Women in MBA Scholarship supports future female leaders

The Curtin Graduate School of Business is supporting more women to study an MBA with 10 Women in MBA (WiMBA) scholarships available.

WiMBA is a joint endeavour between Curtin’s graduate school and four other leading Australian business schools to address gender imbalance in MBA study. When the scholarship launched in 2015, only 30 per cent of students studying an MBA were women; that has now increased to just under 50 per cent. 

About the WiMBA program

Time and cost are the primary factors that prevent many women from undertaking tertiary study – factors compounded by the gender gap. The WiMBA scholarship promotes diversity in leadership by partnering with businesses to identify top female employees and supporting them financially and logistically to complete their MBA.

The scholarship is driven by an employer of an industry partner, who nominates female company staff who they believe have the potential to be future leaders in the company.

Support from the employer is twofold:

Financial: The Curtin Graduate School of Business offers 10 scholarships to women each year to complete their MBA in a partnership with their employer. Each scholarship covers 60 per cent of course fees (the employer contributes 20 per cent and the Curtin Graduate School of Business contributes 40 per cent).

On-the-ground: The employer provides the recipient with flexible time arrangements so they can attend classes, undertake additional study and group work, and complete assignments.

MBA leads to stronger career outcomes

The career benefits of holding an MBA are well known and include promotion, increased responsibility, stronger professional networks and a bigger salary.

For Sarah Kahle, the WiMBA Scholarship opened a career pathway that was otherwise impossible.

“The convenience of the city location and flexibility offered by Curtin made the idea [of an MBA] very tempting, and then the incredibly generous Women in MBA Scholarship made my idea a reality,” Sarah says.

Sarah completed her MBA in 2023 while working in a local government role. She says her exposure to design thinking and innovation techniques in the MBA program proved useful in numerous scenarios at work. Sarah has since progressed her career to Manager of Entrepreneurship Programs and Community at Curtin University.

For Davina Hunter, the WiMBA Scholarship took the financial factor out of her decision to study an MBA.

Women’s work is everyone’s job

The Government’s 2024 Status of Women Report Card shows that women in Australia are diverse, educated and hard working. It also shows that while Australia has the fourth highest level of tertiary-educated women in the OECD, women still earn less than men, do more hours of unpaid care and are less likely to be in leadership positions.

This is despite extensive reports that increasing female workforce participation is key to boosting Australia’s productivity and innovation. A 2018 projection by KPMG found that if the workplace gap between men and women were halved, Australia’s annual GDP would increase by A$60 billion in just 20 years.

The WiMBA Scholarship plays a vital role in getting industry to think in the right way about women’s potential and to back women to achieve that potential.

“As a woman juggling a career, family life and work, having something I was doing just for myself became an important part of my MBA experience,” Sarah says.

“It allowed me to take time out from my other responsibilities and concentrate on what I needed to do for my course – and for me.”

Apply for a WiMBA Scholarship

If you’re interested in applying for a WiMBA Scholarship, first speak with your line manager about the program and discuss your leadership goals. Your employer needs to agree to provide 20 per cent of the MBA course fees.

Visit the WiMBA Scholarship page to check eligibility criteria and application dates.

If you have any questions about the scholarship, email the Curtin Graduate School of Business: mba_programs@curtin.edu.au.