More insights from HBS’s Salomon on the state of the MBA.

On MBA job prospects:

• the job market has been challenging (to say the least) for graduates of the class of 2009
  as bad as it has been for the class of 2009, unfortunately things are shaping up to be worse (dare I say awful) for graduates from the class of 2010. While economic recovery seems likely sometime in late 2009/early 2010, layoffs continue for some time after recessions officially end. This is because those industries that start coming out of recession do not hire quickly enough to offset losses in the industries that continue to feel the effects of the recession. In addition, even when growth begins again, firms are reluctant to hire at first so as not to expand if there is a reversion to recession (i.e., a double-dip recession). Instead, they prefer to do more with less (asking existing workers to put in more hours, work overtime, etc.).
• the job prospects for 2011 graduates are uncertain, as I expect the post-recession recovery to be a slow one. To me, the immediate growth engine for the U.S. economy moving forward is unclear. I see some potential in alternative energy, nano-technology, and biotech (specifically, genome mapping and its associated applications). However, whether those industries will truly grow fast enough to bring robust growth back to the economy is uncertain. Moreover, although it is likely that the global economy will return to growth in 2011, there is a decent probability (at least in the U.S.) that the recovery will be a jobless one.

Adam asked how finance students were faring given that there had been so many layoffs in the financial sector. To that I responded that my experiences have been that finance students, in particular, were becoming more flexible with respect to the kinds of positions they have been willing to consider. Many are now open to consulting, general management, accounting, and other fields. In addition, I shared some anecdotes about students of mine who had been looking for jobs in non-traditional markets – exploring opportunities in places like Dubai, Abu Dhabi, continental Europe, and Asia. At this point, many are willing to go just about anywhere for gainful employment.