MBA employment report 2024

We are pleased to report on the destinations of our talented class of MBA 2022.

The annual Cambridge Judge Business School MBA Employment Report details the outcomes of the MBA class of 2022/23.

Last year 2022/23 was an all-round difficult year for recruitment. Rising inflation and the consequent interest rate increases dominated the news, followed by large layoffs across all sectors. Economic uncertainty was further fuelled by the political conflicts.

This global uncertainty resulted in nervousness around recruitment.

We are proud of our students’ resilience and agility in these very challenging times. 86% had received job offers 3 months post-graduation which, although lower than the 94% in the previous 2 years, shows the tenacity of our students.

Even in this tough recruitment environment, there was a high rate of career switching.

Overall, while the recruitment landscape may have been challenging, our MBA students’ success in securing employment and navigating career transitions reflects positively on their abilities and the quality of education and support they received.

Our MBA 2022 class are now working in 31 countries around the globe, with 97% of the class achieving a switch of function, industry, or country, and 43% achieving all 3.

Of the students who switched countries from pre-MBA roles, 63% are continuing their careers in the UK.

Strategy consulting, technology, healthcare/pharma, venture capital (VC)/private equity (PE), were the key sectors of choice for the class.

Twenty-seven per cent of Cambridge MBA 2022 job seekers chose to go into Consulting. Recruiting in finance as a sector slowed down this year absorbing 24% of the MBAs (compared to 30% of the class the previous year). This was the year when brands such as Credit Suisse and Silicon Valley Bank were wiped away and the market was saturated with finance talent. Forty-six per cent of the class entered roles in industry and 8% started their own business straight out of the MBA.

Of those moving into consulting, 68% came from a non-consulting background. For those choosing roles in the finance sector, 25% went into venture capital/private equity, and 19% into fintech.

Almost 30% of those working in industry have roles in tech or internet/e-commerce, whilst 16% chose roles in the healthcare and biotech.

Our top employers were McKinsey, BCG, Kearney and Arcelor Mittal but over 100 international employers recruited from our diverse Cambridge MBA class of 2022.

As part of the Cambridge MBA, students undertake a career development programme alongside their studies, during which they work closely with the CJBS Careers team to create a personalised plan based on career aspirations. The programme includes practical workshops, coaching, as well as recruitment and networking events with employers.

Sadia concludes, “We are delighted that the MBA class of 2022 have taken great strides in this difficult market towards fulfilling roles to launch their post MBA careers. We offer an exceptional experiential MBA programme which gives our graduates the skills, and confidence they need to manage their careers successfully for life.

We are proud of their career transitions and all their achievements, hard work and the respect and support they show each other. We look forward to following their careers and continuing to work with them as Cambridge Judge Business School alumni.