15% drop in state MBA entrance test applications

The management degree seems to be losing its shine year after year with fewer students opting for it.

The management degree seems to be losing its shine year after year with fewer students opting for it.

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The number of applications for the state management entrance test (MBA-CET) has dropped by 15 % from 1.05 lakh last year to 90,000 this year. Applications closed on Wednesday. Two years ago, 1.1 lakh students applied for the MBA-CET.

The test is the entrance criteria to over 370 institutes with an intake of more than 35,000 students. Some top institutes such as Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management (JBIMS),

Welingkars Institute of Management and SIES Institute of Management admit students through the MBA-CET.

“A variety of factors have contributed to this drop: The after effects of the industrial slowdown coupled with lesser students applying from other states because colleges have opened up everywhere,” said SK Mahajan, director, Directorate of Technical Education.

While the interest in management seems to be waning, the number of institutes is increasing. More than 70 institutes have opened up in the state from 2010 to 2011. In fact, after the last admission process over 10,000 seats were still vacant and the state opened them to graduates who had not even attempted the MBA-CET, something that has never happened before.