News

MAY 2020

Opinion: COVID-19 Underscores Why Business School Rankings Are Losing Relevance

For three decades, students, educators and employers have debated the relative merits of the MBA program rankings conducted annually by U.S. News & World Report as well as other publications and institutions. As not all endowments are created equal, the rankings are not a level playing field. Those affiliated with highly ranked schools tend to value these third-party assessments, while those associated with lower-ranked institutions are more likely to question their relevance. Read more…

Are B-School Response Strategies Costing Institutions Applicants?

To help institutions determine how well they’re responding to inquiries from potential applicants — and to gain insights into how they can do a better job of attracting students — Liaison conducted a project that involved submitting inquiry forms to hundreds of schools and then tracking the schools’ responsiveness to those inquiries. Among other findings, Liaison’s 2019 Business School Inquiry Response Project has revealed that academic institutions largely fail to meet basic standards of conducting business when it comes to their communication surrounding business programs. View the White Paper.

The Admissionist Spring 2020

This quarter, The Admissionist is reflecting back and planning ahead. #highered #admissions: Download now.

Why the Pandemic Highlights the Value of a Graduate Business Degree

Despite recent research and reporting that casts doubt on the value of an MBA degree, these turbulent times underscore the need for talented and skilled leadership—precisely the kind of vision taught in a business school classroom. From a professional development standpoint, now is the time to upskill. As businesses of all sizes navigate the now-ubiquitous remote work conditions, the skills you will acquire during an MBA program will determine which businesses thrive and which fade away. Read more…

Coronavirus Crisis Highlights the Value of an MBA, Say Business School Deans

In turbulent times, businesses need skilled leadership more than ever, say Toby McChesney and Monica Powell, both associate deans at prominent U.S. business schools and members of the BusinessCAS Advisory Board (McChesney is chair of the board). With the sudden transition to remote working, the problem-solving and leadership skills an MBA helps develop have become crucial, they say. Read more…

APRIL 2020

Ten Ways B-Schools Will Change After The Pandemic

There is a growing sentiment that COVID-19 has not only created a “new normal” in the present, but more enduring changes for various aspects of life. Before the coronavirus outbreak, U.S. business schools were already confronting a challenging environment characterized by declining international enrollment and rising alternatives to traditional MBA programs. In the early stages of the pandemic, they faced China’s cancellation of the Graduate Management Admission Test and other English-language graduate entry exams. Now, campuses are closed and prospects for next semester are highly uncertain. Read more…

COVID-19 has made it clear that you must move your GME admissions office online. Here’s how to do it.

My thoughts are with everyone impacted by the COVID-19 crisis, and I want to wish all of you good health in the days ahead. I’ve been amazed at the outpouring of kindness, collaboration and creativity I’ve seen within our community, from brave healthcare workers risking their own health to save lives, to my colleagues and neighbors sheltering in place in order to help flatten the curve and minimize the reach of this virus. Though of course our priorities as a country are elsewhere at the moment, I also recognize how important it is for higher education institutions to continue to serve students. Read more…

MARCH 2020

Texas Business Schools Overhauling Degree Plans

Enrollments have fallen at business schools in recent years, with critics questioning their relevance, students fretting over their cost and professors worried about their future. Most two-year programs offering a master’s in business administration saw a drop in applications last year, according to the Graduate Management Admission Council. A decrease in international students due to restrictive immigration policies and a reduction in American students who are choosing to keep working during a strong economy are to blame, the council reported. Read more…

From Business Schools to Boardrooms, a Proactive Approach Will Advance Gender Equity

On this year’s International Women’s Day, I vividly recall the life-changing advice I once received about the delicate balance between career ambition and family. Could I have a child and still climb the corporate ladder? What if I became pregnant during the interview process? My former manager at IBM encouraged me to flip the script: What if I first got the promotion and then became pregnant? Would my career advancement come to a grinding halt? No. I would keep forging ahead. In my 14 years there, IBM consistently justified its usual place at the top of rankings of the best companies for women executives. I was surrounded by strong female role models across the company and worked with men who routinely supported women at all levels of their career. Read more…

Opinion: Coronavirus’ Implications for Higher Ed and Innovation

How China’s cancellation of GRE and GMAT exams could impact U.S. universities

While much discussion surrounding China’s coronavirus outbreak has centered on the fallout for America’s public health, trade relationships, and corporate giants, the deep implications for higher education are also impossible to ignore. China’s cancellation of February’s GRE and GMAT graduate entry exams portends a concerning outlook for international student enrollment in graduate programs. Although data released by the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) this month shows increased graduate applications and enrollments at U.S. universities for the first time since fall 2016, the Graduate Management Admissions Council’s (GMAC) most recent application trends report documents a steep 13.7% decline in international applications to American business programs from 2018 to 2019. Read more…

FEBRUARY 2020

Do You Know The Four Keys to a Successful Business School Inquiry Response Strategy?

Times have changed for business school admissions professionals. Generally speaking, application volume has been declining — and competition for students has been intensifying. As a result, it’s now more important than ever to connect with potential applicants as early as possible in order to fill seats and achieve your most important class-building goals. Read more…

JANUARY 2020

Op-ed: Coronavirus hits home for business schools

Although my office in Watertown is situated thousands of miles away from the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak, the business school leaders I work with are feeling the ripple effect of this week’s cancellation of several exams that Chinese students need to take in order to enroll in American academic institutions.
Read more…

Award-winning Educator Dr. Shannon Deer Named to BusinessCAS™ Advisory Board

As her institution, Texas A&M University, joins the BusinessCAS community, Dr. Deer will add her expertise to the preeminent solution for GME admissions and enrollment.
Read more…

DECEMBER 2019

Beyond The Numbers: Where Business School Meets College Football

As a University of Michigan alum and the former director of admission at that institution’s medical school, I’m still reeling from the 56-27 thrashing that marked the Wolverines’ eighth straight loss to their college football archrival, the Ohio State University Buckeyes.
Read more…

Op-ed: Business schools must look at student, employer market

By now, it’s not exactly breaking news that graduate management education programs in the United States are struggling with shrinking applicant pools. What’s noteworthy, however, is the way forward-thinking GME program directors and admissions professionals are responding to enrollment challenges at their institutions and identifying new opportunities for success.
Read more…

What Business School Leaders Can Learn from the Dairy Farmers

What Would A Unifying “Got Milk?” Campaign Look Like For Graduate Management Education?

In this era of declining applications and shifting demographics in graduate management education (GME), it’s incumbent upon business schools to leave no stone unturned in their search for creative solutions that support recruitment efforts. Such a process includes looking at the methods that other industries have used to overcome their defining challenges. In that regard, today’s business school leaders should borrow a page from the playbook of the American dairy farmers of the 1990s. Read more…

Women Make Strides in MBA Classrooms, But Progress Remains Elusive in the Workplace

By now, virtually every stakeholder in the world of graduate management education (GME) is well aware of the overall decline in the number of applications to MBA programs in recent years, and the even sharper drop in international applicants to American programs. On the bright side from a diversity perspective, the number of women in GME classrooms is actually on the rise. But even that silver lining is clouded, as women are still not experiencing a fair share of the benefits they deserve in the nation’s boardrooms. Read more…

NOVEMBER 2019

Poets & Quants: An Open Letter To B-School Deans On MBA App Declines

Robert Ruiz, Managing Director of BusinessCAS at Liaison International, has penned the following letter to 50 U.S. business school deans in response to their own recent letter to American leaders on the current crisis in international student enrollment. Read more…

SEPTEMBER 2019

Why BusinessCAS™ Is “A Good Move for Our Industry”

Graduate business and management programs face a host of challenges that would have been hard to fathom even 10 short years ago.

Many colleges and universities are having a hard time attracting and enrolling the international students they once depended on to fill seats. A strong U.S. job market is making it more difficult to lure domestic applicants out of the workforce and into classrooms. Traditional MBA programs are facing new competition from online, part-time and executive MBA programs. And many schools are still struggling to achieve important goals related to diversity and inclusion. Read more…

Anatomy of a 360° View of GME Applicants

An Interview with Evelyn Tate, Assistant Dean and Director of Graduate Recruitment and Admissions at Northeastern University’s D’Amore-McKim School of Business

Should we change or drop standardized test requirements? Ask for letters of recommendation? Check applicants’ LinkedIn profiles? Extend our admissions’ deadline to accommodate late applicants, which according to one industry source comprises 30% of today’s applicant pool?¹ These are just a few of the many questions being debated among GME admissions officers today as they juggle finding best-fit students with filling seats. In such a rapidly evolving environment, it helps to hear from colleagues facing these same issues and hear why they made the choices they did. Read more…

AUGUST 2019

Doing More With Less: How Three Business Schools Found the Right Strategies to Achieve Admissions Excellence

At first glance, the graduate schools at Santa Clara University, the University of Kansas and Fordham University might appear to have little in common. One is in San Diego. One is in the middle of the country. One is in New York City. They each offer a unique “menu” of MBA programs. Their student bodies are demographically different.

Yet — as you’ll discover by watching Liaison’s free on-demand webinar, “How to Do More with Less: The Essential Tools in 3 Business Schools’ Admissions Toolkits” — admissions leaders at the three institutions also have much in common. Read more…

MAY 2019

Sharpen Your Competitive Edge With BusinessCAS™ at the GMAC Annual Conference

If there’s been one lesson learned over the past decade, it’s that graduate management admissions offices need to adapt more quickly than ever to remain competitive. Since 2011, there’s been an 8% decline in applications to traditional two-year, full-time business programs — the bread and butter of many graduate management programs. More worrisome, the percentage of full-time MBAs enrolled outside the top 50 business schools dropped from 31% to 22% during that time, and applications fell from 17% to 11% as reported in a recent Forbes article. Read more…

The GMAC Annual Conference is June 19 – 21, 2019 in Denver, CO.

AMBITION Magazine Spotlight: How and Why Business Schools can make an impact.

“Ought political diversity be part of the diversity conversation?”
Check out Liaison’s Robert Ruiz as he joins an international roundtable to discuss the challenges, experiences and recommendations of business schools on the topic of diversity and geopolitics. AMBITION’s David Woods-Hale reports. Click the link for the whole magazine (article page 16). Read more…

MARCH 2019

Tests of the Times: Assessing Outcomes and Decoding Data at Buffalo School of Management

In her almost six years as Assistant Dean and Director of Graduate Programs for the University at Buffalo (UB) School of Management, Erin O’Brien has witnessed changes in the world of graduate management education. Whether she’s talking about the dramatic shift in international applications away from US Business Schools, the increasing number of nontraditional MBA students considering a wide range of educational options, or the growing trend of schools creating barrier-free pathways into their programmes, O’Brien circles back to two themes: Read more…

FEBRUARY 2019

You Can’t Judge a Book by its Cover: Scoring GME Applicants

Recently, a Liaison colleague told an interesting story comparing her first meeting with her undergraduate advisor versus her business school advisor. She recounted that her undergraduate advisor opened a folder containing her profile and flatly stated, “Based on your SAT scores and the high school you attended, we project you will graduate somewhere in the lower third quartile of your class.” Conversely, when she first met her business school advisor, he stopped her mid-conversation and exclaimed, “You are exactly how we pictured you when we read your application, and we know you will make a great contribution to the class.” It’s no wonder she said she felt like just a “number” at her college but a welcomed, vital addition to her class at business school. Read more…

JANUARY 2019

BusinessCAS™ Advisory Board Members to Discuss “What’s Next For GME Admissions” at GMAC Leadership Conference 2019

Liaison is proud to be moderating a timely, interactive panel discussion at this year’s GMAC Leadership Conference. The session entitled “What’s Next for GME Admissions” will address the factors putting pressure on GME admissions professionals and provide approaches schools are taking to confront trends such as the recent drop in MBA applications. Read more…

DECEMBER 2018

Liaison Integrates GMAC’s Common Letter of Recommendation Into Businesscas™ and Enhances the Reviewer Experience

Liaison International, the leading provider of higher education admissions management and enrollment marketing solutions, today announced its latest enhancement to BusinessCAS™, the Centralized Application Service (CAS™) for graduate management education programs. Beginning in December 2018, GME programs that are members of BusinessCAS can make the recommendation component of their application more consistent through the Graduate Management Admission Council’s Common Letter of Recommendation (LOR). Read more…

NOVEMBER 2018

Penn State MBA Admissions Director on GMAC Survey and Growth Strategies

After the release of the 2018 Application Trends Survey Report from GMAC, Liaison International’s Bob Alig talked to Michael Waldhier — admissions director of the Smeal College of Business at Penn State and a member of Liaison’s BusinessCAS^TM advisory board — about how Penn State had anticipated years ago the trends uncovered by the survey; namely, that international applicant interest in U.S. schools would decrease, that the strengthening U.S. economy would make it less likely for adults to return to school and that top 10 schools in the U.S. would broaden their pool to capture applicants who would otherwise consider going to schools like Penn State. Read on to learn more about how Penn State responded with strategic moves that have led to a stronger, more robust program even as other programs around the country are shrinking. Read more…

Director of MBA, MSB Programs Spearheads Common Application

Unlike law schools and medical schools, graduate business school programs don’t offer a common application. That’s a problem, said Dee Steinle, the KU School of Business’ executive director of MBA and MSB programs. When prospective students apply to graduate business programs, they’re completing each school’s application and sending multiple copies of transcripts and recommendation letters, a cumbersome process that takes students — and universities — extra time and effort. But change is coming, thanks in part to Steinle. Read more…

As Business School Applications Drop, Associate Deans Need Time to Focus on Strategy, Not Logistics

You’re an associate dean at a business school. For years, you never questioned that your school would fill the seats in its classrooms. After all, the admissions process was highly selective, with demand always far outpacing supply.But in October 2018, recruitment is suddenly an issue. Applications to U.S. business schools are down for the fourth consecutive year, including a 7-percent decline from 2017 to 2018, according to a Graduate Management Admission Council study. Read more…

SEPTEMBER 2018

Advancing MBA Admissions — and the Social Good — at Marist College

Kelly Holmes, dean of graduate admission at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, NY, is wearing quite a few hats these days. In addition to managing admissions processes for 15 graduate programs, she is also helping the College implement its new five-year strategic plan, which is focused on “ensuring student success, promoting innovation and advancing the social good.” In addition, Dean Holmes has recently been overseeing Marist’s launch of BusinessCAS™, the Liaison-powered Centralized Application Service (CAS™) for graduate management programs. Read more…

JUNE 2018

3 Ways to Learn More About BusinessCAS™ at GMAC

Every year in June, graduate management education administrators gather for the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) Annual Conference. The Conference’s three days of programming focuses on current issues, the latest marketplace trends, research data and best practices, and offers ample opportunities for GME professionals to network with colleagues from across the globe. Read more…

In the News and Behind the Scenes, Innovation is the Key to Success at the University of Kansas School of Business

It’s an exciting time to be an admissions professional at the University of Kansas School of Business. Within weeks of the School’s dramatic rise in the latest U.S. News and World Report ranking of top U.S. Business Schools, finishing touches were being put on the School’s instance of BusinessCAS™, a Centralized Application Service (CAS™) that will broaden horizons and increase effectiveness for applicants, the School and admissions staff alike. Read more…

University of Miami Business School Director of Admissions Covers the Role of Technology in Admissions

Liaison’s Bob Alig recently spoke with Loubna Bouamane, Ph.D., director of admissions for graduate business programs at the University of Miami, about how her school incorporates technology into the recruiting process — and why the University of Miami has found technology and creativity vital in maintaining a steady pipeline of international applicants. Read more…

MAY 2018

Early Adopters of Admissions Technology Go to the Head of the Class — How University of Miami is Leveraging Technology Across the Student Lifecycle

Technology has radically reshaped the world of Graduate School education and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. From online admissions portals like Liaison’s Centralized Application Services (CAS™) to content management systems that enable remote learning options for highly specialized degrees, nearly every aspect of the graduate education experience has evolved dramatically in just a few short years. Read more…

Brandeis IBS Assistant Dean of Admissions Highlights the Role of Data in Admissions

Liaison’s Bob Alig recently interviewed Kelly Sugrue, assistant dean of admissions at Brandeis International Business School and a member of Liaison’s BusinessCAS™ advisory board. Read how Kelly is using data to drive admissions decisions at Brandeis IBS. Read more…

Santa Clara University Senior Assistant Dean of Graduate Business Programs Discusses Expanding the Reach of Online MBA Program

Liaison’s Bob Alig recently interviewed Dr. Toby McChesney, senior assistant dean of graduate business programs at Santa Clara University’s Leavey School of Business and chair of Liaison’s BusinessCAS™ advisory board. Toby shares more about his experience launching Santa Clara’s inaugural online program and how the school adapted its marketing efforts to extend its reach. Read more…

APRIL 2018

Building a Better Class — Lessons Learned from Recent Admissions Trends, Planning Ahead to the Next Cycle

Perhaps it is ironic that more than 2,000 years ago Greek philosopher Heraclitus noted ‘the only thing that is constant is change’ — yet the relevance of these words remains unchanged. Read more…

KU Executive Director of MBA and MSB Programs Discusses Trends and Triumphs in Graduate Management Education

Liaison’s Bob Alig recently sat down with Dee Steinle, executive director of MBA and MSB programs and vice chair of Liaison’s BusinessCAS™, to discuss how the University of Kansas School of Business is adapting to keep pace with shifting demands in the graduate management education landscape. Read how KU is responding to changing student demographics and streamlining the admissions process. Read more…

Dr. Toby McChesney and Dee Steinle Appointed Chair and Vice Chair of Liaison’s BusinessCAS™ Advisory Board

Liaison today announced the leadership lineup for its BusinessCAS™ advisory board. Dr. Toby McChesney, senior assistant dean for graduate business programs in Santa Clara University’s Leavey School of Business, will head the board as chair. Dee Steinle, executive director of MBA and MSB programs at the University of Kansas School of Business, will serve as vice chair. Read more…

MARCH 2018

Segmenting for Greater Reach — How Santa Clara University Leverages Candidate Segments to Build Better Business Classes

In today’s competitive graduate admissions environment, it’s more important than ever to employ relevant marketing strategies that allow you to identify the best candidates for your program. Subsequently, you must provide them with a student experience that is tailored to fit their expectations. Read more…

JUNE 2017

Liaison Introduces Centralized Application Service (CAS™) for Business Programs at the 2017 GMAC Annual Conference

Following its October announcement of plans to develop a Centralized Application Service (CAS™) for graduate business programs in the US and internationally, Liaison will launch BusinessCAS™ for graduate business and management programs at the 2017 GMAC Annual Conference. The leading admissions management provider will also host a pre-conference first glance at the new service on June 15 from 2-2:45pm ET. Read more…

FEBRUARY 2017

Liaison and Association of MBAs Celebrate Business School Innovation

170 business leaders representing 70 schools from 23 countries gathered to celebrate excellence in business at a black-tie celebration at the Savoy Hotel in London. The Association of MBAs (AMBA) called this forward-thinking group together to celebrate its 50th anniversary, which marks decades of work raising the profile of global business programs and resulting excellence in MBA students, graduates, business schools and employers. Read more…

OCTOBER 2016

AMBA and Liaison Launch Service to Centralize Business School Application Management

The Association of MBAs (AMBA) has embarked on a collaboration with Liaison in a move to gain more insight into evolving enrollment trends for global MBA programs. Read more…