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JUNE 3, 2003 B-SCHOOL Q&A: PLACEMENT Great Expectations Oxford B-School's careers service director is looking past the bumpy job market for ways to expand the careers program, and draw more students and recruiters into the mix
Tankard has worked at Saïd since 1996, the year after he earned his MBA degree from Warwick University's B-school. Prior to B-school, he lived in South Africa, where he worked at South African Breweries and at the Anglovaal Group, ultimately as a group head of human resources. Tankard spoke with Mica Schneider, BusinessWeek Online's management education reporter, to discuss how recruiters are responding to the B-school's graduates in the current job market. Here are edited excerpts of their conversation: Q: Oxford's business school is only seven years old, and until recently hasn't enrolled more than 100 students a year into its 12-month program. How would you characterize the performance of your office? Are Saïd MBAs landing jobs? A: It has been a challenge for us. We've tried, when we can, to piggy-back with the University's career office. We would like to see a ratio of recruiters to students of 0.5 to 1, which is about what the top schools aim for. Right now, we have about 0.3 recruiters for every MBA. In 2000, we had a milestone year, but with the tough market, we have to be more creative to attract recruiters. In addition to traditional recruiting, we're doing panels with senior executives. For instance, executives from Goldman Sachs and Novartis visited in early May, but they weren't here recruiting. Instead, in groups of about 20, the students got a chance to hear from key executives an overview of developments and challenges in their sectors, and in their companies. So we're not at the place we would like to be as far as recruiting. We have 40 to 45 companies coming on Saïd's campus to recruit 125 students. It helps that we're growing, and accepting more students, since it's a good investment decision for companies to recruit at schools where there are plenty of students to choose from. I should note that our largest employer is McKinsey. In fact, 5% of our current class members are sponsored McKinsey analysts. This is an endorsement of the program. In January 2004, we're launching a new executive MBA program. We see this as a significant, positive development for building relationships with employers. Q: What is the school doing to coax recruiters to campus? A: We're talking to recruiters and line people -- non-recruiters and executives in the firms -- to see how we can answer their needs, and not just their recruitment needs. We often put them in touch with faculty members to discuss facets of research, or develop other linkages that aren't specific to recruitment. Q: How has the economic downturn affected the job options of MBAs? A: In 2000, about 80% of our graduates had jobs by the time they graduated. One hundred percent had jobs three months after graduation. Since that banner year, we've have been down 15% on average, which is in line with figures reported by other leading schools. But our current MBAs don't graduate until October 2003, so there's still time [for the number to improve]. With the downturn, we've needed to develop more links with non-sexy MBA sectors that we had, perhaps, ignored in the past. For instance, [we're working with companies in] energy and utilities, and engineering and transportation, including aviation and automotives. These are massive sectors, so the scope is there for us to do a lot more work with them. The challenge is raising our profile with these companies. Q: What are the biggest issues your office has had to deal with as the school started up? A: The B-school started with 48 students in 1997, which was very small. The first five years were startup years. Now, we're into growth, and since we're physically closer we're trying to integrate with the university community. For the first five years, we were marketing something that lacked a physical entity, but now we have world-class facilities to assist recruiters, and the feedback from employers visiting is very positive. The biggest issue is that 60% of our MBAs are career changers, which heightens the challenge for us. To change a career in 12 months takes tenacity. In 2000, which was a good year, two-thirds [of those who wanted to change careers] achieved that objective. Now, only one-third of aspiring career changers will succeed in the current environment. [The other two-thirds of career changers] will survive, but they may not achieve their key objectives in the short term. Also, the Graduate Management Admissions Council reported in 2002 that 75% of hires at U.S. schools came out of internship programs. That poses a challenge for a 12-month program [since there is no time for a full internship.] We do have projects in which a team of students solve a business problem for a company, but we're reviewing the current project opportunities to ensure that they're compatible with the needs of employers. Q: You can't control the economy, but you can get your students primed to find jobs. What services does your office offer? A: The MBAs arrive [on campus] in October but we start talking with them in July. It's a comprehensive careers program that spans the year, and is integrated into the teaching. It includes skills and knowledge workshops on subjects such as applications and resumes, networking, work authorization and visa issues, and other topics. In the work authorization course, for example, we invite a top attorney from the U.S. and another from the U.K. to talk about the visa process. We also have recruitment fairs, including online fairs and visits with top executives. Q: Tell me about the students you're promoting to corporate recruiters. A: They're very entrepreneurial, and less risk-averse. Without fail, employers are impressed with the caliber of our students. That will continue to be a key to the recruiting process. We're not making lots of promises [to students] on placement, but we are guaranteeing support, and hard work [on their behalf]. Of course, that's not that attractive to hear when you're paying a lot of money for the MBA. Editor's note: Saïd's MBA program, including university fees, costs about $37,500 for 12 months.
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