Asia-Pacific MBA Programmes With Surprisingly High Graduate Salaries

A high return on investment (ROI) is one of the main reasons professionals decide to do an MBA. After all, who wouldn’t want to progress in their career and be rewarded with a higher salary?

If increasing your earnings is your main goal, you might already know of a few business schools in the Asia-Pacific that will guarantee you a salary boost after graduation, such as Melbourne Business School, the University of Hong Kong, HKUST and Otago Business School.

However, top ranked schools aren’t your only option when it comes to helping you boost your salary substantially.

Here are some lesser-known Asia-Pacific MBA programmes that will see you earn a significant salary jump after graduation.

Country breakdown

Comparing this list to European business schools with surprisingly high MBA salaries, the Asia-Pacific region emerges as much more diverse in terms of country breakdown, as almost all major countries in the area rated in the QS Global MBA Rankings 2021 appear as providers of high ROI.

However, there seems to be a number of similarities with European MBA programmes. In fact, top-rated schools such as NUS, CEIBS and CUHK lose spots for facilitators of high graduate earnings to lesser-known schools, such as Sydney Business School (Wollongong), La Trobe and Sungkyunkwan University.

It is worth noting, however, that business schools in the Asia-Pacific region seem to lead to the lowest graduate salaries compared with European and American business schools. Nevertheless, this could be due to differences in local job markets and costs of living.

Am I guaranteed six-figures?

While median salaries reflect the average earnings of MBAs after graduation, it’s difficult to predict exactly how much each graduate will make post-business school.

This is because salaries depend on a variety of factors, including:

• Industry: It’s no secret that some industries are more lucrative than others. For instance, an MBA working at a small sustainability start-up might make less than a classmate landing a top position at a global consulting firm – so, if a high salary is your top goal, make sure you pay close attention to which industries pay MBAs the most. Here’s the top 10.
• Location: Location also plays a very important role in your salary. Depending on where you’ll live, your earnings will either rise or decrease to reflect local costs of living. Of course, working in bigger business hubs such as London, Milan and the Paris will lead to greater salaries.

Employability matters

However, a high salary doesn’t come without effort and hard work. In today’s job market – where more and more candidates possess interesting professional backgrounds – standing out to recruiters is becoming increasingly difficult, hence why it’s important that you focus on becoming as employable as possible.

But how can you increase your employability during your MBA?

• Build a strong network: Getting to know the right people can take you to the right places at the right time. During your degree, make sure that you attend as many events as possible (both online and in-person) and that you take advantage of all networking opportunities that arise. These might be grabbing a coffee with alumni, attending a career fair, or even meeting your classmates outside of school. Having a strong network might lead to invaluable professional opportunities in the future.
• Focus on transferable skills: Solid business knowledge is important, but so are transferable skills. Depending on which industry you’re interested in, make sure you take classes – including electives – that are tailored to your unique needs, but that can also be applied to other sectors within your focus area.