Industry switching can happen intentionally or based on available post-MBA opportunities. According to the 2012 Alumni Perspectives GMAC report, more than one-third (34%) of the class of 2011 were employed outside their intended industry. This might seem like a negative trend, given the emphasis that MBA programs put on post-MBA goals. But 85% of employed students, outside their intended industry, shared that they were happy with the turn of events.
What factors influence successful Industry switching?
MBAs cannot use the experience in their Pre-MBA job to make the switch but the roles and responsibilities that MBAs led before the program had a major impact. More than intrinsic factors, external factors played a bigger role in industry switching.
a) Competition
The competition for Finance and Accounting Industry were the highest but the MBAs who joined this industry were most aligned with their post-MBA goals. 70% in the industry said that they were able to choose the intended post-MBA industry. This industry was the second largest employment generator for MBA alumni.
Health care and pharmaceutical was the least likely industry that MBAs intended to join after the MBA program, with 40% of them saying that the switch was not intended. This was partially due to the lack of awareness of the available roles in this industry. Health care and pharmaceutical industry were most likely to hire MBAs for positions in HR (20%), Operations and Logistics (14%), and General Management (11%).
Alumni Employed in Their Intended Industry After Graduation (Class of 2011)
b) Supply Meets Demand
The 2012 Alumni Perspectives GMAC report shows that the top 3 industries hiring alumni were Products and Services (21%), Finance and Accounting (20%), and Consulting (17%). Even though the supply of jobs in these three industries was high and most MBAs followed market trends, many who joined these industries didn’t intend to do so before their MBA program.
35% in Consulting didn’t intend to join this Industry before MBA
34% in Products and Services didn’t intend to join this Industry before MBA
Industry of Employment After Graduation (Class of 2011)
Influencers in Industry Switching
With a large number of unintended industry switching, we might wonder whether it was just the supply –demand that played a big role in this trend. The truth is different. Although the opportunities in a different industry, both in terms of growth and compensation was the primary deciding factor, networking with recruiters/company representatives were the second biggest influencing factor in making this unintended industry switch.
Are Women MBAs different?
Women MBAs were equally likely to make industry switch. But women were least likely to switch to Products and Services, when compared to men. Healthcare and Pharmaceuticals was one of the favourite industries for Women.
Which nationality stuck with their plan?
Canadians were the most likely to stick with their plan - 81% of them following a job that matched their intended industry. Asians were the most flexible of the lot with 57% following an industry that was different from their intended career path.
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About the Author
I am Atul Jose, Founding Consultant of F1GMAT, an MBA admissions consultancy that has worked with applicants since 2009.
For the past 15 years I have edited the application files of admits to the M7 programs: Harvard Business School, Stanford Graduate School of Business, the Wharton School, MIT Sloan, Chicago Booth, Kellogg School of Management, and Columbia Business School, together with admits to Berkeley Haas, Yale School of Management, NYU Stern, Michigan Ross, Duke Fuqua, Darden, Tuck, IMD, London Business School, INSEAD, SDA Bocconi, IESE Business School, HEC Paris, McCombs, and Tepper, plus other programs inside the global top 30.
My work covers the full MBA application deliverable: career planning and profile evaluation, application essay editing, recommendation letter editing, mock interviews and interview preparation, scholarship and fellowship essay editing, and cover letter editing for funding applications. Full bio with credentials and admit history is here.
I am the author of the Winning MBA Essay Guide, the best-selling essay guide covering M7 MBA programs. I have written and updated the guide annually since 2013, which makes the 2026 edition the thirteenth.
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