Analyzing Placements At Baby IIMs - Are These Institutes Worth Joining?

Salary Figures For PGP Class of 2019, PGP Class of 2018

The table below encapsulates the salary figures at 6 of the 7 baby IIMs, for the graduating classes of 2019 and 2018.

Final Placements At Baby IIMs - Average CTC, Median CTC, Highest CTC Figures For 2019, 2018
	PGP Class of 2019			PGP Class of 2018
Business School	Average CTC (INR)	Median CTC (INR)	Highest CTC (INR)	Average CTC (INR)	Median CTC (INR)	Highest CTC (INR)
IIM Amritsar	12,20,103[1]	12,00,000	21,00,000	11,93,636[2]	10,50,000	54,00,000*
IIM Bodh Gaya	10,90,000[3]	10,60,000	16,00,000	10,57,142[4]	9,00,000	24,00,000
IIM Nagpur	12,41,587[5]	12,00,000	20,00,000	12,10,712[6]	12,00,000	19,00,000
IIM Sambalpur	11,33,000[7]	9,23,000	20,00,000	10,55,000[8]	9,00,000	60,74,000*
IIM Sirmaur	9,20,000[9]	9,00,000	16,00,000	12,00,000[10]	10,00,000	32,00,000
IIM Visakhapatnam	12,61,000[11]	12,00,000	22,00,000	12,07,000[12]	11,70,000	Data Unavailable
*Highest International CTC Figures Included Due To Non-Availability of Highest Domestic CTC Data

It can be observed that amongst all the baby IIMs that have been established in the same year and have similar batch sizes, IIMs Amritsar, Nagpur and Visakhapatnam have provided the highest median CTCs for the Class of 2019, and IIM Nagpur has provided the highest median CTC for the Class of 2018 as well.

Fees At Baby IIMs For PGP Class of 2022 - How Much Does It Cost To Study At Third Generation IIMs?

Fees At Baby IIMs For PGP Class of 2022
Business School	Fees (INR)
IIM Amritsar	12,00,000[13]
IIM Bodh Gaya	10,60,000[14]
IIM Nagpur	13,75,000[15]
IIM Sambalpur	13,03,000*
IIM Sirmaur	10,34,000[16]
IIM Visakhapatnam	15,15,000[17]

*The fees for IIM Sambalpur is for the PGP batch of 2018-2020 due to unavailability of latest data

When comparing the money invested in the two-year MBA program and the median CTC offered at the end of the course, none of the newest IIMs offer a positive return on investment. Only two out of the six newest IIMs offer placements that are at the break even point (IIMs Amritsar and Bodh Gaya). In terms of RoI, how do the third generation IIMs compare with private business schools in the same league? Here's a comparison with five renowned private management institutes:

• TAPMI Manipal charges nearly Rs. 17 lakhs for the full-time PGDM program, and offers an average salary just over Rs. 11 lakhs.^[18]
• FORE School of Management charges nearly Rs. 16 lakhs and offers an average salary of nearly Rs. 11 lakhs p.a.^[19]
• Goa Institute of Management charges nearly Rs. 17 lakhs for the full-time PGDM program and offers an average CTC of just over Rs. 11 lakhs p.a.^[20]
• SIBM Bengaluru charges just over Rs. 18 lakhs for the full-time MBA program, and offers an average salary of nearly Rs. 10 lakhs p.a.^[21]
• KJSIMSR Mumbai charges approximately Rs. 18 lakhs for the full-time MBA program, and offers an average salary of Rs. 10 lakhs p.a. (across all programs).^[22]

Compared to the aforementioned well-known private MBA institutes, the baby IIMs appear to provide a significantly better return on investment based on average CTC offered and fee charged.

Also read our latest post - FMS Delhi Records Highest Ever Average CTC For MBA Class of 2020 - Full Report

Placements At Baby IIMs vs Placements At New IIMs - How Much Better Are New IIMs Really?

IIMs Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, Indore, Lucknow, Kozhikode and Shillong have been consistently observed to be the top IIMs of the country. These institutes have defined the IIM tag and continue to be the dream business schools for lakhs of MBA aspirants who sit to take the CAT exam each year. Now, newer IIMs established in 2010/2011 also feature in the priority list for MBA aspirants.

So how do these newer IIMs compare with baby IIMs when it comes to placements? The new IIMs are ranked better than the baby IIMs, but how much better are they really (if at all) when it comes to salaries offered at the end of the 2-year program? The table below comprises placements stats for the Class of 2019 juxtaposed to give a clear comparison between placements at new IIMs and baby IIMs.

New IIMs vs Baby IIMs - Placements For The Class of 2019
PGP Class of 2019			PGP Class of 2019
Business School	Average CTC (INR)	Highest CTC (INR)	Business School	Average CTC (INR)	Highest CTC (INR)
IIM Kashipur	12,17,196[23]	28,00,000	IIM Amritsar	12,20,103	21,00,000
IIM Raipur	14,53,503[24]	24,06,000	IIM Bodh Gaya	10,90,000	16,00,000
IIM Ranchi	15,02,000[25]	26,00,000	IIM Nagpur	12,41,587	20,00,000
IIM Rohtak	11,85,000[26]	24,13,000	IIM Sambalpur	11,33,000	20,00,000
IIM Tiruchirappalli	14,91,000[27]	35,15,000	IIM Sirmaur	9,20,000	16,00,000
IIM Udaipur	12,25,027[28]	30,37,500	IIM Visakhapatnam	12,61,000	22,00,000

It becomes clear that though the new IIMs are definitely better in terms of placements offered, the difference isn't as significant as between new IIMs and old IIMs, or baby IIMs and old IIMs. Remember that new IIMs also have batch sizes that are twice or thrice as large as that of baby IIMs, so competition for these placements is higher at the former.

Also read: New IIMs: The Most Underrated Institutes | Myths Versus Facts

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Batch Size At Baby IIMs

Why is the batch size at a business school important? When it comes to placements, your peers are your competitors - everyone is vying for the same dream roles that you want, and as the batch size becomes greater, so does the competition for these roles. On the other hand, a larger batch size is also considered to be a positive, as the opportunity for networking and peer-to-peer learning is greater at institutes with a larger batch strength.

The table below encapsulates the batch size trends at baby IIMs for the PGP batches of 2020, 2019 and 2018.

Batch Size At Baby IIMs - PGP Classes of 2020, 2019 & 2018
Business School	2020	2019	2018
IIM Amritsar	107	95	104
IIM Bodh Gaya	66	39	42
IIM Nagpur	111	55	54
IIM Sambalpur	93	60	45
IIM Sirmaur	98	63	35
IIM Visakhapatnam	104	60	45

Out of the six baby IIMs mentioned above, all but one institutes have increased their batch strength by over 50% from 2019 to 2020, and in the case of IIM Nagpur, the batch size has nearly doubled in size over a span of just one year. Between 2018 to 2019, only three of the six baby IIMs showed a significant growth in batch strength, while at two of the six IIMs, the batch size actually decreased.

In terms of batch size, how do the third generation IIMs compare with private business schools in the same league? Here's a comparison with five renowned private management institutes:

• TAPMI's Class of 2019 had a batch strength of 412 students.
• FORE School of Management's Class of 2019 had a batch strength of 282 students.
• Goa Institute of Management's Class of 2019 had a batch strength of 245 students.
• SIBM Bengaluru's Class of 2019 had a batch strength of 207 students.

Clearly, when it comes to batch strength, baby IIMs have a significant advantage compared to business schools in the same league in terms of competition for placements. Given the 50+% y-o-y increase in the batch strength, the batch sizes at these institutes are only going to increase significantly in the near future.

So, Are Baby IIMs Worth Joining?

Based on the aforementioned numbers and when compared with private MBA institutes in the same league, yes. However, just being an IIM does not put these institutes at par with the likes of top-30 management institutes of India - these institutes still have a long way to go in achieving that status in terms of placements. Regardless, these institutes are rapidly growing in terms of batch size, number of recruiters on campus, and y-o-y increase in salary figures for its PGP students. These institutes are also on their way to shifting to permanent campuses, though that achievement is still a few years away.

It must be noted that this is not a 360° analysis of whether you should join a baby IIM, and only looks at this question from a placements angle. Also to be considered is the quality of infrastructure, the quality of faculty on campus, peer group, and pedagogy.

Also read - New IIMs & Baby IIMs - A Comparative Guide

What other information would you like to know about the baby IIMs? How can this analysis be improved. Let me know in the comments below!