Schools Are Offering A Fire Sale On M.B.A.s

“One of the U.S.'s most expensive graduate degrees is going on sale.

 

Business schools at Purdue University, Johns Hopkins University and the University of California, Irvine, among others, are giving steep discounts on tuition that can save students tens of thousands of dollars.

 

For professionals who are considering whether to go back to school, it can offer a pathway to get a degree while staying debt free. But for the schools, many of which have struggled to attract applications, these discounts might not be sustainable as a business model.

 

The price breaks tend to be for shorter, more specialized business degrees aimed at workers struggling to gain traction in a tough hiring market. Younger professionals in particular might be spooked that AI will disrupt their career plans, so business schools are pitching them that a graduate degree in business will give them an edge in AI expertise without having to step away from a highflying career for too long -- or at all.

 

Purdue's Mitch Daniels School of Business is knocking 40% off its tuition next fall -- after starting the discount last fall and seeing a large number of students opt in -- which makes the 48-credit-hour program $36,000 for out-of-state students, down from $60,000. In-state tuition is $35,000. Students can take at least two years to complete the online M.B.A. program.

 

The Paul Merage School of Business at the University of California, Irvine, is cutting tuition as much as 38% -- or between $30,000 and $48,000 -- for the fall on its Flex and Executive M.B.A. programs, which include online and evening courses so students can keep working full time alongside their studies. Both programs include a redesigned curriculum that incorporates AI and emerging technologies.

 

The Johns Hopkins Carey Business School is giving a 50% scholarship to students who graduate from a Maryland college this spring and enter one of its specialized master's programs this fall, such as in finance or healthcare management.

 

Earlier this month, Washington University's Olin Business School in St. Louis launched a $10,000 scholarship for professionals whose careers have been affected by AI, either from a layoff or rapid adoption of AI at work that requires them to retrain. The Olin deal only applies to the school's new master's in AI for Business program.

 

"We wanted to provide as little friction as possible for displaced workers in order to be able to upskill and get back into the workforce," said Olin's deputy dean, Joe MacDonald. Graduating seniors who realize the field they just majored in has changed dramatically due to AI could also be eligible for the scholarship, he said.

 

Behind all of the price breaks is softening demand for the traditional two-year M.B.A. Demand for that degree tends to be countercyclical, which means when the job market is good, people would rather stay in it and make money. In today's climate, when some professionals fear that AI will displace them, job hopping has been replaced by job hugging, and many people are clinging to the jobs they have for as long as they can.

 

A lot of people used to treat the M.B.A. as two years of exploration, but most professionals don't feel that is a solid bet in the current environment, said Petia Whitmore, a former dean of graduate admissions at Babson College and founder of admissions consulting firm My MBA Path.

 

"They're saying, I can continue to just learn on the job. I'm actually OK the way I am," she said.

 

Applications to U.S. business schools slumped last fall, and many international students, worried about tighter visa restrictions, are opting for schools closer to home.

 

At Olin, applications from U.S.-based prospective students are increasing, while interest from foreign students has been stunted by the political climate, Olin's MacDonald said.

 

Christien Wong is a business and computer-sciences major at Washington University in St. Louis who graduates in May and plans to go for Olin's AI for Business master's degree this fall. It takes one year to get the degree.

 

But Wong sees value in gaining more skills in a shaky job market, so he is pressing on with the program.

 

"Almost every job posting I've seen for internships or new graduates wants some kind of AI skills and expertise," Wong said. "I think it's the right move to give me the right skill sets for the future."

 

The number of graduate students in management who received financial assistance has been soaring. A decade ago it was 48% and in 2025 it was 62%, according to the Graduate Management Admission Council, a nonprofit that tracks application trends.

 

Merit-based scholarships for business-school students is also on the rise, GMAC data show, at 47% of incoming students last year, up from 32% a decade earlier.

 

Many schools, already facing financial challenges, find they have to discount their tuition significantly to fill seats, said Tim Westerbeck, co-chairman of higher-education consulting firm Eduvantis.

 

But discounting, he said, has "gotten too expensive, and they still haven't figured out how they're going to sustain that model over time."” [1]

 

1. Schools Are Offering A Fire Sale On M.B.A.s. Smith, Ray A.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 13 May 2026: A1.