Diversity and Equality (46%) are ‘must have’ content streams that students want included in their Business Masters studies, according to a new survey of more than 1,500 prospective students from around the world.
The latest Tomorrow’s Masters study by CarringtonCrisp in association with EFMD, focused on Business Master’s degrees which, unlike a mid or late career MBA, are generally completed in one year, straight after a bachelor’s degree.
An early-career masters degree may not be the end point for many prospective students with more than four out of ten (44%) students surveyed indicating that they are considering an MBA of some sort in their future.
The research showed that no what whatever subject they chose, participants expect certain content as part of their degree.
Diversity & Equality is cited most often followed by Responsible Management (40%), Ethical Leadership (33%) and Global Challenges (31%) such as poverty, climate change and pollution.
In the global study, the top five specific subjects that students want to study for their Masters degree are: Investment and Banking (35%), Business Forecasting and Modelling (29%), Market Research (29%), Business and IT (26%), and Digital Marketing (26%). These are followed by AI and Business (25%) and Business Ethics (24%).
Environmental Social and Governance (ESG) topics including Renewable Energy (18%), Sustainability (17%), Energy Management (17%), Social Entrepreneurship (17%) and Environmental Management (15%) are all chosen as stand-alone subjects, but less so than many traditional topics such as Finance (22%), Marketing (22%), Economics (20%), Management (19%) and Entrepreneurship (19%).
Study author Andrew Crisp said that while may appear that ESG topics are less popular that is not the case.
“Most students want this content to flow throughout a Masters programme as can be seen from the demand for Diversity & Equality and Responsible Management,” he said. “It’s a smaller but significant number of respondents that want to focus and become specialists in areas such as Environmental Management.”
Looking to the future, there are a few subjects that while not widespread now, are expected to grow in demand. These include E-sports (12%) and Space and Satellite Industries (8%).
“While fewer than 1 in 12 express an interest in Space and Satellite Industries today, Bloomberg reported recently that ‘The global space economy grew 8% to $546 billion in 2022 and is projected to climb another 41% over the next five years’.
“If you look at the efforts of individuals such as Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson, not to mention the programmes in countries including the USA, India, China and Japan – space is going to be big business, and business schools need to be ready to meet the demand for new skills and knowledge.”
The impact of technology is reflected in other parts of the study. Almost six out of ten (59%) expect to use AI tools, such as Chat GPT, to complete projects during their studies. Just over six out of ten (62%) believe that AI tools are making exams redundant and that using AI tools in their studies simply recognises its use across business and should not be considered as cheating (61%).
Finally, there are some ongoing concerns around the cost of studying. Just over half (51%) relay that living costs are the main reason not to study. Being unable to pay degree fees is cited by 41% as a reason not to study.
“We are seeing a reflection of the current cost of living crisis in business education, and particularly the high costs of accommodation in many international cities, where business schools are often located. Consequently, in terms of funding options, 34% of prospective students are dependent on family for financial help, with 27% reliant on a scholarship or bursary.”
