The DOJ has sued Apple and 5 other publishers accusing them of colluding to increase the prices of ebooks. Read more in the WSJ and the Huffington Post.  While the case is about ebooks in general, we are hoping that it will eventually spill over into text books too.

As MBA tutors, we empathize with the students cost burden. With an already high cost of education (tuition, living, etc) paying $150 for text books really really bothers students. Especially when they find that in 3 or 6 months, these student may never use the book again!

This case is alleging that these publishers met in private dinning rooms to discuss ways in which they can sell ebooks higher in response to Amazon selling them at $9.99 a piece.  One wonders what actions cause the price of text books to stay so high!

A yahoo finance article on college tuition lists out a few colleges that charge $50,000+ per year! Is college worth this much? Maybe yes. But why would you pay this much when you have plenty of other great options that will cost you only a fraction of this price!

The survivors of the devastating earthquake in Haiti need our immediate help. These first 48 hours determines how many lives we can save.

Together, we can help communities get back on their feet.  The Clinton Foundation lists several places you can donate.  You can also text “HAITI” to “20222″ and $10 will automatically be donated and charged to your cell phone.

Another way to help in this time of need is to spread the word.  Please post a message on your Facebook, Linkedin and MySpace pages and other networks you influence.  Blog it, tweet it, talk it and walk it! It will go a long way toward mobilizing people.

As MBA students, you are in the midst of a dynamic community. If there is a drive to support the relief efforts support it, if there is none become a leader and START ONE asap!

The EuropeanVoice.com has an interesting article on the impact of the downturn on MBA schools and MBA students.

Unlike many other articles that just state that the number of students or applicants have increased, this one has tried to go deeper. They still have no specific numbers nor have they tried to guesstimate it.  But have a ‘guess’ on possible reasons for the changes they see.

Time.com reports on this story. Not breaking news – we have been hearing a lot about this and not great news either!

We hope the new administration has heard the concerns of students and understand the importance of college/graduate education for the future of American competitiveness.  However, before we sit back and expect the government and others to do something about it let us ask the question “What can we do about this?  Are there any creative ways to overcome this? How can I take responsibility here”

Part time jobs?  Entrepreneurship on the side? Opencourses (MIT / Yale)? If you have any creative ideas do email us.

President Obama is going to do a townhall meeting online!!  He has invited everyone to use a new feature called “Open for Questions” to ask a question about the economy and rate other questions up or down.

The first category of questions is on Education.  Please take your concerns to the President.  Sign in to the site and address your concerns regarding graduate education and graduate tutoring.

“What will you and your administration do to help make college more affordable for every American?” asks Jill from Chicago, IL.

“What is the government doing to make higher education more affordable for lower and middle class families?” asked James who described himself as a full-time student who also works full time, “only to break even at the end of the month.”

Two additional comments:

• First let me say that going online is a great move!  Being an online service we understand the medium and its potential reach.
• Second, please don’t miss this opportunity to take your concerns to the President.  Let the world know your concerns regarding graduate education.

State colleges and universities are feeling the pinch just like many states themselves!  And they are responding just like the states and other organizations are by doing what they can to survive.  Unfortunately this means a lot of cuts.  Not good news for graduate education.

“The trend line is states disinvesting in higher education.”

So said Jane Wellman, executive director of the Delta Project on Postsecondary Costs, Productivity and Accountability, an organization that studies spending by colleges and universities in this NYT article.

While the mission of public universities and community and state colleges is providing local education, we hope the top universities and boards whose mission is to provide top quality and cutting edge education will not cut back on the investment in graduate education.  While undergraduate education is key for local economies today and in the near future, graduate education and research will be critical for long term growth and success.

Thomas Bartlett has reported on how students are cheating with the assistance of online services in the latest issue of The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Great work Thomas!

We at GraduateTutor.com are often approached to do papers and want to once again reaffirm our commitment to adhere to our ethical standards.  GraduateTutor.com adheres to generally accepted University honor codes and expects all students it serves to do so.

Students truly suffer the most from this dishonest practice as they have lost the opportunity to learn what the assignment / task had intended for them to learn!  Read more about what GraduateTutor.com will not do and why here.

What these services do is give the tutoring industry a bad name!  There must be services such as ours that abide by honor codes and established ethical policies.  We hope that these articles will in some way cover or mention the ethical companies too.

The Association of MBAs’ survey on the state of 2,000 MBA holders’ careers in June 2008, provides strong evidence that even in these uncertain times, getting an MBA is one of the best things you can do to ensure that you and your skills are in demand.

As an organization catering to MBA candidates, we see many students who go to great lengths to get their MBAs.  We aways tell them that it will be worth it in the end. When these tough times end, and tough times always do,  companies will be looking for smart, efficient people and will be willing to pay them accordingly.

An MBA is an investment that gives great returns.  This is borne out by the above mentioned survey which reports that MBA graduates received an average salary rise of 46 per cent immediately after graduation.