Women in conversation

Strengthening the gender balance of the Oxford MBA

Published

Oxford Saïd and the Laidlaw Foundation unveil a new scholarship initiative

At a time when the pandemic and a global recession is disproportionately affecting women’s careers, Oxford Saïd and the Laidlaw Foundation have formed a new scholarship initiative to strengthen the pipeline of female executives.

The Laidlaw Scholarships will enable Oxford Saïd to build on its 2019 position as Europe’s most gender balanced major business school, with a 44% female MBA cohort. The 2020 MBA has strengthened its gender balance, with a 47% female cohort, making it one of the most balanced business schools in the world.

The announcement coincides with significant changes within the MBA market: according to a recent Graduate Management Admission Council survey, 47.1 percent of GMAT exams were taken by women in 2019 – the highest number on record.

Women from China accounted for 44.9% of the female GMAT exams in 2019. Applications to the 2020 Oxford MBA from women in China were up by 53% on the previous year. During the same application cycle applications from women in India also increased by 42%.GMAC analysis has shown that women are more likely than men to face financial limitations that prevent them from accepting offers to graduate business schools.
 

Women continue to face barriers that affect their career opportunities and, unfortunately, it seems that the Covid-19 pandemic may be accelerating this.

Kathy Harvey

Associate Dean of MBA and Executive Degrees at Oxford Saïd

‘Business Schools have an important role to play in creating opportunities for women, right up to board level where diversity is so important. We are delighted that this year we have a 47% female cohort on the Oxford MBA. We hope that through new initiatives like the Laidlaw scholarships, we can reach gender parity in the near future,’ Kathy Harvey, Associate Dean of MBA and Executive Degrees at Oxford Saïd said.

Laidlaw Foundation logo
Laidlaw Foundation

In 2020 there are still only five female CEO’s of FTSE 100 companies. By providing scholarships to diverse and exceptional women, the Foundation aims to achieve equal representation and power in C-Suites and boardrooms around the world.

The initiative will start in 2021 and fund up to eight women on the Oxford MBA every year. The Oxford Laidlaw Scholars will be joining over 300 Laidlaw Scholars from Columbia Business School whom the Laidlaw Foundation has supported to earn their MBAs; and Scholars at London Business School where the Foundation launched a Women’s Movement in 2019.

Lord Laidlaw, Chairman of the Laidlaw Foundation, commented: ‘With concerns about the impact of Covid negatively impacting the progress of women in business, it is more important than ever that we enable the world's leading business schools to recruit and empower brilliant women. We are delighted that Oxford Saïd is joining the Laidlaw Scholars Women's Movement.’

Over the past five years the number of women joining the Oxford MBA has increased from 36% to 47%. As well as strengthening its scholarships for women, the School has undertaken initiatives to support female leadership, including skills development programmes and career workshops. The Oxford Saïd careers team recently reported a glimmer of hope for gender diversity in business, with the finance sector placing increased emphasis on a more diverse and gender-balanced workforce.

In 2018, the School founded The Oxford Women's Leadership Alliance (OWLA), a network and programme of events designed to foster inclusivity, partnership and allyship among students.

Jaysri Ananth
Jaysri Ananth

Current MBA and member of the leadership committee for OWLA Jaysri Ananth chose Saïd Business School as, ‘Oxford is as diverse as it gets.’

The first female in her family to study outside of her home state of Tamil Nadu, India, and with an undergraduate degree in Engineering, she is a Young India Fellow, having taken the Ashoka University postgraduate diploma in Liberal Arts, which focuses on empathetic leadership for social change.

Having experienced being denied a loan due to being a single woman, Jaysri chose to level the playing field. Whilst working at Clix Capital, a loan provider, she successfully piloted Super Women Loans, a digital loan program for female entrepreneurs.

Jaysri wanted to study for an MBA to reinforce her credibility as a leader, ready to steer new initiatives in fintech. She is a passionate feminist and advocates the importance of women owning their achievements, without fear of being categorised as a gender diversity target. ‘Women are not as vociferous of their success and don’t celebrate years of hard work, that gender balancing trade-off is still there,’ she said.