The GMAT just keeps expanding. GMAC reports that there are now more than 500 centers worldwide where you can take the test, up more than 25 percent since 2006.

A record 267,000 people took the test in 2009, and for the first time since its creation, there were more international than US test-takers (by just a single percentage point). A lot of the growth comes from China and India. The number of Chinese citizens taking the GMAT rose 35 percent in 2009, while 7 percent more Indians took it. The growth in the number of test-takers on the subcontinent has been explosive recently, increasing 128 percent in the last 5 years.

To meet the additional demand, the GMAC is opening an office in India, according to the Times of India. It will be the company’s third, after the US and UK. “I feel there’s great potential for growth in the country,” GMAC CEO David Wilson told the paper.

Good news for MBA hopefuls: A couple of recent stories indicate things are picking up at career offices, particularly if you’re interested in clean energy.

Last week we pointed to a Business Week piece about increased interest in European MBA programs. Now the mag tells us recruiting is also picking up at the continent’s top b-schools. Renewable energy companies are recruiting aggressively, along with biotech, public administration, and nonprofits, says the director of INSEAD’s career office. That fits with the news from the senior director of Sloan’s career office, who recently told the Journal she’s seeing a lot of action in consumer products companies, including clean tech and medical devices. The hiring process still isn’t easy, but there’s light at the end of the tunnel! If that’s too far in the future for you to worry about right now, rest assured that students are seeing more summer internship opportunities too.

When you think about school rankings, US News & World Report is likely top of mind. However, the Business Insider has come out with its own B-school rankings using a method that emphasizes value to the graduate based on network and perception of the credential. These rankings also claim to have incorporated the feedback of top recruiters. It’s worth a look, if only to get a second opinion on the value of having graduated from certain schools.

Thinking of going to school abroad?  You’re not alone! Applications are up sharply at European B-schools, according to Business Week. It’s part of an upward trend worldwide, but the increase is particularly high in Europe, where many institutions say apps are up 10 percent or more. The Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School in Belgium has doubled its class in the past year, while Switzerland’s St. Gallen has grown its part-time program 100 percent. The trend is also ramping up competition in many places–Westminster Business School, in the UK, has had to wait-list full-time MBA candidates for the first time in the school’s history.

The piece attributes the growth largely to career changers and young people looking for a recession safe haven that will bolster their resume. European schools are also increasingly attractive to international students who plan to return, thanks to easier visa requirements and widely dispersed alumni networks.

If you’re in the market for an international GMAT course, check out our new London offerings, as well as our Live Online classes. And if you just want to take a trip to Europe, the dollar’s getting stronger, so a Big Mac will only be $8 or so.

We’ve all heard various things about getting into business school. Is it true that only quant types get into Wharton and marketing types into Kellogg? Do alumni recommendations matter more than others? Is the third round really the dead zone in terms of getting into a selective school?

Well, if you want to know the real scoop on these and other issues, our admissions consulting partner mbaMission is holding Mythbusters events in Boston and Philadelphia next Thursday, March 18th, and online on March 23rd! All events are free and conducted by an experienced Admissions Consultant from mbaMission. Thanks to them for dispelling MBA Admissions myths everywhere!

Every day we see candidates vying to join the ranks of our Instructors here at Manhattan GMAT. We’ve exerted considerable effort in trying to identify what makes a teacher great, though we’ll admit that in practice, despite our developed body of insight, we rely substantially on the “you know it when you see it” technique. That’s one reason we fly all candidates to New York for their final round of auditions (approx. 1 out of 5 candidates that’s flown to New York gets an offer, so we spend a lot of time on this process).

The New York Times today published a fascinating article on the efforts to figure out what makes a good teacher and how to develop the qualities/techniques/knowledge necessary. There has long been a disconnect between professional education (i.e. teachers’ education programs) and success in the classroom, and the article details different researchers’ findings on what a ‘good teacher’ should know and should be doing. It’s something that’s overdue – in many aspects we feel that we in the test prep industry may have a leg up on many institutions in terms of focusing on the mechanics of effective teaching. There’s a shout-out in the article to The Equity Project, which was started by Zeke Vanderhoek, who also founded Manhattan GMAT in 2000.