Survey: Salaries of Executive MBA Graduates Rise by 16.8 Percent

The salary and bonus packages of recent Executive MBA (EMBA) program graduates who participated in the 2014 Executive MBA Council (EMBAC) Student Exit Benchmarking Survey increased by 16.8 percent from program start to program end.

The average salary and bonus package at program start for students in the 2014 survey was $155,848, up from $140,310 in 2013. By the end of the program, the average salary and bonus package rose to $181,965, up from $159,963 in 2013.

EMBAC conducts the Student Exit Benchmarking Survey to track the perceptions and opinions of EMBA program graduates and to help measure the return on investment of the degree. The survey included 2,323 students from 79 EMBA programs.

In addition, the percentage of graduates who received new responsibilities increased slightly from 51 percent in 2013 to 53 percent in 2014, as well as those who reported a promotion during their time in the program, from 38 percent in 2013 to 41 percent in 2014.

“When I talk with EMBA graduates, they share their stories about how their time in the program helped them grow,” says Michael Desiderio, EMBAC executive director. “They gain skills and enhance their leadership abilities in ways that help them add value to their organizations. The return on investment statistics in the EMBAC survey also help show the impact of the degree.”

EMBA graduates also report high levels of satisfaction with their EMBA experience, ranking program quality (4.1 on a 5-point scale), their willingness to recommend their program to a colleague or friend (4.2) and the likelihood of supporting the program as alumni (4.1).

When evaluating programs, survey participants said the six most important program attributes are overall length of the program (4.4 on a 5-point scale); compatibility of class schedule with work, class size, and reputation of business school (all 4.2); and quality of other students and quality of study team/study groups (all 4.1).

For more information about the EMBA experience and to search for EMBA programs worldwide, visit www.executivemba.org.