Making managing director at a top global bank like Goldman Sachs is among the most prestigious promotions in the industry.

With the total population of senior staff steadily declining at the bank, part of cost-cutting measures outlined earlier this year, the MD rank — one step below the highly-coveted title of partner — is also becoming more difficult to attain. This year’s class of 509 people, announced last week, is larger than in 2015, the first year Goldman Sachs switched to promoting biennially rather than annually, but smaller than the combined classes of 2012 and 2013.