MBA Tuition Hikes Outpace Other Degrees

It’s hardly a secret that MBA tuition at business schools has been rising well above the rate of inflation for many years. But a new analysis of tuition over the past ten years shows that the cost of getting an MBA has risen faster than tuition for law, medical, graduate engineering and education degrees.

The study–by U.S. News & World Report–shows historical data on changes in enrollment and tuition, per general discipline at private versus public graduate schools and universities from 2006-2016. Not surprisingly, tuition has gone up significantly in each discipline, with especially big increases in graduate school rates for in-state residents.

But the cost of getting an MBA has increased the most over the past ten years, rising 73%–more than law (69%), medical (53%), engineering (53%), and education (52%). The largest increases in MBA tuition–exactly 100%–occurred in public universities for in-state residents. The increases in out-of-state tuition at public universities matched those at private business schools at 67%.

BIG GAINS IN ENROLLMENT IN ENGINEERING AND MEDICAL SCHOOLS

The data collected by U.S. News shows that student enrollment has gone up significantly in medical and engineering fields, but has inched up only 1% in full-time MBA programs, rose 8% in education and decreased in law. In business, private enrollment climbed by 3%, while public enrollment fell 2%.

Those numbers paled in comparison to the hefty 44% jump in enrollment in graduate engineering programs and a 15% increase in medical school enrollment. Law school student rolls dropped 15% overall, with a 16% decline in public universities and a 14% fall in privates.

In 2016, enrollment numbers at law programs, private and public combined, hit a record low while tuition saw a record high.

DON’T MISS: FULL COST OF THE MBA KEEPS RISING: FOUR SCHOOLS NOW EXCEED $200K