying to, and enrolling in, business school despite some headwinds on the diversity, equity and inclusion front along with a slowdown in hiring for white-collar jobs.”
Key highlights of Forté’s 2024 annual research include:
- The total number of women enrolled in top full-time MBA programs climbed to an historic 6,166 at Forté’s member business schools.
- This is due primarily to an increase in the percentage of women enrolled. Forté had 52-member schools in 2020 and those 52 schools remain members today. From 2020 to 2024, the number of women enrolled at those 52 schools climbed 13% outpacing overall enrollment growth of 3% for women and men.
- Forté added nine new member schools from 2020 to 2024, which also boosted the total number of women enrolled. Average women’s enrollment for the 52 schools that were members in 2020 was 39% in 2020 and 42% in 2024. The nine new schools have average women’s enrollment of 45% this year.
- The percentage of women enrolled in full-time MBA programs was 42% in 2024 and 2023, 41% in 2022, and 39% and 34% in 2020 and 2014, respectively.
- A record eight Forté member business schools reported gender parity in fall 2024, up from five in 2023, three in 2022 and one in 2020.
- Close to one-third, or a record 19 member schools, reported women’s enrollment at 45% or higher with an additional four schools close behind at 44%. This compares with 15 schools in 2023, eight in the fall of 2020 and zero schools in the fall of 2014.
- Over half, or 36 member schools, report women’s enrollment of at least 40%, an all-time high. This is up from 34 in 2023, 22 in 2020 and only five schools in 2014.
- Forté’s non-US schools saw a slight increase of less than a half percentage point in women’s enrollment this fall, with over half reporting an increase. While historically non-US schools have had a lower percentage of women enrolled on average, both non-U.S. and U.S. schools are equally matched now at an average of 42%.
Sangster pointed to a surge in MBA applications this year, including a slight uptick in the percentage of women applicants, as reported by the Graduate Management Admission Council, as a sign that the percentage of women enrolled will continue its slow but steady climb.
“We will continue to pull out all the stops to ensure we reach gender parity in MBA enrollment,” Sangster said. “Countless research shows that diversity has a positive impact on the bottom line and investors recognize this, too. Having more women pursue an MBA helps to ensure they have the education needed to become senior leaders at companies and on boards.”
An MBA degree often helps women to increase earning potential, business leadership, and influence. In fact, Forté’s research reveals that 41% of the 37 women CEOs of the S&P 500, have an MBA or equivalent advanced degree in business.
The following eight schools achieved gender parity this year.
- Johns Hopkins University (Carey Business School) – 59%
- George Washington University (School of Business) – 58%
- EDHEC Business School – 58%
- Washington University in St. Louis (Olin Business School) – 53%
- Northeastern University (D’Amore-McKim School of Business) – 53%
- University of Texas at Dallas (Naveen Jindal School of Management) – 53%
- Duke University (The Fuqua School of Business) – 51%
- Northwestern University (Kellogg School of Management) – 50% An additional 11 schools had 45% or more women enrolled.
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Sloan) – 49%
- University of Oxford (Saïd Business School) – 48%
- University of Cambridge (Judge Business School) – 48%
- University of Pennsylvania (The Wharton School) – 47%
- New York University (Stern School of Business) – 47%
- Southern Methodist University (Cox School of Business) – 46%
- University of Rochester (Simon Business School) – 46%
- York University (Schulich School of Business) – 46%
- London Business School – 45% • Imperial College Business School – 45%
- Harvard Business School – 45% Four additional schools were close behind.
- Dartmouth (Tuck School of Business) – 44%
- Boston University (Questrom School of Business) – 44%
- Columbia Business School – 44%
- Stanford University (Graduate School of Business) – 44%
Some of the initiatives Forté leads to help close the gender gap in business include:
- Forté Fellows Scholarship – This program is key to increasing the number of women MBAs. Between 2003 and the fall of 2024, Forté partner schools awarded approximately $475 million in scholarships.
- Forté MBA Women’s Leadership Conference, Financial Services Fast Track, and Women of Color Symposium – Attended by women MBAs and leading companies annually, these conferences took place between May 2024 and October 2024, with about 1,300 participants.
- Forté Undergraduate Campus to Business Leadership Conference, College Fast Track to Finance Conference, Women of Color Leadership Symposium, and Undergraduate Leadership Summit – These events provide opportunities for thousands of college women to build leadership skills, explore career paths, and network with leading Forté partner companies and business schools.
- MBALaunch – An eight-month road map for applying to business school including weekly webinars, monthly peer group sessions, and feedback from experienced advisors.
- MBA Takeoff – A six-week program designed to prepare incoming MBA women and allies for their transition into an MBA program.
- Diversity Day – Launched in 2021, Forté hosts a symposium for interested MBA candidates who identify as African American, Black, Hispanic, Latinx, and/or Native American women.
- Alumni Leadership Council – Launched in 2022, the Alumni Leadership Council is a select group of MBA alumni leaders who engage our community of 30,000+ alumni and serve as mentors to the next generation of women leaders.
ABOUT FORTÉ Forté is a nonprofit organization with the goal of achieving gender parity at all levels of business. Forté works closely with business schools, corporations, and universities to ensure women have access to opportunities at every stage in their careers. Forté offers a wide variety of resources, including MBA prep, professional development, leadership education, and a diverse community of successful women. For more information, visit fortefoundation.org.
Media contacts: Michele Vana, BCW Global, michele.vana@bcw-global.com; Katie Stanfield, Forté Foundation, katies@fortefoundation.org
