Getting accepted to a top US MBA programme has been particularly cut-throat this year as a rise in applications from international students, the economic downturn, and a marked increase in the potential student-age population have combined to make this admissions cycle the most competitive since the end of the technology boom.

Admissions directors in the US have seen a double-digit percentage increase in applications compared with last year, continuing an upward trend after several years of decline. Applications to the Johnson School at Cornell University rose 23 per cent over last year, for instance, while applications at Berkeley's Haas School of Business were up more than 15 per cent.