IIM Ahmedabad: Dream destination of MBA aspirants; USPs are more than those visible

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MBAUniverse.com News Desk |
July 23, 2015
One of the few Indian business schools to have earned global acclaim, IIM Ahmedabad is the world's 26th best MBA program according to the Financial Times ranking 2015
IIM Ahmedabad thrives to transform Indian management education scenario by generating and propagating innovative ideas of global significance based on extensive research and creating business leaders

Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA) is India’s answer to the likes of Harvard and Wharton. One of the few Indian business schools to have earned global acclaim, IIM Ahmedabad is the world’s 26th best MBA program according to the Financial Times ranking 2015. The Economist also ranks the IIM-A as one of the top 100 business schools in the world. In 2008, IIM Ahmedabad became the first Indian business school to be accredited by EQUIS (European Quality Improvement System).

Dr Ashish Nanda is the Director of IIM Ahmedabad. A great academician, leader and an alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad Dr Nanda did his B. Tech from IIT Delhi in Electrical Engineering; PGDM from IIM Ahmedabad; M. A. Economics and Ph.D. Business Economics from Harvard University. Before joining IIM Ahmedabad Dr Nanda was the Robert Braucher Professor of Practice at Harvard Law School. Besides, he was also Faculty Director of Executive Education at Harvard Law School and Research Director for Case Development and International Internships at the Program on the Legal Profession and the Center on Lawyers and the Professional Services Industry.

IIM Ahmedabad thrives to transform Indian management education scenario by generating and propagating innovative ideas of global significance based on extensive research and creating business leaders capable of taking risks and who can change managerial and administrative practices for enhancing the performances of organizations.  Relevant changes with regards to the fee structures, admissions norms, and introduction of new courses are the highlights of this year.

Management Programmes at IIMA

IIMA’s flagship programme is the two year full time Post-Graduate Programme in Management (PGP). Other significant programmes on offer include:

Fellow Programme in Management (FPM),
Post Graduate Programme in Food and Agribusiness Management (PGP-FABM),
Post Graduate Programme in Management for Executives (PGPX),
Faculty Development Program (FDP), Armed Forces Programme (AFP)

Details of new programmes are available at http://www.mbauniverse.com/article/id/8136/IIM-ahmedabad

Post Graduate Programme in Management (PGP) - one of the toughest MBAs in the world
The PGP programme of IIM Ahmedabad is a 2 year full time programme and rated as one of the toughest MBA programmes in the world. The PGP curriculum is innovative and constantly revised by the world class faculty of IIM Ahmedabad and industry leaders. The programme offers 4 courses namely Foundational, Tools and Techniques, Oriented, Functional and Perspective-Building.  The core courses in the first year focus on developing the fundamentals of business and management and include subjects such as Financial Markets, Corporate Finance, and Business Research Methods among others.

3 new core courses
In addition, 3 new courses namely ‘Government Systems & Processes’, ‘Understanding Global Organizational Context’, and ‘Having an Entrepreneurial Mindset’ have been introduced.

In the second year, students can choose from a wide variety of electives depending on their area of interests and career needs including Entrepreneurship, Information Systems, Communication, Finance and Marketing and many more. Elective courses are generally clubbed with exchange programmes and project components among other aspects.

Summer Internship after first year
After completion of the first year, students undertake summer internship with the corporate partners of IIM Ahmedabad. The training is usually for a period of six to eight weeks and exposes students to practical understanding of the market.

PGP Projects
IIM Ahmedabad offers 4 different types of projects to suit individual student needs. A project helps students to go beyond the curriculum and gives them the opportunity to learn real-world business. The different types of projects are as follows: 1. An Independent Project   2. Project Course    3. Course of Independent Study and   4. Comprehensive Project

Student Exchange Programmes
In order to create global awareness and facilitate international perspective which is crucial in today’s business world, IIM Ahmedabad  offers  a number of student exchange programmes established with leading business schools in Europe, North America, South America and the Asia-Pacific region. IIM Ahmedabad is a member of PIM, (Partnership in International Management) which is a network of almost 72 leading business schools across the world. Some of the exchange institutions include NYU Stern School of Business, University of Chicago (Booth), McGill University, HEC Paris, Nanyang Business School, National University of Singapore, The University of Melbourne, Guanghua School of Management among others.

Double Degree Programme
IIM Ahmedabad also offers double degree programme with ESSEC France and University of Bocconi Italy. Students willing to integrate their study abroad experience with other international students and gain an enriching experience can choose for a double degree programme based on their eligibility and admission requirements.

Career Impact of the IIMA PGP
Successful completion of the placement process by leading recruiters in the shortest period of all the 375 students in 2015 proves the quality of the IIM Ahmedabad education and standard of excellence of the students. Placements at IIM Ahmedabad are amongst the best in India. Over the years IIMA has produced business leaders and achievements of the IIMA alumni can be regarded as testimony to the quality management education and the career impact IIM A has imparted on an individual.  In early 2014, The Economist ranked IIMA as the 4th best institute globally in terms of ROI.

More than 115 recruiters from multiple sectors such as Consultancy, IT, Management and Finance among others participated in the 2015 placement process at IIM Ahmedabad. Accenture Strategy emerged as the top recruiter having recruited 21 among 375 students from the campus. Other recruiters include Morgan Stanley, Barclays, McKinsey & Company, Amazon, HSBC, Nestle and many other notable organizations.

Keen to take entrepreneurship as a career, 11 students started their own ventures such as tourism, e-commerce and food processing. Placement details available at the link http://www.mbauniverse.com/article/id/8423/IIM-Ahmedabad

Students at IIM Ahmedabad show their gratitude by praising the excellent learning at IIM Ahmedabad. One of such Alumni of IIMA, Shikha Sharma says   “I owe a large part of whatever I have achieved to IIMA. It did a great job of equipping me with the knowledge and skills required to excel in a finance job, particularly analysis and research. Over the years I have found that these skills have been invaluable throughout my different responsibilities at ICICI. IIMA not only gives to its students an armoury of skills, but also develops in them the assurance of being as good as the best anywhere. That, in the final analysis, is the ultimate confidence booster.”

Fees and Scholarships
IIM Ahmedabad has recently announced a fee hike after more than 2 years for its PGP, PGP-FABM and PGPX programmes. For the PGP programme, the new fee structure is to be implemented from 2015-2017 and will now increase from Rs. 16.6 lakhs to Rs. 18.5 lakhs. Details on fee structure of IIMA available at http://www.mbauniverse.com/article/id/8157/IIMA

To provide financial assistance to deserving candidates, IIMA has established a Special Need-Based Scholarship Scheme. During 2012-2013, IIM Ahmedabad disbursed financial aid of Rs. 7.55 crores to 295 students and Rs.6.94 crores to 242 students in 2013-2014.  The scholarship amount is based on several criteria including family income, number of dependants in the family among others. Educational loans are also provided by the Indian banks to the students.

Despite the fee hike, IIMA’s PGP programme remains one of the most sought after and cost-effective management programmes with high Return on investment (ROI) in the world.

Admissions – Eligibility and Evaluation
Admissions to the PGP programme are highly rigorous and only the best ones succeed. The admission process is made through CAT (Common Admissions Test) or GMAT and personal interviews. Selection in IIM Ahmedabad is a 2 step process as follows:

Applicants who have a valid CAT score will be invited by IIMA for an Analytical Writing Test (AWT) and Personal Interview (PI).

Minimum Requirements
Applicants must hold a bachelor’s degree with at least 50% marks or its CGPA equivalent.

Minimum CAT percentile for IIMA PGP is 90%. However, actual CAT 2014 cut off percentile in the first shortlist for PGP batch 2015-17 at IIM Ahmedabad stood at 99.67.

Students admitted to IIMA PGP have scholastic achievements in studies and extra-curricular activities. In the past years, candidates demonstrating high levels of initiative and leadership skills, teamwork, adaptable, hard working and strong task orientation were admitted.

Two Major Changes in Admission Norms
Deferred Admissions – IIMA announced deferred admissions in which students who have already secured admissions can work for a couple of years before joining the PGP programme at IIM A.

Supernumerary Seats for foreign nationals – Number of seats for foreign nationals will be increased over its present capacity for the PGP course.

USPs

1. Internationally acclaimed, ranked 26th by Financial Times 2015

2. World class faculty- nearly all faculty members are doctorates, many of them having teaching experience in globally renowned business schools and many are experienced industry leaders.

3. Rigorous selection process – only the best ones get admitted, study with the best minds at IIMA

4. Case Method is the teaching-learning method at IIMA; IIMA also produces a number of cases that it uses.

5. Exciting student life; cultural and sports festivals, marketing fair, international b-school meet and a number of events to help students in their all –round development.

6. Industry Linkages– IIMA has close connections with the industry and policy makers in India and abroad. These connections facilitate networking, placements and research activities.

7. Only business school where the top companies such as Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, Citigroup Asset Management and UBS Warburg come for summer and final recruitment

8. Innovative curriculum; global learning and study abroad opportunities

9. IIM alumni includes The Chief Economist at the IMF, Global Head of fixed income research at Lehman and other international management gurus

Stay tuned to MBAUniverse.com for more updates on IIM Ahmedabad