Counter-Cyclical Trends Driving MBA Applications Higher
Tired of sending out resumes for non-existent jobs on Wall Street? Go back to school, everyone is doing it....
Applications to business schools are surging, buoyed by a shaky economy and lingering fears over job security, the organization that administers the main business-school admissions exam said Aug. 26.
The Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) said that 77% of business schools surveyed by the group reported an increase in application volume in 2008, up from 64% in 2007. It's the second-largest year-over-year surge in applications to full-time programs since 2002, and the highest level of increase in five years, GMAC said. And early signs are that the upcoming admissions cycle will continue to be strong.
The strong demand for business school did not surprise admissions officers, who note that applications for MBA programs typically go up when the economy slides. A similar upturn was seen following the dot-com crash earlier in this decade. Business Week
The for-profit education stocks get little respect on Wall Street, but they are known to be counter cyclical. And while Corinthian Colleges (COCO-NASDAQ) has had a few issues of late, I continue to look for big things out of the new management team at Apollo Group (APOL-NASDAQ).
Former Credit Suisse analyst Greg Cappelli and his banker Chas Edelstein are now guiding the ship, and if the stock can bust through technical resistance levels around the current quote the stock could trade with a 70-handle. The easy money has been made, but domestic enrollments are likely to benefit and their international expansion should keep the investment thesis alive for the next 3- to 5 years.
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APOL Marking time..
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Sagging Economy Boosting B-School Programs
Business Week
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