Archive · 5 Oct 2026
Why India’s Two-Year MBA Faces Pressure as Students Reconsider
Some students are asking whether a two-year MBA is worth the time and money.
In India, fewer people took the CAT entrance test in 2025 than in 2024.
Some students may choose technology jobs, shorter courses or other ways to build a career instead.
Employers say they want people who understand business and can also use technology, solve problems and work well with others.
Some business-school leaders still believe an MBA teaches important skills.
They say AI cannot take over every human decision or leadership task.
They think schools should update their lessons and offer more hands-on learning.
The article describes a changing MBA, not a degree that has disappeared.
The article says fewer students took India’s Common Admission Test in 2025 than in 2024, amid wider questions about the two-year MBA.
High tuition, the time required and uncertain returns are making shorter or alternative routes more attractive to some students.
Business-school leaders cite technology careers and AI as factors drawing some students away, while Gen Z students consider jobs, specialised study and entrepreneurship.
Employers increasingly value adaptability, digital fluency, problem-solving, collaboration and the ability to turn strategy into results.
Some educators say an MBA remains useful but must become more interdisciplinary, experiential and connected to technology.
- Who
- Prospective students, Indian business schools and employers.
- What
- The article examines pressures on the traditional two-year MBA and how management education and recruitment are changing.
- When
- The article notes that fewer students took the CAT in 2025 than in 2024 and discusses changes linked to the years before and during the Covid-19 pandemic.
- Where
- India, with examples from the United States and the United Kingdom.
- Why
- Students are weighing MBA costs and duration against other career and education options, while technology and AI are changing employer needs.
Why the traditional MBA faces pressure
Why management education remains valuable
Cost, duration and alternatives
Why the traditional MBA faces pressure
Some students may find the time and cost of a two-year MBA less compelling and consider shorter programmes, specialised study or jobs instead.
Why management education remains valuable
IIM Calcutta Director Alok Kumar Rai says one-year degrees can save time, and other educators argue that management education still offers useful foundations.
AI and the value of an MBA
Why the traditional MBA faces pressure
Technology and AI-related opportunities are drawing some prospective students toward technology careers, while employers are broadening recruitment beyond business schools.
Why management education remains valuable
Several leaders say AI cannot replace human judgment, leadership and accountability, and that business knowledge can complement technology skills.
How business schools should respond
Why the traditional MBA faces pressure
A traditional general-management curriculum may not meet changing industry needs if it does not equip students with relevant technology skills.
Why management education remains valuable
Rishikesh T. Krishnan and other educators call for the MBA to evolve through interdisciplinary, experiential and technology-focused learning.
- CAT participation
- The article says fewer students took the Common Admission Test in 2025 than in 2024.
- Management institutes in India
- The article estimates around 4,000 institutes in India offer management degrees.
- Reported US MBA tuition
- The article puts tuition for full-time MBA programmes at the cited schools at around $150,000.
- One-year executive programmes
- Top B-schools’ one-year executive programmes typically require about five years of work experience, according to the article.
- Employer priorities
- Interviewed employers highlight adaptability, digital fluency, structured problem-solving, collaboration and implementation.
- IIM Lucknow programme
- IIM Lucknow welcomed its first batch of a four-year BS in AI and Business Analytics.
- US programme change
- The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign announced in 2019 that it would close its residential full-time and part-time MBA programmes and focus on its online iMBA.
