Business school MBA prices plateau as demand softens

CEIBS also provides a generous scholarship program, with 10 million yuan earmarked for 40 percent of the yearly intake. Various loan plans for Chinese and international students are other incentives.

"The MBA program is a professional course rather than a compulsory one," Li said. "Students who apply for MBA courses have made the decision by taking into account their personal needs and the cost of the program."

"Prestigious schools will always be favored and, in my opinion, it is impossible for them to reduce their tuition fees," she added.

Competition is also helping to peg prices. MBA course fees at Fudan University have increased by about 15 percent on average. But the 298,000 yuan fees for part-time MBA students will remain unchanged next year.

"The program costs at business schools should depend on the value they provide," Xie Hao, executive director of the IMBA program for the school of management at Fudan University, said.

Still, like many other Chinese business schools, Fudan is planning to revamp its MBA syllabus next year in a move to attract more students. The decision has been welcomed by one educational expert, who has has been calling for similar measures in the past few years.

"Today's business environment is global, complex, competitive and dynamic," Tom Robinson, president and CEO of the Association of Advanced Collegiate Schools of Business International in the US state of Florida, said.

"The knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform at a high level in this environment are constantly changing. Business schools must be engaged with business to make sure they are providing relevant education to prepared students.

"Business schools should also provide opportunities for students to engage with current business practices through experiential learning activities, internships and access to business leaders," he added.

Hopefully, more focused and cheaper courses will inspire students that have become disillusioned with existing programs.

In an MBA survey conducted in Shanghai this year by global recruitment service provider BRecruit, 60 percent of the 300 students polled admitted they were dissatisfied with the cost of the programs, and the academic and employment-related activities.

"Few things in life have a greater payoff than an investment in education in terms of the opportunity it provides," the Graduate Management Admission Council, an international non-profit organization of business schools based in the US, said on its website.

"But increases in tuition fees and other costs associated with earning an MBA, or Masters, as well as changes in the economy, may impact a student's decision to enroll in a graduate business program."