Education, Careers & Professional News
Courses for professionals see fewer takers this year
New Delhi: India’s business schools, which expect to see a cooling in placement activity in the coming season in the wake of the global economic slowdown and the collapse of several investment banks that hired from at least some of them, are waking up to the prospect of a sharp fall in revenue from management development programmes or MDPs, because of the same reason.
Revenue from MDPs, typically targeted at companies, has grown significantly in past years but officials at B-schools admit that this would be lower or, at best, the same this year. In an attempt to cope with the slowdown, firms are cutting overall spending on training their executives at B-school courses for professionals.
A professor associated with MDPs at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, which earned approximately Rs45 crore from its MDPs last year, told Mint on condition of anonymity that “a couple of executive programmes in the financial services sector…had been postponed due to the company involved cutting down on its expenses”. He declined to share details.
Abhoy Ojha, chairperson of MDPs at IIM Bangalore declined comment.
IIM Lucknow was more forthcoming. Its revenue from MDPs was Rs5.46 crore till September this year, against last year’s Rs9.49 crore. Abhishek Nirjar, chairperson (MDPs) and strategic management group at IIM-L said the figures dipped because the State Bank of India withdrew from the programmes this year. “We trained about 500 executives from SBI last year. This would have translated to more revenue if they hadn’t backed out.”
The International Management Institute (IMI) in New Delhi, has seen a 20% decline in revenue from MDPs. And the Institute of Management Technology in Ghaziabad (IMT), another prominent B-school, has seen a 30% decline.
C.S. Venkata Ratnam, director of IMI said: “Several companies in the retail, oil and steel sector have either deferred or cancelled programmes pledged…earlier.”
Generic programmes targeted at executives appear to have been hit more than company-specific MDPs.
College May Become Unaffordable for Most in U.S.
The rising cost of college — even before the recession — threatens to put higher education out of reach for most Americans, according to the annual report from the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education.
Over all, the report found, published college tuition and fees increased 439 percent from 1982 to 2007, adjusted for inflation, while median family income rose 147 percent. Student borrowing has more than doubled in the last decade, and students from lower-income families, on average, get smaller grants from the colleges they attend than students from more affluent families.
“If we go on this way for another 25 years, we won’t have an affordable system of higher education,” said Patrick M. Callan, president of the center, a nonpartisan organization that promotes access to higher education.
“When we come out of the recession,” Mr. Callan added, “we’re really going to be in jeopardy, because the educational gap between our work force and the rest of the world will make it very hard to be competitive. Already, we’re one of the few countries where 25- to 34-year-olds are less educated than older workers.”
Although college enrollment has continued to rise in recent years, Mr. Callan said, it is not clear how long that can continue.
“The middle class has been financing it through debt,” he said. “The scenario has been that families that have a history of sending kids to college will do whatever if takes, even if that means a huge amount of debt.”
But low-income students, he said, will be less able to afford college. Already, he said, the strains are clear.
The report, “Measuring Up 2008,” is one of the few to compare net college costs — that is, a year’s tuition, fees, room and board, minus financial aid — against median family income. Those findings are stark. Last year, the net cost at a four-year public university amounted to 28 percent of the median family income, while a four-year private university cost 76 percent of the median family income.
More : nytimes.com
Indian MBA Students Say They Are Willing to Work for Less
ncreasing apprehension among India’s top MBA students regarding campus placements in the wake of the Wall Street crisis in the U.S. may be a good opportunity for other employers to hire world-class talent at cheaper salaries, industry sources say.
For the elite of the six Indian Institutes of Management, India’s premier business schools, “Destination Wall Street” was not only a highly enticing career move but also an unspoken quest for permanent residency in the U.S. But with Wall Street’s recent upheaval, students are cautiously looking at alternatives that offer more security. Perhaps unprecedented in India, salaries now have taken a back seat to stability.
Wall Street firms Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch and Goldman Sachs have been the largest recruiters at India’s schools, hiring the best talent for investment banking jobs. The companies have lured IIM’s talent with lucrative pay packages and incentives, offering starting salaries of $120,000 to $360,000.
“Investment banking was the most sought-after career option. Its unfortunate fate will be a big setback for students working toward a job in these firms,” says professor Sushil Kumar, placement chairman of IIM Lucknow.
As of March, 34 percent of the 290 students at IIM Calcutta opted for financial services. Thirty-two students received offers at investment banks. The highest pay package was reportedly $330,000.
Just two weeks before Lehman announced bankruptcy September 14, two students from the graduating class of 2009 had received pre-placement offers for its London office. But then news of Lehman’s demise surfaced, and their discussions quickly turned to “if only” and “now what?”
“I was obviously shocked and disappointed when I saw the news, but now I have come to terms with it,” said Rounak Agarwal, one of the two students selected by Lehman. “I will now wait for the final placements in March 2009 and try to bag an offer from any investment bank. If not, consulting would be my second choice. An assessment of the risk factor of the firm will take precedence over brand and salary package.”
More : workforce.com
IIM-L to organize programme on Corporate Social Responsibility
Lucknow: The Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow (IIM-L) has announced a three-day programme on Corporate Social Responsibility and Business Sustainability from December 18-20, 2008 at its Lucknow campus.
The programme is designed for middle and senior level managers and professionals in the corporate and non-corporate sectors who are connected in any way with managing their organizations on a sustainable basis. The programme will also appeal to consultants and non-governmental organizations.
“CSR has become increasingly significant in the current business scenario. Businesses, all across the globe, have started facing a business environment, which comprises not only traditional stakeholders, but also large numbers of non-traditional stakeholders - institutionalized community groups, environmental NGOs, minority groups, media and the society at large. Businesses, in order to perform in a sustainable manner, have to be responsive to the needs, demands and expectations of all these stakeholders", a spokesperson at IIM Lucknow said.
“In past two decades, business climate has radically changed and consequently, the rules of the competitive race are being rewritten. In order to gain competitive edge, firms need to adopt socially responsible strategies and deepen relationships with stakeholders. This training will sensitize corporate managers to various issues of CSR and expose them to international developments in sustainable business management", the spokesperson further said.
“In India, till very recently, the focus was on charity, which is not really CSR. Sustainable CSR programmes mean a cohesive mix of economic, legal, ethical and philanthropic tenets. In today’s changed business scenario, there is an increased focus on giving back to society and creating a model which works long term and is sustainable and it is imperative that the best practices for inclusive growth are shared with the stakeholders", said Prof. Sushil Kumar, Programme Director.
Countless social and ethical issues frame relationship between business and various stakeholders including government and society.
Recent rash of scandals involving major corporate giants throughout the world have brought to the attention of public and academia the need to analyze these issues.
As corporate India struggles to finds its social and ethical identity in national and global business environment that grows increasingly complex, managers are confronted with exceedingly difficult challenges in balancing their economic, legal, ethical, and philanthropic responsibilities to the variety of stakeholder groups with which they interact.
The programme will dwell on the following modules to ensure that the participants will be exposed to the current international and domestic CSR initiatives and the need thereof.
More : indiaedunews.net
IIM-Lucknow study points to poor nutrition levels of mid-day meals
Lucknow Thousands of primary and upper primary students across the state are not getting the required amount of nutrition in their mid-day meals, according to a study conducted by the Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow (IIM-L).
The study was conducted recently as part of evaluation of the mid-day meal scheme by the Uttar Pradesh Mid-Day Meal (MDM) Authority for its better implementation. The study stated that a poor student-teacher ratio and bad infrastructure in most schools also affect the MDM’s quality.
The study was conducted in 10 districts of Mirzapur, Jhansi, Balia, Etah, Gorakhpur, Pilibhit, Meerut, Lucknow, Kaushambi and Jhansi. It showed that 25 per cent of the schools surveyed had only one teacher, while 50 per cent of them were being managed by just two teachers.
“The study revealed that schools in Etah, Jhansi and Meerut were being run by Shiksha Mitra. Similarly, infrastructure of schools in most of these districts is also not up to the mark. While a majority of schools in Jhansi and Meerut had no classrooms, those in Bijnaur, Etah, Mirzapur and Gorakhpur had to study in one room. Due to this, the quality of MDM being provided there had deteriorated,” said a senior MDM official.
Santosh Rai, Additional Director, MDM Authority, said, “Despite being part of the menu, we have been receiving regular complaints that vegetables are hardly included in the meals.” Rai said that in view of the study, a meeting of the Additional Basic Shiksha Adhikari and Basic Shiksha Adhikari (BSA) was held earlier this week to ensure that the students get the requisite supply of nutrition at the local level.
“A presentation in this regard was made before us and we have asked them to make certain technical changes. The final report will be submitted on December 15. We will forward the report to the ‘Education for All’ and the Primary Education department so that the issues highlighted in the study is looked into,” said Rai.
“We are also keeping a watch on the introduction of the MDM scheme by the Mahila Samakhya Sangha (MSS), a non-government organisation,” he added. The MSS, which will launch the scheme next month, will grow vegetables in its kitchen gardens using organic farming methods, and provide nutritional food at cheaper rates.
Last year, an assessment of 18 districts was made on the basis of a field survey conducted by Giri Institute and the Lucknow University.
More : expressindia.com
Global turmoil doesn’t hit IIM-C placements
Brushing aside apprehensions regarding impact of the prevailing global crisis, Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta (IIM-C) has managed to uphold its reputation of being the top choice of recruiters yet again. The institute has managed to lure the highest number of companies at its summer placement which was conducted recently.
The rigorous planning and methodical efforts undertaken by the institute to counter the effects of the global meltdown finally succeeded with around 110 companies participating at the placement process. The institute claims to have received the highest recruiters this year.
The entire batch of over 300 students were offered the widest possible range of sectors and job profiles. Students were offered prestigious roles in investment banking, consulting, general management, marketing, media and private equity. In fact students had more options to choose from this time.
Around 100 students managed to grab position in prestigious companies like Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, McKinsey, Macquarie, AT Kearney, BCG, Bain, HSBC Global, JP Morgan Chase, Barclays Capital, Deutsche Bank, RBS, Rothschild and French investment bank Calyon.
Amongst these Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Royal Bank of Scotland preferred to recruit the highest number of students from IIM-C this year. Similarly, couple of positions were also bagged in Morgan Stanley London and two of the biggest names in Swiss banking, UBS and Credit Suisse.
Other than India, offers have come from across continents like the USA, Europe, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Middle East.
While investment banks recruited 58 students, the consulting offers stood at 16. Offers also came from a variety of domains including retail, general management, marketing and commercial banking. Some of the major marketing names this year included P&G, Unilever, Diageo, Pepsi, Nestle and ITC among others.
It is for the first time that companies like Yahoo, Amazon, Provogue, DHL Logistics, Reebok, Century Ply and the Mahindra Group participated in the summer placement. Apart from this, HT Media, Times Group and Star TV selected students interested in the emerging media sector.
“This year, companies from a wide range of sectors like marketing, finance, media, logistics and supply chain management, general management, public sector undertaking and analytic firms recruited students from this institute. Although the trend shows that finance sector continues to remain the preferred sector of choice, marketing has also seen an increase along with consulting,” said Mr Debtosh Mishra, external relations secretary of IIM-C
More : thestatesman.net
More government servants enrol for special IIM-A programme
A retired soldier, a doctor and an IAS officer are among 39 participants who have enrolled for a special programme at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, (IIM-A) aimed to enhance skills and broaden perspectives in public policy formulation.
This year, the postgraduate programme in public management and policy (PGP-PMP) at IIM-A has 39 students, of which 20 are government servants, a marked improvement over last year which saw fewer participants from the public sector.
IIM-A professor Sebastian Morris, who heads the programme, said at a media interaction on Friday: “We are looking for (financial) support from all types of organisations. I want more government participation and talks are underway in this regard. Benefits of improving governance helps the society at large including the private enterprise.”
Underlining public management today is restricted to private sector, he said that the Administrative Reforms Commission is discussing how civil services can be opened to the private sector. “Our problem is that the government service is cadre-based recruitment,” he added.
Students of the second batch, starting in April 2008, had a wealth of experiences to share at the interaction. All of them had undergone six to eight weeks courses between August and October on international attachment module in renowned institutions in four different foreign universities, with which the IIM-A has tied up.
The institutions included the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences of the University of Geneva, Lyndon Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin, the Georgetown Public Policy Institute, Georgetown University, and the H. John Heinz III School of Public Policy and Management, Carnegie Mellon University.
More : indiaedunews.net
Crisis takes a toll on IIM placements
As the current global economic crisis begins to engulf emerging nations including India, silence speaks louder than words at India’s topmost business school IIM Ahmedabad.
Though placement season usually brings the noises of a booming economy, but this year the global recession has brought down a sharp cut in salaries.
The job offers for IIM-A students have come down by about 42 per cent while overseas placements take a serious hit by declining over 60 per cent. It is a familiar situation not just at all IIMs but at other premier b-schools across India too.
“After Lehman Brothers became the most high-profile victim of the global credit crunch in September, we failed to understand the seriousness of the problem. The crisis has not only affected the markets of north America but far beyond which are normally the cream market for b-school graduates for their overseas placements,” said Dr Bakul Dholakia, vice chairman, Institute of Infrastructure Management.
This certainly means more students will now have to look for domestic jobs, thus, in turn giving Indian recruiters reasons to rejoice. And the biggest gainers are both private and nationalised banks. Also gaining for the first time, in a long while, are old economy companies.
“It was a talent drift, if not drain and today these top graduates are looking at opportunities in a diversified sectors which earlier was not there. The placement process was completely divided into 70 per cent to financial sector and rest 30 put together in all other sectors – that is now being changed and for good,” said Dr Anil Gupta, senior faculty, IIM-A.
At the moment the jobs situation in the market is highlighted by the fact that a large chunk of graduates have decided to opt out from placement process this year to study further and wait for the recession to fade out. While others have decided to set up businesses themselves hoping to make the most of a desperate situation.
More : profit.ndtv.com
AMU CAT 2009 Aligarh Muslim University Common Admission Test
Aligarh Muslim university common admission test is conducted for the students seeking admission to the MBA/MBA (IB), MFC/MTA courses. The admission of the students depends upon their score in the CAT examination of AMU and their relative performance in the group discussion and interview rounds.
Important dates of AMU CAT
1. 15-03-09 – last date to submit the examination form.
2. 16-06-09 – date of examination.
Eligibility criteria of AMU CAT
1. The candidate must have scored an aggregate of atleast 50% in the graduation examinations.
2. The candidates in the final of year of their bachelor’s degree can also apply provided that they have scored an aggregate of 50% marks upto 6th semesters examination.
Test pattern for AMU CAT
The AMU CAT examination is of the duration of 3 hours and questions are asked from different fields to test the candidate on three aspects namely the General Awareness of the candidate, verbal ability of the applicant, comprehension skills of the student, numerical and data interpretation skills of the students.
ATMA 2008-2009 AIMS Test For Management Admissions
Contact details of AIMS
Address: Office of ATMA
Association of Indian Management Schools
House No. 8-3-677/57 A
Plot No. 57, Sri Krishnadevarayanagar,
Street No.6, Yellareddiguda,
Hyderabad 500 016 India
Introduction
ATMA stands for AIMS test for management admissions. This examination is one of the most comprehensive examinations which provide admissions to the students seeking admission to the post graduation mba programs and other PG courses like MCA etc. AIMS test for management admissions is conducted under the supervision and guidance of MHRD (Ministry of Human Resource Development) and GOI (government of India). ATMA is approved by AICTE and provides admissions to more than 400 reputed mba institutions across the country based on the quantitative, verbal and analytical skills of the students.
Important dates of AIMS
1. 01-11-08 – availability of ATMA applications.
2. 17-01-09 – last date for the availability of application forms.
3. 20-01-09 – deadline for receipt of applications.
4. 08-02-09 – date of examination and the timings are from 2:00pm to 5:00pm
Eligibility criteria of AIMS
1. The candidate seeking admission must have bachelor degree with atleast 50% marks in the qualifying examinations
2. Those candidates who will appear for their final year exams can also apply to ATMA.
3. Candidates who want to appear for PSMS, ISM and MBM-Calcutta must refer to the admission brochure for complete details regarding their specific traits.
ATMA test pattern of AIMS
The exam contains 200 questions overall which have to be attempted in 3 hours. There are three kinds of questions to judge the different abilities or the skills of the candidate. These are analytical questions, verbal questions and quantitative questions.
AIMA-MAT 2008-2009 All India Management Association Management Aptitude Test
All India Management Association (AIMA) Management Aptitude Test (MAT) or better known only as MAT is a comprehensive exam conducted for the students seeking admission to the post graduate management courses. MHRD (ministry of Human Resource Development) and GOI (government of India) have approved MAT for offering MBA, PGDM and many other PG courses such as MCA etc.
Important dates of AIMA-MAT
12-11-08 – last date for the availability of forms
17-11-08 – last date for the forms to be received by AIMA, New Delhi
07-12-08 – date of MAT examination 2008 (Sunday)
Eligibility criteria of AIMA-MAT
The minimum requirement for appearing in MAT is that the candidate should be graduate from a recognized university. Only the final year degree course students can apply for the examination despite being under graduate.
Syllabus of AIMA-MAT
Reading Comprehension: 40 questions
Data Interpretation/Data sufficiency: 40 questions
Quantitative Aptitude: 40 questions
Logical and Critical reasoning: 40 questions
General Awareness: 40 questions
How to apply for MAT
If you want to get MAT application form by post you need to send a DD of Rs.790/- to AIMA-CMS, drawn in favor of AIMA-CMS payable at New Delhi. The DD should also accompany two slips with your address on them.
You can also collect the forms from AIMA counter in Delhi paying 750/- cash.
You can also get it from selected branches of bank of Baroda or study centers of AIMA.
Marking scheme:
For every correct attempt you will be awarded 1 mark and there is nothing specified for negative marking.
IIM CAT 2008-2009 Indian institutes of management common admission test
Currently IIMs are the most reputed institutes in India offering Post-Graduate Degree Programs in Management. IIM CAT (Indian institutes of management common admission test) is the name of the exam conducted for the students who wish to do 2years full time Post-Graduate Degree Programs in Management. All the IIMs take into account the score of CAT examination to short list the candidates. Currently there are 7 IIMs namely IIM Ahmadabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Calcutta, IIM Indore, IIM Kozhikode, IIM Lucknow, RGIIM Shillong.
Important datesof IIM CAT
16-11-08 – the date of CAT and timings are from 10:00am to 1:00pm
14-07-08 to 08-08-08 – availability of CAT forms from axis banks
31-12-09 – last date for submitting your mark sheets and certificate to IIM
30-06-09 – no admissions will be entertained by IIMs after this date
01-06-09 – registration date for the PGP-ABM first year
01-12-08 – date of availability of PGSEM forms online
01-09-08 – date of availability of PGPPM forms online
Syllabus of IIM CAT
Quantitative reasoning
Verbal ability
Reading comprehension
Data interpretation
Contact details of IIMs:
Eligibility criteria of IIM CAT
The candidate must be a graduate with at least 50% marks and 45% in case of students belonging to SC, ST and PWD.
If a candidate is currently in the final year of degree program then they can also apply for the examination by submitting a signed application from the head of the institution saying that the candidate has received at least 50% in the examination and is awaiting the results.
APSU celebrates National Distance Learning Week
National Distance Learning Week (NDLW) began Monday, Nov. 10, and will continue through Friday, Nov. 14. The Center for Extended and Distance Education has planned several events in recognition.
Nationwide Statistics
According to the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA), “NDLW seeks to promote and celebrate the tremendous growth and accomplishments occurring today in distance learning programs offered by schools, businesses and governmental departments.”
The USDLA reports over 3.5 million college students are taking online courses and/or earning their degrees online.
They report that 40.7 percent of schools offering online courses agree “students are at least as satisfied” with their online courses, 56.2 percent are neutral and only 3.1 percent disagree. “E-Learning,” or online learning, represents about 10 percent of the overall training and educational market.
Activities
The Center for Extended and Distance Education planned events for NDLW. A student online scavenger hunt started Monday and will end at midnight, Thursday, Nov. 13. Prizes include an iPod shuffle. USDLA-sponsored “webinars” will be held each day of the week in the Felix G. Woodward Library room 114. These webinars feature topics related to distance education and its future goals.
A listening session with President Timothy Hall will also be held Friday, Nov. 14 in the Felix G. Woodward Library room 114.
Other sessions will be held throughout the week, including “Understanding Quizzes in D2L” with Robert Anderson, instructional technologist of Extended and Distance Education, and “iTunes Introduction” with Katherine Bailey, Extended and Distance Education multimedia specialist. For additional information and a complete list of the week’s activities visit the Center for Extended and Distance Education Web site.
APSU Distance education
The center offered its first online courses during the Fall 2002 semester. Only three courses were offered at the time. Thirty students were enrolled in online courses, and there were 38 total enrollments.
More : media.www.theallstate.com
2.76 lakh aspirants get ready for CAT 2008
Come November 16 and about 2.76 lakh aspirants across the country will appear for the Common Admission Test (CAT) 2008, rated as one of the world’s most demanding entrance examinations for any graduate institute.
CAT is the stepping stone for MBA aspirants to get admitted in reputed management schools of India.
Apart from the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) located at Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, Lucknow, Indore, Kozhikode and Shillong, CAT is also a mandatory entrance examination for several other leading institutes like Kirloskar Institute of Management, Mudra Institute of Communication (MICA) Ahmedabad, Nirma Institute of Management, S.P. Jain Institute, TAPAI and several others.
Some people feel that CAT is more of a rejection process than a selection process. ‘It rejects those who can’t make their minds work at break-neck speed for two and a half hours non-stop’.
The entrance exam, designed to test a student’s managerial aptitude, has seen an increase of 23 percent in the total number of applications this year and nearly 40 colleges have added their names to the list of colleges that decide admissions on CAT scores.
With a 15 percent rise from last year’s 2.4 lakh and an acceptance offer to just one in 138 candidates this year against one in 120 last year, CAT 2008 promises to be bigger and better.
From the NCR region alone, more than 50,000 students will appear for the entrance exam.
The increase in the number of students this year has forced the IIMs to arrange for more test centres. IIM Lucknow, which coordinates the exam in the NCR, has setup about 60 centres to handle around 59,000 students.
IIM-A is handling over 51,000 applications, IIM Bangalore is handling over 60,000 applications and IIM Calcutta would take care of over 50,000 students.
Of the 2.76 lakh candidates taking the exam this year, nearly 54,000 are women.
Arks Srinivas, Director, Triumphant Education, a well-known coaching institute for CAT, says, “There has been an increase of 20 percent in the enrolment of women candidates for CAT. This is mainly due to the availability of opportunities for women in sectors such as finance, human resource and marketing.”
“Of the 54,000 women, at least 13 percent have a chance of getting a call. Even though the success rate of women in IIMs has not seen a remarkable rise, the 100-odd institutes which consider CAT scores may have pushed the number of women applicants", Srinivas further said.
Neha Shukla, an aspirant, said, “I attempted CAT last year, but I did not score well in the Data Interpretation (DI) section. I have improved a lot in that section and I am determined to secure a seat in one of the IIMs.”
The CAT committee had received more than 2.9 lakh applications this year. The number, however, comes down substantially after a screening of applications. This year, more than 7,000 aspirants have been disqualified from CAT due to minor errors in the application forms.
More : indiaedunews.net
2.76 lakh aspirants get ready for CAT 2008
Come November 16 and about 2.76 lakh aspirants across the country will appear for the Common Admission Test (CAT) 2008, rated as one of the world’s most demanding entrance examinations for any graduate institute.
CAT is the stepping stone for MBA aspirants to get admitted in reputed management schools of India.
Apart from the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) located at Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, Lucknow, Indore, Kozhikode and Shillong, CAT is also a mandatory entrance examination for several other leading institutes like Kirloskar Institute of Management, Mudra Institute of Communication (MICA) Ahmedabad, Nirma Institute of Management, S.P. Jain Institute, TAPAI and several others.
Some people feel that CAT is more of a rejection process than a selection process. ‘It rejects those who can’t make their minds work at break-neck speed for two and a half hours non-stop’.
The entrance exam, designed to test a student’s managerial aptitude, has seen an increase of 23 percent in the total number of applications this year and nearly 40 colleges have added their names to the list of colleges that decide admissions on CAT scores.
With a 15 percent rise from last year’s 2.4 lakh and an acceptance offer to just one in 138 candidates this year against one in 120 last year, CAT 2008 promises to be bigger and better.
From the NCR region alone, more than 50,000 students will appear for the entrance exam.
The increase in the number of students this year has forced the IIMs to arrange for more test centres. IIM Lucknow, which coordinates the exam in the NCR, has setup about 60 centres to handle around 59,000 students.
IIM-A is handling over 51,000 applications, IIM Bangalore is handling over 60,000 applications and IIM Calcutta would take care of over 50,000 students.
Of the 2.76 lakh candidates taking the exam this year, nearly 54,000 are women.
Arks Srinivas, Director, Triumphant Education, a well-known coaching institute for CAT, says, “There has been an increase of 20 percent in the enrolment of women candidates for CAT. This is mainly due to the availability of opportunities for women in sectors such as finance, human resource and marketing.”
“Of the 54,000 women, at least 13 percent have a chance of getting a call. Even though the success rate of women in IIMs has not seen a remarkable rise, the 100-odd institutes which consider CAT scores may have pushed the number of women applicants", Srinivas further said.
Neha Shukla, an aspirant, said, “I attempted CAT last year, but I did not score well in the Data Interpretation (DI) section. I have improved a lot in that section and I am determined to secure a seat in one of the IIMs.”
The CAT committee had received more than 2.9 lakh applications this year. The number, however, comes down substantially after a screening of applications. This year, more than 7,000 aspirants have been disqualified from CAT due to minor errors in the application forms.
More : indiaedunews.net
Achieving a Travel Education Without The Travel
Travel – the heart and soul of the hospitality industry – is missing from the agendas of thousands of industry professionals as they strive to further their careers in management, development, marketing and finance.
Travel, in fact, is often the very last thing on their minds.
Engrossed in coursework designed to prepare them to to move up in a hotel’s chain of command, these employees have been busy ordering up the academic equivalent of room service: Distance learning that delivers textbooks, videos, resource materials and whatever else they need directly to their door – or even to their desktop.
“This is a nice way to learn if you can’t get to a campus,” said Bob Davies, graduate program director at the University of Wisconsin-Stout, which is in the process of shelving and retooling its online coursework in the school’s Hospitality and Tourism program, which added distance learning a decade ago.
“Because the industry requires you to work unusual hours, attending a campus class just doesn’t work,” said Davies. “And there is some rigidity even with tech schools and universities that you have to be available.”
With distance learning, of course, students are very much available – as long as they can accomplish their tasks at their own convenience and their own location.
Though globe-trotters, national travelers and even regional tourists are a driving force in the hospitality industry, staying put to enhance knowledge about about this industry is by no means an anomaly. In many cases, it is has become an occupational necessity.
The American Hotel & Lodging Association recognized this back in 1953 with the founding of its Educational Institute, at the time a formative formal program for hospitality education.
“At that time, its purpose was to provide distance learning courses in the 1950s,” said Elizabeth Johnson, marketing manager. “Correspondence school was in its heyday back then. For people who could not afford college or could not take the time from their hotel job to get additional training to get ahead, the educational institute met that need. It was founded for that purpose at that time.”
Although hotel schools now exist at university campuses in Johnson & Wales in Rhode Island, Purdue University, Cornell University, the University of Houston and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, AH&LA’s institute still offers traditional correspondence-school style coursework in certificate and diploma programs for working professionals. (For more conventional graduate and undergraduate students in classrooom-based hospitality management programs at many of these two-year and four-year schools, the institute also provides an array of professionally authored textbooks.)
In recent years, the institute’s traditional mail-based curriculum has gotten plugged into the Internet, where working professionals have the same options as their mail-based counterparts, to learn – and later take their exams for certification – in a self-paced environment online. The institute has a more intense Hospitality Operations certification program, as well as two diploma programs – one in Hospitality Management and one in Food and Beverage Management. And next year the institute will launch a new specialization – Spa Management – also to be offered online.
More : hotelinteractive.com
Students benefit as biz schools share faculty
MBA
aspirants hoping to bell the CAT (Common Admission Test) later this month need not despair if they fail to make it to the Indian
Institutes of Management (IIMs). Chances are theyll be taught by an IIM professor even if theyre not studying in an IIM.
Top professors at India’s best B-schools are often acting as visiting faculty in other management institutions where they give lectures, and sometimes even teach an entire course. For B-schools, this is a stop-gap solution to the acute faculty crunch staring them in the face, with industry pay-scales more lucrative than those offered by academics.
For instance, Prof N Narayanan from IIM Lucknow and Prof Pradyumna Dash from IIM Indore have taught courses at the National Institute of Industrial Engineering, Powai.
Ranjan Ghosh, a professor at IIT Kharagpur’s Vinod Gupta School of Management and a former faculty member at IIM Calcutta, has been a visiting faculty member at IIM Indore, Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, Delhi, and Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar. He has also flown to Dubai and Singapore to teach at SP Jains global MBA programme.
While this system benefits institutions, it’s pretty tough for a teacher to handle full-time work with guest lectures, said Ghosh. “My trips to other institutions were only for short durations. Even when I taught an entire course, Id have to make several trips to the institution, as I was unable to spend a few weeks at a stretch away from my regular course work,'’ says Ghosh.
Prof Ramesh Bhat, on leave from IIM Ahmedabad, is currently the dean of NMIMS and continues to give guest lectures at the IIMs. “I’m also getting IIM teachers as visiting faculty at NMIMS,'’ says Bhat, adding that Sunil Maheshwari, who is currently on leave from IIM Ahmedabad, will teach a course on turnaround strategies at NMIMS.
IIT Bombay and IIM Ahmedabad alumnus, Prof Atul Tandan, who’s currently the director of the Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad, has been a visiting faculty at IIM Ahmedabad as well as NMIMS. Institutes only invite guest faculty with some standing in the field they teach. While many institutions depend on guest faculty to a large extent, the effectiveness of the system depends on the way institutions structure their courses, and the pedagogy they use, says Tandan.
This unofficial faculty exchange system is usually done on an ad hoc basis, and seasoned hands who specialise in a particular field are invited to teach a course at an institution by friends or former colleagues. For instance, Tandan is usually asked to teach cross-cultural marketing while Ghosh specialises in supply-chain management. For both courses, there arent too many senior faculty.
More : timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Women attempt to bell the CAT
It took women 30 odd years to cross the 50,000 mark, in terms of participation in the Common Admission Test. This year, 54,569 women will attempt CAT on November 16. In comparison, the number of male candidates writing CAT crossed the one lakh mark in 2005 itself.
“Women comprise nearly 25 per cent of the students attempting CAT every year. However, the number of female students who make it to IIMs is dismal,” said an official at the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. IIM-B has 47 women in the first year and 53 in the second year PGP course.
With more women entering the CAT race, competition levels are at a high. “The outlook of people towards women in the business sphere has changed drastically. Similarly, opportunities available to women in the corporate sector have gone up. So women are getting the required qualifications by attempting exams like CAT,” Mrinalini Chetty, a Mumbai-based student attempting CAT told DNA.
CAT coaching centres across India have seen a rise in enrolment of women. “There has been a 25 per cent rise in the number of women joining our centre since last year,” said Megha Shringari, senior student advisor at Career Launcher, a training centre in Delhi.
Girls face stiff competition from boys for the prized 1,500 IIM seats. This year 1,54,757 boys will attempt CAT. “Last year we saw 27 per cent enrolment among women. This year sees a rise of 29 per cent,” said Faiz Ahmed, general manager, IMS Learning Centre, a centre specialising in training for CAT.
“We are seeing more girls attending CAT classes now, but their numbers are less compared to boys,” said Anup Paul, marketing professional with Career Forum, a training centre for CAT applicants. The centre has 40 girls and 100 boys training for CAT.
This year 2,09,326 students will sit for the competitive exam conducted across 68 centres in 24 cities by the seven IIMs — Indore, Bangalore, Allahabad, Shillong, Kolkata, Lucknow and Kozhikode. CAT results will be out on January 9 and available on e-mail and SMS.
More : dnaindia.com
Government way ahead of private companies in giving IIMs work
IIMs might be the toast of India Inc but there is very little that they do to provide these elite institutions with financial muscle, a must for their autonomy.
When it comes to giving consultancy work to IIMs, government bodies — central and state ministries and PSUs — are far ahead of private sector in seeking consultancy work
from IIMs. Even multilateral bodies, embassies and funding agencies give more work to IIMs than India Inc.
An RTI application to all IIMs through HRD ministry has revealed that since 2004 government’s share in giving consultancy work ranges from 34% to 89%, whereas private sector’s share hovers between 8% and 16%. IIM Bangalore and Kolkata did not reply to the query.
Take IIM Ahmedabad. In 2004-05 , the institute did consultancy worth Rs 3.63 crore. Of this, Rs 1.21 crore, constituting 33.4%, came from government departments, Rs 1.72 crore from multilateral bodies like World Bank, UN, foreign universities and embassies. The latter’s contribution was 47.3%. Private sector work to IIMA was worth Rs 70.16 lakh, a paltry 19.3%.
In 2005-06 , IIM-A did consultancy worth Rs 4.50 crore. Government stake went up to Rs 2.54 crore or 56.5%, while multilateral bodies came down to 23.6%. In real terms, their contribution was Rs 1.06 crore. Private sector contribution was 19.9% or Rs 89.59 lakh.
In 2006-07 , though there was a decline in IIM-A’s consultancy work, a major source of its income being Sixth Pay Commission . It got projects worth Rs 2.87 crore. But government agencies remained its mainstay giving work worth Rs 1.62 crore, constituting 56.5% of consultancy work that year. Foreign government/multilateral bodies/embassies gave work worth Rs 1.01 crore to IIMA. Their contribution was 35.4%. Private sector’s share was barely 8.2% which in real terms stood at Rs 28.78 lakh.
More : economictimes.indiatimes.com
What recession? IIM-K bags 14 global summer placements
NEW DELHI/ KOLKATA/KOCHI: Global slowdown and job cutbacks be damned. The Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode’s (IIM-K) class of 2010 just wr apped up its summer placements with the 261-strong batch getting placed across some 102 national and international firms, up from the 66 who participated last year.
The highest international stipend for the eight-week internship was $6000, offered by Vega Foods in Singapore. Coca-Cola came up with the highest domestic offer, with a Rs 1-lakh stipend. Summers 2009 also saw students walk away with 14 international offers versus four last year.
The profiles for interns are spread across locations like Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai, Germany, South Africa and London. Despite the anxieties due to the global economic crisis, national and international companies have flocked to the campus for summer placements for the batch of 2008-2010.
Interestingly, 27% offers came from BFSI, investment banking and private equity that’s a marginal dip from 28% last year, considering the increase in the number of students opting for summer placements. The catch being investment banks like JP Morgan, Deutsche Bank and Edelweiss Capital recruiting for their domestic operations. “Even if the scenario is negative in the global markets, companies are still expanding their domestic operations and still they require people.” says IIM-K placement coordinator Hitesh, Bhagia.
In fact, banks and other financial institutions actually increased the number of offers as compared to last year. Some of the other banks that recruited from IIM-K were Citibank, Standard Chartered Bank, American Express, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank.
A large chunk of students opted for the strategy and consulting roles. Arthur D Little , one of the world’s top management consulting firms offered roles in its Dubai office. The Freudenberg Group reaffirmed its relationship with IIM Kozhikode by picking up students for strategy and operations roles based in Germany and Hong Kong.
Regular recruiters like Deloitte, Hewitt and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) picked up students for consulting roles.
IIM-K also had niche roles in the marketing and operations consulting space by Frost and Sullivan and i2 Consulting. Wipro and IBM also offered roles in their consulting and strategy divisions. 20% of the students would be interning in consulting firms in India and abroad.
A highlight of the summers process was the increasing interest of media organisations like Sony Entertainment Television, Viacom, Star News and BBC World which offered both creative and marketing roles. Marketing roles were also offered by Nestle and Coca-Cola while HUL, Colgate Palmolive, Marico, ITC, Aditya Birla Group and Johnson & Johnson picked students for roles in branding, sales and marketing, operations and logistics. Real estate firms like Ansal API, Godrej and ABG Infralogistics too took part in the placement.
More : economictimes.indiatimes.com