Several weeks ago an apparent uptick in just-in-time MBA hiring was reported as graduation came and went for many students. Now, well into the summer, it appears that this uptick has become a trend, with a number of sources reporting steady increases in MBA recruiting. A recently released survey by the MBA Career Services Council indicated that 38% of U.S. business schools noticed an increase in on-campus university recruiting activities for full-time MBA jobs as compared to last year’s miserable recruiting cycle. According to QS TopMBA, the European MBA market is experiencing similar trends, although recruiters are still remaining cautious with the economy not yet out of the recession and the threat of renewed problems stemming from Greece’s sovereign debt issues.

Some of the sectors which have been leading the comeback are energy, technology, and consulting. The energy sector is growing quickly thanks to increased stimulus spending, and its growth is creating job opportunities for MBAs in areas such as energy trading, business development, and project finance. The large consulting houses, traditional preferred employers among MBA students, are also beginning to restock their diminished ranks as signs continue to point to a sustained economic recovery. Many of these firms were among the first
to cut their university recruiting activities at the onset of the recession but are now finding themselves short-handed and forced to quickly ramp up to meet client demands. Some even appear to be doing so by way of the large signing bonuses which were common pre-recession but had largely disappeared in the past two years.

Despite the recent good news, recruiting activities are still significantly scaled back from what they were a few years ago. The type of recruiting which most employers are now conducting is much more targeted, focused on finding the best candidates for specific job roles, rather than generally recruiting for top talent and figuring out roles for them afterward, as had previously been common at many top schools.