As the incoming class of undergraduate and graduate business students ready themselves for the fall semester, Westchester”™s three largest business schools are reporting mixed results in recent enrollment trends.
According to figures provided by Mercy College”™s business school, enrollment nearly doubled from 164 Master of Business Administration candidates in the 2012-13 academic year to 327 in 2014-15. The school”™s undergraduate business enrollment has remained more or less level dating back to fall 2009, when 1,021 students were enrolled in the major compared with 1,076 last fall.
- Hagan School of Business Dean Vincent Calluzzo. File photo
Iona College”™s Hagan School of Business, which offers an MBA in eight different concentrations and four Master of Science degrees in finance and public accounting, saw the converse in its enrollment figures. Hagan saw its graduate enrollment dip from 415 in 2012 to 370 in 2013 to 324 in 2014.
Despite the downward trend among its graduate students, Iona saw its undergraduate business program enrollment rise nearly 9 percent from 974 students in 2012 to 1,112 in 2014. Hagan School of Business Dean Vincent Calluzzo attributed the rise to the versatility of a business degree, which has landed alumni jobs in both the public and private sectors throughout Westchester County and New York City. He added that not only are the absolute numbers up in terms of undergraduate business students, but also the total percentage of students coming to Iona that study business.
“Most people don”™t get jobs on Wall Street out of school,” Calluzzo said. “We need accountants and financial people in other areas. It”™s more broadly defined than just Wall Street. People have come to that realization.”
The reason behind the dip in graduate numbers, Calluzzo said, was a combination of things including an improving economy.
“When the economy was bad, many students needed advanced degrees,” he said. “Now they”™ve gone off to work rather than coming to graduate school.”
Pace University Dean of Admissions Donna Grand Pre said the university”™s Lubin School of Business saw an 11 percent rise in enrollment for its graduate programs from 758 students in fall 2012 to 841 in fall 2014. One of the main reasons for the rise, she said, was the business school”™s introduction of a Master of Science degree in social media and mobile marketing that is co-branded with the interactive design studio company MediaStorm. The school also recently introduced a customer intelligence and data analytics master”™s degree for those looking to enhance their credentials, especially those switching career paths, Grand Pre said.
“For those that have come out of the workforce, they often need a professional credential to go to the next level,” she said.
“It”™s always possible there will be fluctuations year by year,” she said of enrollment numbers. “It depends on the application population and a number of other factors.”
She added that the university has not formally discussed a cap on its business school enrollment should figures continue to rise.
Because most programs are still in the application or decision processes, estimated enrollment figures for the upcoming fall semester could not be provided. But Grand Pre said that deposits for the upcoming fall semester are up 15 percent despite applications down 6 percent.
Calluzzo said that Iona”™s business school exceeded expectations for last year and the numbers for this year so far look “phenomenal.” The school in 2011 opened its own $1 million equities trading floor to enhance the hands-on experience for its students and help the program grow.
“We got rid of the downward spiral,” Calluzzo said. “You have to take a look at the marketplace and you need to make the appropriate adjustments.”
