Ethics of MBA admission

An interesting post about the ethics of MBA admissions. The crux is this:

Some announce their admissions as early as February, others in April. Students who pay up at B schools which close their admissions early end up losing anything from Rs 50,000-100,000 even though they withdraw their applications a full two months before the start of the academic session.

I think this happens in other education institutions as well because there is no standard date for admissions. It's a free for all--do whatever you want. Why do you think education is such a lucrative business? (Not for most teachers though.)

I can understand losing your deposit if the seat that you vacate is not filled by anyone else. But, in most cases, the demand for a "seat" far exceeds the supply. That's why we have the waiting lists for seats.

Maybe schools don't want to return the full deposit. So, do something similar to what the Indian Railways does when you cancel a ticket--set a sliding scale return policy. Two months before admissions--75% refund, one month before--50%, etc.

It's amazing though that this scam has been going on for so many years and we've not paid too much attention. Familiarity breeds acceptance I guess.