Harvard University has been in the news lately for politically-related reasons, but the top school is facing another reality that's directly affecting its core purpose.
Harvard Business School (HBS) reported that 86% of its graduating class of 2023 has received an offer, which according to the Financial Times (FT), is down from 95% in 2022 and 96% in 2021.
It's important to know that the 86% figure is not pulled from the total number of HBS graduates, but rather just the 73% of the total graduates who are seeking immediate employment upon graduation. The remaining 27% are considering other options such as starting a business or continuing education.
Related: November job growth in the U.S. was limited to just three major sectors
A quarter of the graduates enter into consulting, far and away the biggest industry that HBS graduates turn to for their first work after receiving their MBAs. But the dip in job offers for graduates could relate directly to this adherence to consulting, as there have been several reports, including from the FT, that big consulting firms have pushed back start dates for new hires and slowed down work for their teams.
Harvard's managing director of MBA career and development recognized "this year's slow hiring market," telling the FT that more students explored post-grad internships or alternatives to full-time roles.
Related: How Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan could be connected to Harvard researcher's firing
The HBS news may seem counterintuitive to the continuing growing job market, but November data showed that their were only a few industries — like health care — that were driving the jobs growth.
Consulting was not one of them.
Get exclusive access to portfolio managers’ stock picks and proven investing strategies with Real Money Pro. Get started now.
