The tuition fees and ancillary costs for management education at the Indian Institutes of Management, private Indian b-schools and deemed universites have witnessed upto sixfold increases in the last seven years. In contrast, the government university affiliated management schools have only seen a marginal hike in their fees, making them look economically attractive. However, external circumstances and inflation have ensured that you now have to spend a substantial sum for living expenditure over and above the academic costs for studying in these institutions, thereby mitigating their cost advantage to an extent.
The two prominent government university b-schools according to the b-school Rankings are the Faculty of Management Studies (FMS), affiliated to Delhi University and Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies (JBIMS) affiliated to Mumbai University. The cost of the two year MBA program in FMS is Rs 10,450 per annum and the corresponding figure for JBIMS is 100,000 per annum.
The figures suggest that academic costs incurred in these institutes are a fraction of the cost of an MBA from the other top institutes in the country. But is that really true? We decided to speak to students at these two b-schools and find out what it really costs to do an MBA at these schools.
The two big cost components of an MBA program are the Academic Costs (Admission Fees, Tuition Fees, Course Materials, etc) and the Living Expenditure (A place to stay, Food, etc).
JBIMS Mumbai Academic Costs
We spoke to a student from the 2009-2011 batch of JBIMS and also a highly placed official in the institute. According to them the fees for JBIMS is mandated by the University of Mumbai at Rs 100,000 a year. This is inclusive of all the academic components. According to them, the other charges amount to approximately Rs 3,000 per year, which include examination fees and other miscellaneous expenses.
How the JBIMS academic costs split up,
Type of Fees
Fees per year (In Rs)
Over two yearsl (In Rs)
Tuition fees and other academic expenses
100,000
200,000
Other Fees
3,000
Total 203,000
Living Expenditure for JBIMS Mumbai
JBIMS has its own men's hostel in South Mumbai at Churchgate, about 5 minutes from the school. It has a capacity of 70 students encompassing both years. JBIMS has a hostel for girls in its Kalina campus in the western suburbs of Mumbai.
JBIMS does not allot hostels to those residing in and around Mumbai. Hostels are only allotted to students from outside the home university area and those from outside Maharashtra.
The hostel fees for the academic year 2009-2011 were Rs 120,00 per year, excluding food but including Internet access.
Type
Annual Cost (In Rs)
Total for two years (In Rs)
Residential Expenses
8,000
16,000
Food (Factoring Rs 100 a day)
36,000
72,000
Total
88,000
Total Cost of a JBIMS Degree
At JBIMS Mumbai on the other hand, you spend Rs 203,000 if you're a Mumbai resident (your travel and food costs being on actuals and depending on how much time you spend at home) and if you live in the JBIMS hostel, you spend Rs 291.000 on your basic expenses.
Most banks provide easy financial support for both colleges. Other costs such as business formals, laptops haven't been counted by us, as they are extra expenditure in most schools.
Comparing this to the expenditure at some of the other b-schools ranked in the same vicinity,
Academic Costs
(For the entire programme)
Living Expenditure
(For the Entire program)
Food included in the cost?
IIM Ahmedabad
Rs 13.7 Lakh
Included
Yes
IIM Calcutta
Rs 13.5 Lakh
Included
No
IIM Bangalore
Rs 13 Lakh
Included
Yes
XLRI Jamshedpur
Rs 12 Lakh
Included
Yes
IIM Lucknow
Rs 8 Lakhs
Included
No
SP Jain,Mumbai
Rs 8.2 Lakh
Rs 80,000
No, but pay as you eat
IIM Kozhikode
Rs 10 Lakhs
Included
No
The academic fee components of the JBIMS MBA are a lot cheaper than the ones from the other leading institutes. But overall, they are not as discounted as they immediately appear. The living expenditure however is significantly reduced at JBIMS because of the presence of a very reasonably priced hostel and its assured availability for all outstation students.
The two prominent government university b-schools according to the b-school Rankings are the Faculty of Management Studies (FMS), affiliated to Delhi University and Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies (JBIMS) affiliated to Mumbai University. The cost of the two year MBA program in FMS is Rs 10,450 per annum and the corresponding figure for JBIMS is 100,000 per annum.
The figures suggest that academic costs incurred in these institutes are a fraction of the cost of an MBA from the other top institutes in the country. But is that really true? We decided to speak to students at these two b-schools and find out what it really costs to do an MBA at these schools.
The two big cost components of an MBA program are the Academic Costs (Admission Fees, Tuition Fees, Course Materials, etc) and the Living Expenditure (A place to stay, Food, etc).
JBIMS Mumbai Academic Costs
We spoke to a student from the 2009-2011 batch of JBIMS and also a highly placed official in the institute. According to them the fees for JBIMS is mandated by the University of Mumbai at Rs 100,000 a year. This is inclusive of all the academic components. According to them, the other charges amount to approximately Rs 3,000 per year, which include examination fees and other miscellaneous expenses.
How the JBIMS academic costs split up,
Type of Fees
Fees per year (In Rs)
Over two yearsl (In Rs)
Tuition fees and other academic expenses
100,000
200,000
Other Fees
3,000
Total 203,000
Living Expenditure for JBIMS Mumbai
JBIMS has its own men's hostel in South Mumbai at Churchgate, about 5 minutes from the school. It has a capacity of 70 students encompassing both years. JBIMS has a hostel for girls in its Kalina campus in the western suburbs of Mumbai.
JBIMS does not allot hostels to those residing in and around Mumbai. Hostels are only allotted to students from outside the home university area and those from outside Maharashtra.
The hostel fees for the academic year 2009-2011 were Rs 120,00 per year, excluding food but including Internet access.
Type
Annual Cost (In Rs)
Total for two years (In Rs)
Residential Expenses
8,000
16,000
Food (Factoring Rs 100 a day)
36,000
72,000
Total
88,000
Total Cost of a JBIMS Degree
At JBIMS Mumbai on the other hand, you spend Rs 203,000 if you're a Mumbai resident (your travel and food costs being on actuals and depending on how much time you spend at home) and if you live in the JBIMS hostel, you spend Rs 291.000 on your basic expenses.
Most banks provide easy financial support for both colleges. Other costs such as business formals, laptops haven't been counted by us, as they are extra expenditure in most schools.
Comparing this to the expenditure at some of the other b-schools ranked in the same vicinity,
Academic Costs
(For the entire programme)
Living Expenditure
(For the Entire program)
Food included in the cost?
IIM Ahmedabad
Rs 13.7 Lakh
Included
Yes
IIM Calcutta
Rs 13.5 Lakh
Included
No
IIM Bangalore
Rs 13 Lakh
Included
Yes
XLRI Jamshedpur
Rs 12 Lakh
Included
Yes
IIM Lucknow
Rs 8 Lakhs
Included
No
SP Jain,Mumbai
Rs 8.2 Lakh
Rs 80,000
No, but pay as you eat
IIM Kozhikode
Rs 10 Lakhs
Included
No
The academic fee components of the JBIMS MBA are a lot cheaper than the ones from the other leading institutes. But overall, they are not as discounted as they immediately appear. The living expenditure however is significantly reduced at JBIMS because of the presence of a very reasonably priced hostel and its assured availability for all outstation students.