Diverse Law and MBA Cohorts Linked to Higher Starting Salaries, Study Finds
New research published in Nature shows law and MBA grads earn more from racially diverse cohorts.
Why it matters: The findings offer concrete evidence that diversity initiatives may deliver measurable economic benefits for law and business school graduates, directly addressing past court skepticism. This supports institutions considering or defending diversity policies.
- Study analyzed 2,964 MBA cohorts and 3,386 JD cohorts across decades.
- Each additional minority student in a 100-person cohort raised average starting salaries by $125 (MBA) and $298 (JD).
- Cumulative gains: $12,524 for MBA cohorts, $29,758 for JD cohorts per added minority student per 100.
- Researchers controlled for student quality, school reputation, and economic context.
A study published in Nature on April 29, 2026, delivers new data supporting the link between racial diversity in graduate business and law programs and higher starting salaries for all graduates. The researchers tracked 2,964 MBA cohorts from 141 business schools over 29 years and 3,386 JD cohorts from 200 law schools across 21 years.
- Adding a single minority student to a cohort of 100 was associated with an average increase in starting salary of $125.24 for each MBA graduate and $297.58 for each JD graduate.
- Across a typical 100-person cohort, this effect translates to an overall boost of $12,524 for MBA and $29,758 for JD graduates upon entry into the job market.
- The study’s authors took into account variables such as student quality, institutional reputation, and economic conditions to isolate the effect of racial diversity.
The findings arrive as U.S. law schools and universities evaluate diversity policies following the Supreme Court's 2023 decision to overturn affirmative action. The court cited a lack of empirical evidence supporting diversity benefits in education.
“Different people bring different points of view, and that actually helps everyone,” said Debanjan Mitra, Business Professor at the University of Connecticut. Co-author Peter Golder of Dartmouth emphasized, “Our results indicate that policies promoting racial diversity boost salaries for the entire cohort of students.”
However, some remain skeptical. Jonathan Butcher of the Heritage Foundation counters, “There is very strong evidence that affirmative action actually harms students.”
Further research is needed to clarify impacts beyond initial salaries and differences by institution or industry. But for now, the study arms law and business educators with fresh evidence of the financial value of racial diversity in classrooms.
By the numbers:
- 2,964 MBA cohorts — examined over 29 years across 141 business schools
- 3,386 JD cohorts — analyzed over 21 years at 200 law schools
- $29,758 — Cumulative increase in starting salaries for 100 JD grads, per added minority student
Yes, but: Long-term effects beyond starting salaries—and industry variations—remain unexplored in this analysis.