MBA Super Specialization – Another Emerging Trend

Joining an MBA program when the job market is going through depression is a strategy that has been adopted by professionals over the past 10 years. But looking for an additional MBA, an MBA from an International school to compensate for a low branded MBA is a strategy that can backfire, even if the school accepts your candidacy. Of late, we have been receiving queries about Double MBA. For some, the Employers have been too choosy, and are looking for the best fit. Instead of a general MBA, specialists are in great demand. This is a leading indicator that another slowdown is inevitable. What we found out among MBAs from tier 2 Business Schools is the misconception that an MBA from a premier school is a shortcut for better offers.

MBA Brand value alone is not enough in a competitive job market. Top MBA programs attract leading recruiters but believing that a change into a specialist role can be facilitated with another MBA is little far-fetched. Similar queries have come from MBAs working in Luxury Management industry. An MBA specialized in Marketing found out the hard way that to work and navigate the terms of Luxury Goods and Services, expertise in the industry is necessary. Unfortunately, top MBA programs offering specialization do not have the resources and time to dig deeper into the industry. What remains are case based study method and discussion that focus on the functional skills instead of the industry.

As we had written about China Trends, a slowdown in an industry would trigger a decline in positions for middle managers. Employers would be adamant about recruiting specialists instead of generalists. This can also explain why we are seeing a decline in demand for General MBAs and a surge in demand for Master’s program.  

We are witnessing a super specialization within MBA programs. It is no longer sufficient to say that you would like to switch careers into consulting, finance, or Luxury. It may serve the purpose for MBA Application essays but MBA aspirants should start seriously thinking about their post-MBA specialist roles. With that kind of focus, the list of MBA programs would be completely different from the list that they had earlier prepared.