As of 2021, the student loan debt totals around $1.6 trillion. That figure is so much more than the credit card loans and auto loans, which are often the most common ones. A standard graduate carries almost $30,000 in debt by the time they graduate. That said, the MBA programs are not doing anything to help with this crisis. The MBA programs are more expensive than ever before, and more and more people are pursuing them. There has been so much importance attached to the MBA programs that more students don’t mind adding to their student loans in order to undertake these programs.
The Cost of MBA Programs
Higher Education costs have increased tremendously over the last few years due to high inflation, and the cost of getting an MBA is even higher. For example, getting an MBA from a private school can cost you between $100,000 and $200,000 in debt in the two years that you’ll be in school. The cost of an MBA program is majorly affected by the field you decide to venture into. According to Poets and Quants, the cost of studying for an MBA in the top 25 business schools in the United States is $199,544 .
Yes, there are things you can do to reduce the cost of MBA programs, such as going for online options, but still completing an MBA can get quite expensive. Be sure that you choose a reputable institution offering these online MBA programs before going for this option. The costs of MBA programs are affected by various factors, including location, prestige, and whether you are getting it from a private or public school. Still, it is agreeable that getting an MBA can get quite expensive, and the increased demand for a Master’s degree has made the student loan debacle even worse since more and more students are borrowing money to complete their MBAs. Unfortunately, the high amounts of students loans among the students is associated with higher risks of stress, depression, high blood pressure, and worse general health
How MBAs Can Be Made More Accessible
Galloway does not suggest that college degrees or MBAs should be given out for free. However, he does suggest that higher education should be made more affordable so that even the poor can be able to access it. Some of the things that can be done to reduce the cost of MBA programs include:
- Giving incentives to colleges and universities that lower their tuition fee for MBA programs.
- Provide alternative ways to determine the quality of a college. Generally, many people believe that the higher the cost of an MBA program, the higher the quality of the program. One way that could be used is using college accreditors that can collect information about colleges and put it public.
- Provide incentives to colleges that use technology to cut the cost of MBA programs to help motivate others to follow the route.
- Reducing the interest rate for MBA student loans and making sure the rates are the same for all providers.
Afshar, V. (2021, March 23). Professor Scott Galloway: The Great Dispersion and future of Higher Education. ZDNet. Retrieved December 14, 2021, from https://www.zdnet.com/article/professor-scott-galloway-higher-education-is-ripe-for-disruption/.
Dumont, M. (2021, December 2). The real cost of an Mba. Investopedia. Retrieved December 14, 2021, from https://www.investopedia.com/articles/professionaleducation/09/mba-real-costs.asp.
Sweet, E., Nandi, A., Adam, E. K., & McDade, T. W. (2013). The high price of debt: Household financial debt and its impact on mental and Physical Health. Social Science & Medicine, 91, 94–100. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2013.05.009
