The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 15th (local time) that even Harvard Business School (MBA) graduates are having difficulty finding a job they like as the demand for employment for high-salary white-collar professionals in the United States decreases.
Among job seekers who graduated from Harvard Business School in the spring of 2024, 23% were still looking for work three months later, up 3% from 20% a year ago, according to the report.
In 2022 alone, the share was only 10%, the WSJ said, citing university statistics.
“Harvard can’t be free from difficulties in the job market,” said Kristen Fitzpatrick, who is in charge of career development and alumni relations at Harvard Business School. “Just getting Harvard doesn’t differentiate you, you have to have real competence.”
It’s not just Harvard that graduates who studied at prestigious business schools have trouble finding jobs they like, the WSJ said.
Other top business graduates, including Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University Business School, and New York University Stern Business School, have seen their employment conditions deteriorate compared to the past.
WSJ analyzed that, with some exceptions, the proportion of top-rated business school graduates unable to find jobs three months after graduation in 2024 has doubled compared to 2022.
According to graduate school officials, even graduates of prestigious business schools have narrowed their employment doors because big tech (giant IT companies) such as Amazon, Google, and Microsoft, as well as consulting companies, are reducing their hiring of graduates of prestigious business schools.
Jenny Jenner, senior director of the Darden Business School’s Career Center at the University of Virginia, said companies are changing the way they hire, adding, “Companies say they’re no longer coming to campus.”
Universities are also strengthening their employment support programs.
In the case of Harvard Business School, WSJ also introduced a four-day intensive job preparation course focused on developing networking methods and ways to promote one’s competence.
JENNIFER KIM
US ASIA JOURNAL
