One of the major dilemmas that are faced by management education aspirants is related to selecting the right stream of management education. The question that occurs first and foremost is: Should I do MBA or a PGDM?
It is a myth in our country that MBA is much better than PGDM, just because PGDM is a Diploma and MBA is a Degree. But which one more accepted by the industry?
To bring out the real picture amongst the aspirants on PGDM and MBA, MBAUniverse.com has launched the special series on ‘PGDM or MBA: Making the choice’. In this series we are bringing to you insights from Directors and Deans of top B-schools. The eminent educationists share with you the differences between the two streams of management education and also guide you on your future path.
We continue this series by presenting to you excerpts from the interview with Dr. Anup Singh, Director, Jaipuria Institute of Management, Noida.
Excerpts from the interview:
Q. How are PGDM Programmes different from MBA programmes?
A. The differences between MBA and PGDM programmes are illustrated below:
MBA: University based degree programme approved by the UGC, Traditional programme, Low flexibility, Strictly regulated, Average placement
PGDM: IIM based diploma programme approved by the AICTE, Innovative programme, High flexibility; Autonomous, thus more dynamic; High placements
Q. What are the USPs of PGDM that make it attractive for the student community?
A. The PGDM programmes are offered by autonomous institutions which are student centric. The Institutions are responsive to industry needs and they continuously change their curricula and syllabi to address the concerns of the corporate world and to incorporate new developments in the discipline. More importantly, they offer high value added courses and workshop to enhance the employability of the students and to brush up their life skills. Hence they not only focus on academics but also on personal and professional dimensions of a student. Therefore, students generally prefer PGDM programmes over MBA.
Q. Which do you think is superior: MBA or PGDM? ….. and why?
A. PGDM programmes seem to have edge over an MBA programme in India because of their autonomous, innovative, value adding features.
Q. Your advice to the aspirants.
A. My personal advice to the aspirants is that in general PGDM programmes have an edge over MBA programmes. Nonetheless there are different institutions that offer various PGDM programmes and the aspirants should be careful in selecting one.
Stay tuned to MBAUniverse.com for more views on PGDM vs MBA.
