The popularity of private equity as a job destination for MBA graduates has more than doubled in the past six years, according to Financial News research, as increasing numbers of aspiring financial services professionals study for the qualification in a bid to win jobs in a fiercely competitive marketplace.

Financial News analysed figures from five of the most popular MBA schools: Harvard Business School, Stanford Graduate School of Business and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, all in the US, the UK's London Business School, and France and Singapore-based Insead.