The financial crisis has had a severe impact on most industries, but MBA education has succeeded in finding a glimmer of prosperity in this economic recession.

In the recessionary climate, many white-collar workers and high-level managers who have lost their jobs or are worried about the prospect of redundancy are choosing to boost their employability through further study, thus causing a great leap in the number of MBA candidates. It is said that the number of candidates in 2009 is up 20 percent in comparison to last year. MBA candidates at Guangdong University of Foreign Studies have increased by 132 percent. MBA tuition fees have also risen, with the biggest increase logged at 120,000 yuan,

Some white-collar workers say that even though they have held on to their positions, their minds are clouded by thoughts of possible unemployment. Under such pressure, it is a wise move to enrich their knowledge and improve their qualifications through an MBA course that could pay dividends in any future job-hunting. It will also be of benefit to these individuals' employers.

China's economy has grown rapidly since the launch of reform and opening-up, and in recent years some enterprises have given a lot of attention to economic benefits but paid little heed to improving their employees' qualifications. The economic downturn has given businesses cause to rethink their development strategies and management systems.

China Europe International Business School (CEIBS) announced that its MBA candidates for 2009 have grown by 36 percent year-on-year. Zhang Yanmei, director of the MBA Education Center of Lingnan (University) College, Sun Yat-sen University, noted that its volume of MBA candidates has increased by 26.7 percent to 836, thereby setting a new record. Wang Fanghua, dean of the Antai College of Economics & Management, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, states that MBA recruitment tends to run counter to economic cycles: "When the economy prospers, people will hurry to make money; when the economy recesses, more people will apply for MBA courses."

Judy Tsui is Dean of the School of Business and Management of Hong Kong Polytechnic University. She states that the economic recession has generated a sense of crisis, inciting people to enrich their knowledge through MBA education. A similar situation occurred in 1997 during the previous Asian financial storm.

Some experts also say that steadily rising salaries for MBA graduates is another of the most important reasons for the MBA rush. A recent survey from Lingnan (University) College, Sun Yat-sen University, demonstrates that the pre-school annual salary for MBA students is 40-50,000 yuan, but after graduation, their annual salary can rise to 80-250,000 yuan. According to Liu Weiyu, manager of the Beijing Office of MBA Education, Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (CKGSB), the average starting salary offer for MBA graduates from CKGSB is as high as 280,000 yuan.

This MBA rush has caused a significant rise in tuition fees. China Europe International Business School (CEIBS), Tsinghua University, Peking University, Fudan University and Shanghai Jiao Tong University have all increased their tuition fees for 2009 by 8-10,000 yuan. It is noteworthy that Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (CKGSB) has raised its fees to 528,000 yuan, an increase of 120,000 yuan compared to last year.

(China.org.cn by Fan Junmei, January 22, 2009)