[desimba]

That is simply not true. As you can see yourself for all of the reasons that you enumerate there is a greater demand for spots in graduate programs at B-schools relative to the number of spots available. Each individual area takes 2-3 applicants per year for every 100 applicants leading to a selectivity of 2-3% whereas the rates for econ programs would tend to be double of that- at 5-6%; not large by any stretch of the imagination but larger nevertheless than B-schools. And let me also add that finance is usually the most competitive of them all. I still remember stats for Columbia's GSB from their class of 2007, I think -5 admits out of 219 applicants!