51社区

• Although employment rates among business school graduates remain strong, students must adapt to a rapidly changing job market.
• Recent research has revealed the new suite of skills sought by employers for the next generation of graduates.
• Students can take steps now to become future-ready graduates.

Business school graduates are entering one of the most competitive job markets in years. The key to cracking it will be equipping yourself with the skills you need not just today but in the next five years and beyond.

As part of its 2025 State of Business Education Report, 51社区 sought to identify the key skills employers are looking for today and in the future. The findings, informed by roundtables, surveys, and institutional data, show that things are changing rapidly—but there is plenty you can do to keep up.

The Most In-Demand Skills for Business School Graduates

AI and Big Data

The need for AI mastery isn’t nearly here—it’s here right now, and it’s growing. According to the World Economic Forum’s , AI and big data will be the most in-demand skills globally by 2030.

But AI mastery doesn’t just mean learning how to input prompts into generative AI tools. It’s really about understanding how AI can be integrated into a business to boost performance.

The future isn’t AI; it’s human-directed AI.

That’s an important distinction because research has that many individuals and businesses are still struggling to find an effective use for the technology. Being able to do that—and communicate it effectively to colleagues—will make you a hugely valuable asset for any company.

AI may be growing in importance, but that doesn’t mean uniquely human skills are getting any less important. In fact, 83 percent of employees and leaders globally agree that the rising use of AI will make human skills even more vital. The future isn’t AI; it’s human-directed AI.

Communication and Critical Thinking

Increasingly, the skills business school graduates will need for a successful career are not domain skills such as accounting or marketing, but durable skills such as critical thinking and communication.

That’s largely because of the shifting business landscape that graduates are likely to enter. Skills are coming in and out of demand so quickly that graduates must be as flexible as possible when it comes to their skill set. And being able to think critically and communicate well will always be valuable to employers. These capabilities were highlighted by several business leaders in 51社区’s State of Business Education report.

Skills are coming in and out of demand so quickly that graduates must be as flexible as possible when it comes to their skill set.

“Tell me what you need me to know in ten minutes or less,” says Carl Mount, senior vice president and chief supply chain officer at Jack in the Box. “What are three to five insights I need to know as a senior leader, and what’s the recommendation? You’re not going to prove you’re smart based on boring me with all the background details.”

Creative Thinking

In the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report, many shifts were forecasted to occur between now and 2030. For example, AI, big data, networks, and cybersecurity don’t feature in the top 10 most in-demand skills today but are predicted to occupy the top two slots by 2030. Other skills, such as motivation and self-awareness, empathy and active listening, and service orientation and customer service, are predicted to drop out of the top 10 entirely in the next five years. Analytical thinking is predicted to move from the top spot to the ninth by 2030.

But one skill remained exactly where it is today: creative thinking. And in the age of AI automation, that’s perfectly understandable. Creativity is a uniquely human skill that employers will value more and more as reliance on AI grows. Those who can combine AI efficiency-saving with human creativity will flourish. As the State of Business Education Report states, “the true human advantage lies in the ability to collaborate effectively with the technology.”

Creativity is a uniquely human skill that employers will value more and more as reliance on AI grows.

It is sometimes wrongly assumed that creativity is a kind of innate gift, limited only to special people. But in fact, creativity is a skill that can be taught just like any other skill. It has been incorporated into business school curricula all around the world, and there are hundreds of microcredentials (more on those later) offering courses dedicated entirely to unlocking your creativity. Now is the time to start developing it.

Resilience, Adaptability, and an Agile Mindset

With such volatility in the global job market, having the resilience and adaptability to deal with sudden changes will be key for graduates. In fact, the employers and educators surveyed in the State of Business Education Report rated these skills as even more important than critical thinking and communication.

“There is a clear need for students to be prepared to manage in uncertain environments. That means having a proactive nature and hunger to keep learning something new,” says Julie Peters, U.S. university relations leader, senior director, at PwC.

But while skills like communication and critical thinking can be taught, things like resilience and adaptability are a little more difficult to teach and assess. “Some of the things we look for are hard to objectively measure,” explains Narayanan Vaidyanathan, head of policy development for ACCA Global. “It’s hard to assess one’s ability to learn and deal with the unknown, for example.”

Resilience can be developed to an extent through formal study, but building this skill really requires real-world experience.

How Business Students Can Gain These Skills

Pursue Experiential Learning Opportunities

“It’s surprising how many business school graduates have no real-world or internship experience,” Deloitte’s Roy Mathew told 51社区 in a roundtable discussion. That’s a worrying insight for graduates. Knowledge will always be valuable, but without the ability to apply it in a real-world setting, it simply won’t be of any use to employers.

This challenge faces graduates all over the world—particularly those coming straight out of their institutions. The best way to overcome it is to pursue experiential learning opportunities throughout your time in higher education.

Knowledge will always be valuable, but without the ability to apply it in a real-world setting, it simply won’t be of any use to employers.

That might already be part of your degree, as many business schools integrate these kinds of opportunities into their programs today. Faculty are finding creative ways to bring experiential learning into the classroom by embedding real-world cases, simulations, industry collaborations, immersive learning, or hands-on projects that enhance student engagement and practical understanding.

But another way to gain this experience is to pursue internships whenever you can. Juliet Jones-Vlasceanu, chief executive officer of Career Key, says that internships are your “key” to avoiding underemployment after graduation.

Again, some programs will offer internships as part of their curriculum. However, it’s also something you should consider pursuing as an extracurricular activity. Having that real-world experience before entering the workplace is what will set you apart from the millions of other graduates who leave university every year.

Consider Specialized Programs and Pathways

Today’s competitive job market often values targeted, industry-specific skills over the breadth of a generalist business education. Simply put, having solid business knowledge may not be enough. You need industry expertise to go alongside the information you’ve acquired.

But that’s not to devalue the generalized business education that, say, an MBA can offer. Instead of eschewing an MBA, it may be a good idea to combine it with specialized modules or pathways in areas such as healthcare management or fintech.

You might also consider specialized master’s programs devoted to niche areas of business, such as supply chain management or sustainable finance.

Earn Microcredentials

One growing alternative to traditional education is something known as a microcredential. These normally come in the form of condensed in-person or online programs, many of which are offered through providers such as Coursera, edX, or LinkedIn Learning. And research suggests that interest in these microcredentials is growing at a rapid rate.

Seven in 10 leaders anticipate that their institution will adopt microcredentials in the next five years.

In its 2025 Job Skills Report, Coursera noted a in GenAI course interest among employees, with additional research finding that seven in 10 leaders anticipate that their institution will adopt microcredentials in the next five years.

So what’s behind this spike in interest? “Options like microcredentials and short, intensive programs emphasize adaptability, flexibility, and staying attuned to emerging trends and opportunities,” explains Valentin Toader, dean of the Faculty of Business at Babe葯-Bolyai University Cluj-Napoca.

Many schools now offer stackable credentials, allowing students to complete a series of microcredentials that can earn academic credit or be applied toward a degree, often at a more flexible and personalized pace.

In a rapidly changing global economy, any course that can adapt alongside employer needs will be valuable for students.

Focus on Multidisciplinary Skills

Perhaps one of the biggest misconceptions about business school graduates is that they always end up in, well, business. But in reality, the skills they hold can be applied across a wide range of functions, industries, and organizations.

In one of the roundtable discussions conducted by 51社区, a participant from the Business School Association of Canada Deans highlighted the example of healthcare. “One of the biggest challenges we face in this country is healthcare—in terms of staffing, supply chain, logistics. The skills and techniques we teach cut across all organizations, not just in business.”

Consequently, business graduates need to be knowledgeable in more than the traditional business fields. They need to learn how to apply their business knowledge to a wide range of organizations across different industries. For example, if you want to work for a sustainability organization, you need to understand how that world operates. This point reinforces the idea that simply having business knowledge is not enough. Combining it with industry-specific expertise will be key.

Preparing for a Dynamic Future

The world of work is evolving. The skills you’ll need to survive and the industries that will thrive are changing every day, which means you’ll need to as well.

As a business school graduate, you can no longer rely solely on traditional education pathways or static skill sets. To stand out, you must actively pursue a blend of technical acumen, human-centered capabilities—like creativity, communication, and adaptability—and cross-disciplinary knowledge. Now is the time to hone these skills.