Takeaways from the AJCU business deans conference

A few months ago, the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities (AJCU) invited our team to join 50+ business school deans and associate deans from around the country for their annual conference. This trip to Kansas City was a great excuse to eat some delicious barbecue, but also a great opportunity to dialogue and learn even more about business school enrollment best practices.

Here’s a recap of the insights these business school leaders shared about their roles, goals, and hurdles during our lively conversations and via a survey we conducted leading up to the event.

Diverse growth and advancement are top priorities

Business schools play a critical role in preparing the next generation of leaders, but the path to achieving enrollment goals is not without its challenges. And for business school leaders, growth isn’t just a goal—it’s a necessity. Increasing enrollment in critical programs was the top objective for 100% of the nearly 50 respondents. The second and third top enrollment priorities were international student recruitment and increased diversity, respectively. These objectives reflect the global nature of today’s business education and the commitment to creating more inclusive learning environments.

Advancement also plays a vital role in driving growth, with both deans and associate deans rating it as a top priority. Building strong alumni networks, cultivating donor relationships, and fostering corporate partnerships are key strategies for sustaining long-term success.

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At the same time, 67% of business leaders are focusing on their academic portfolio and program design, with 37% of participants aiming to launch new programs within the next 18 months. These efforts align with emerging growth in fields like data analytics, fintech, and sustainability.

Standing out among competition to generate leads continues to be a challenge

The competition among business schools is fierce, and 80% of leaders cited differentiating their programs as their top recruitment challenge. In a landscape in which students have so many options, schools are grappling with how to clearly communicate their unique value proposition to prospective students.

Generating leads is another major, and related, pain point, with 70% of surveyed business school leaders citing this as a top challenge. We know from our recent survey of 6,000+ graduate and adult learners that 51% of graduate business candidates prefer to research programs on their own before sharing any information with a school. We also know that traditional lead sources are becoming more limited as GMAT and GRE test-taking declines all while competition for graduate business students is increasing.

It is more important than ever to diversify your lead sources and understand the motivations, habits, and concerns of prospective graduate business students to allow your enrollment marketing professionals to effectively generate and nurture leads. Dozens of institutions have turned to Appily Advance (formerly Cappex) to help them source right-fit candidates to reach a larger pool of prospective students, generate high-quality leads, and meet enrollment goals.

See how two graduate business schools are sourcing cost-effective leads

Resource and staffing constraints are causing stress

Our survey of business school leaders also revealed that the drive for growth and innovation comes at a cost. Sixty-six percent of respondents reported stress levels of 4 or 5 (out of 5), stemming from inadequate resources and overwhelming demands. For institutions to remain competitive, staff stress must be addressed. Whether through increased funding, partnerships, or innovative resource allocation, schools need a stronger foundation to achieve long-term growth.

Key contributors to stress include:

• Lack of resources: 60% of deans and 80% of associate deans feel they lack the resources needed to meet their objectives.
• Long work hours: 50% of deans and 65% of associate deans feel overworked.
• Unfilled staff positions: 40% of deans and 43% of associate deans identified unfilled roles as a stressor, and 15% identified it as a recruitment challenge—keeping with broader workforce constraints in higher education.
• Unrealistic goals: 30% of deans and 25% of associate deans cited unrealistic goals as a stressor. This doesn’t surprise me since setting realistic enrollment goals is especially challenging at the graduate level due to limited student and market data, faculty influence in determining program capacity, and the often-decentralized nature of graduate enrollment.

From enrollment growth and diversity goals to resource constraints and competition, it’s clear that business school leaders are deeply invested in driving meaningful progress. Addressing these hurdles will require innovative solutions, strong partnerships, and a commitment to supporting the people behind the mission.