Here's some great news if the cost of an MBA has given you severe sticker shock. You will be pleasantly surprised to hear that Arizona State University’s W.P. Carey School of Business is making its two-year, full-time MBA program starting this fall completely free.

The school is using a $50 million gift from real estate mogul and philanthropist William Carey to award up to 120 scholarships to students accepted into its full-time MBA program starting in the 2016-2017 academic year, said Dean Amy Hillman.

Before the scholarship announcement, full-time tuition at the school was about $90,000 for international students. Prior to this year, the school awarded only 17 full-tuition scholarships per class.

Not surprisingly, the free MBA has sparked a great deal of interest among prospective students around the world. As of April 4, the full-time MBA  program had received 1,165 applications. According to admissions staff, Carey has filled out roughly half its class. The school has up to 120 slots for the coming school year and is casting its net wide to succeed in its goal of attracting non-traditional candidates.

"Admissions staff have walked prospective applicants through the details and assured them the school's free MBA is not a joke," Kay Keck, director of W.P Carey School's full-time MBA, told reporters.

Competitive applicants must have good GMAT scores to apply for the MBA program, along with college transcripts, essay responses and strong letters of recommendation.

The W.P Carey School is one of the largest business schools in the U.S. and is well regarded for its peer network, interesting classes, satisfied students, career services, and solid preparation in management and teamwork. The school teamed up with the Mayo Clinic to offer a joint MD/MBA program in 2009. Carey’s star professor is Edward Prescott, the 2004 Nobel Prize winner in economics. The school brings top recruiters like Amazon, Intel, Dell and Raytheon on campus for company briefings and job fairs, and gives MBA students access to tools like its vast alumni databases and paid-for job sites.