MBA Programs: What do Latin American Applicants Value?

The criteria which MBA applicants use to choose MBA programs differs from region to region, reflecting differing concerns and priorities. However, with the exception of Western Europe, the most important factor for applicants in every region is the availability of financial aid. Since the financial crisis of 2008, the proportion of candidates relying on scholarships globally has steadily increased, reaching 66.1% this year.  Affordability is notably the firth most important factor for Latin American candidates, suggesting that the cost of an MBA program is a pertinent factor in program choice.

But this does not necessarily mean that candidates will sacrifice quality for affordability, as second in the list of decisive factor for Latin American applicants is school reputation, followed by the quality of research and staff. Specializations ranks sixth – higher than any other region – so it is clear that Latin American applicants are keen to find programs which meet their individual needs. Notably, recent rankings come quite low down the list, suggesting a higher level of discernment in MBA program selection than deference to ranking methodologies.

Fourth on the list is MBA program accreditation, which we can take as an appreciation of the importance of an internationally-recognized qualification when seeking international careers. This is very much an American concern, with applicants from the US & Canada region sharing this high valuation of accreditation – perhaps unsurprisingly for the region in which accreditation first came to the fore and in which the major accreditation bodies are based.

Perhaps we can assume a degree of osmosis at play here – particularly given the popularity of American and Canadian schools with Latin American MBA students. Of course, accreditation also stands as an instantly identifiable mark of quality, of no small importance to students considering international MBA study at schools beyond the very biggest names in an increasingly saturated field.

We see a symbiosis of the cost of an MBA and program quality in the importance placed on return on investment, which ranks seventh.

One of the key findings in this year’s survey is an almost universal lowering of MBA salary expectations. Latin America stands as one of the most dramatic instances of this, with salary expectations dropping from US$90,000 in 2012 to US$70,000.

This is the lowest target salary in any region by quite some way – following logically on from the fact Latin American MBA salaries remain relatively low in comparison with other regions. However, this represents a realistic outlook – though MBA salaries are higher in other regions, expectations remain in excess of reality (see the QS Jobs & Salary Trends Report for regional salary figures). Average Latin American MBA salaries and bonuses at international employers, in fact, exceed this figure, standing as they do at US$78,104.

Latin American candidates, with an average pre-MBA salary of US$33,000 earn just over half of what their US and Canadian peers do (US$63,000). However, they earn more than candidates in the Asia Pacific and Middle East & African regions (US$30,000 and US$29,000 respectively).

Applicants are, in line with long-term global trends, getting older. The average Latin American applicant is 28.9, compared to 27.4 in 2011. This caps a post-recession trend for candidates to wait until they are more established in their careers before committing to time out of work. In line with this, the proportion of candidates with over 10 years of work experience has increased from 11% in 2011 to 15.3% in 2013, while those with 0-4 has fallen from 63.2% to 54%.

The highest proportion of candidates in the region work in financial services and consulting, as you might expect, though there has been a significant drop in the latter, which now accounts for less than 10%. There has been an increase in candidates from the consumer products, education, and information technology sectors. A slightly higher than average proportion of Latin American MBA applicants are female, with the figure of 40.1% being exceeded only by the US & Canada and Eastern Europe.

To learn more about global trends, including expected work hours and long terms aims, see ‘10 key findings from the 2013 QS TopMBA.com Applicant Survey’ or ‘2013 QS TopMBA.com Applicant Survey: Overview’.