November 26, 2015

New MBA scholarship program to support future female leaders

A new scholarship program that supports Australian businesswomen has been launched at UOW. 

A new scholarship program that supports Australian businesswomen to climb to the top of the corporate ladder has been launched at UOW. 

The Sydney Business School, University of Wollongong, will offer 50 Women in Master of Business Administration (MBA) Scholarships over the next five years aimed at encouraging more businesswomen to continue their studies. 

While research shows an MBA has a significant impact on career pathways, with graduates reporting promotions, increased responsibilities and salary, in 2015, only 30-35 per cent of MBA enrolments were female.

Associate Professor Grace McCarthy, Associate Dean (Education) of UOW’s Faculty of Business, said the Sydney Business School UOW is committed to achieving gender equity in its MBA course.

“By partnering with businesses to identify and support females through an MBA, we aim to create gender equality both in the MBA and in the corporate world, an issue that is long overdue,” she said. 

“By addressing inequality, we will aid more strong female leaders to reach their full potential. We want to see more female executives, board members, members of parliament and Prime Ministers. This will undoubtedly enhance the quality of discussion and decision-making, leading to enhanced performance and productivity in our organisations.”

“We feel the partnership between UOW, businesses and students is the best way to tackle the significant barriers for women entering an MBA, including time, cost and a lack of female mentors, as all three parties will share responsibility for successful outcomes and return on investment.”

Earlier this year, The network announced in August that it is committed to raising almost $20 million (in university and industry funds) to attract 320 new women into MBA programs over the next three years.

Former Premier of New South Wales Professor Kristina Keneally, who is now the Director of Gender Inclusion at Macquarie University’s Graduate School of Management, one of the business schools involved in the MBA gender equity network, helped launch the UOW program at a special event on Wednesday 25 November.

Professor Keneally discussed the MBA gender gap and the benefits of overcoming the problem.