IIMs have come up with a 100% fees hike for its Management course from the present Rs 2.5 lacs p.a to Rs 5.5 lacs for the first year & Rs 6 lacs for the second year. Management education comes at a big cost is the message one can draw from the announcement. No doubt, a Management Degree from IIM is a gateway to the best jobs in the industry, but that does not hardely prove the reason for making the course costlier to the consumers. A gradual increase in the course fee would have been the best solution.
IIM is regarded as premier institution in the country as no matter whatever may be the background, rich or poor, a person is found fit to undergo the course if he had got the right grey matter & confidence to step in. With the steep hike of doubling the course fee, the Institute has shattered the dreams of the students of middle/lower middle class background. Eventhough the Institute proclaims that no student found fit would be devoid of opportunity purely due to financial consideration, the sheer monetary burden on students & their parents would weigh down the idea of taking the examination and pursuing the course.
Fees hike by IIM should not be seen in isoloation, as the cascading effect of similar fees hike by IITs & other premier institutes offerring MBA/graduate degree would follow as IIM is a trend setter. As the reason given for the hike was that the present fee structure is not cost effective, it would be a good idea for the IIMs to tax the Corporates as they are the ultimate beneficiaries.
What we are going to see in the future is an unregulated costlier education system from nursery to management schools, wherein the gulf between the haves and have-nots will get widened further.
