A B-school is not defined by brick and mortar, but by the people participating in the learning process, who impart life to these lifeless objects of architecture. Having spent 2 months in MDI Gurgaon, I have gained a considerable amount of insight into the processes of a B-School. Therefore, I would like to base my argument on the following points.
The Teachers
The faculty plays the role of a torch-bearer in a B-school. The professors impart the students with their own insights and create an atmosphere of learning, which enables them to step into the corporate-world. A premiere B-school has some of the best professors of the country, including some of the most eminent economists and consultants, who teach the concepts by relating them with their own, real-life examples. Apart from this, the guest-lectures by professionals from the corporate-sector complement the case-studies and assignments, which form the backbone of the traditional pedagogy.
The Students
A top B-school consists of some of the best minds of the country. The average cut-off percentile for a top B-school is very high, which ensures that only the cream of the lot gets through the process. Agreed, that performance in a single exam is not the yardstick to measure the intellectual quality of a person. But over the years, institutes like IIMs have considerably refined their selection processes by considering a host of factors like academics, extracurriculars and work-experience, which ensure that the best of the candidates are selected, even though their percentiles might be a bit on the lower side. A good B-school fosters a strong, competitive learning atmosphere and a healthy peer-to-peer learning process due to the high quality of the students. Now, compare this with that of an average B-school, where the learning environment is not an enriching one. Is the purpose of the school met???
The Exposure
Renowned American Novelist and Pulitzer Prize Winner J.R. Moehringer had once quoted:
“To be a man, a boy must see a man.”
And indeed, the gravity of this philosophy cannot be ignored when one is considering the situation in a B-school. Corporate sessions and live-projects constitute an integral part of the learning process as they give a student a flavour of the actual world that he/she is going to face after two years. Typically , in a top B-school , there are about 2-3 corporate sessions per week and 2 live projects floated per month, which enable the students to get more practical knowledge of the sector in which they want to pursue their careers.
Life beyond Placements
Now comes the most important point of the discussion. The Author has argued that getting a package of 6 lakhs per annum from an average B-school is comparable to getting a slightly higher package from an IIM. My question to the Author is, “Is placement really about getting a package only?” If that is the case, then why do thousands of students leave their cushy jobs to join the IIMS each year, and then pass out after 2 years with lower packages?
Placement is much more than a compensation figure. It is about one’s career, one’s life and what one wants to do with his/her life. A good B-school imparts a student with a brand, a brand that is going to last forever and a brand which is perceived more valuable than mere salary figures. The Author has also argued that most of the websites present fake figures related to placements on their websites. But good B-schools like IIM Ahmedabad produce authentic, audited reports that can be used by one and all to gauge the level of the institution.
Having said all this, I also feel that getting a seat in a top B-school might not be everyone’s cup of tea, given the high competition in our country. But this cannot deride the fact that the quality of Top B-schools has tarnished away with time. Because, as per the typical B-school mentality
“Time will not define me, but I will define my time”.
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This is an entry for The Great Indian B-School debate.
Name: Abhijit Pradhan
Team Name: MDI Maverick
Team Member: Sachin Prasad
Institute: MDI, Gurgaon
Article I am refuting:
http://insideiim.com/its-not-about-the-top-schools-anymore/