NE EDUCATION BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, AUG 2
Overcoming the uncertainties and disruptions caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in Digital India, the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA) e-welcomed its new batch (2020-22) of MBA and MBA-FABM on Sunday. Even though it was online, the inauguration was conducted as usual by bringing all stakeholders together, a release said.
According to the release, in the MBA programme with an intake of 390 in 2020-22 batch, the percentage of students up to 20 years has gone up to 3% which was 0.77% in 2019-21 and 2% in 2018-20, respectively.
This year young professional again set a consistent and steady rise as MBA students, even with the slight increase in batch size. Further, it saw a decent rise of 5% in students from Arts background which was 3% in 2019-21 and 2018-10, respectively.
While that of commerce background has shown a steady decline from 23% in 2018-20 to 21% in 2019-21 and this year further declined to 18% only. Similarly, students from science background also remained only1% this year. It was 7%, 2%, respectively in2018-20 and2019-21.
IIMA’s flagship MBA-FABM programme, the world’s top-rated programme in agri-business for the last four consecutive years, also had a diverse entering class of forty-seven students. This year saw a slight shift in the academic background: from Engineering to Science.
| Discipline | 2020-22 | 2019-21 | 2018-2020 |
| Engineering | 48% | 63% | 65% |
| Science | 45% | 37% | 35% |
Professor Errol D’Souza, Director, IIMA said, “We at IIMA are delighted to welcome the batch of 2022. Even though we are awaiting the government directives to open academic institutions, we will make sure that our students feel the campus learning experience in our online classes.”
Professor Vishal Gupta, Outgoing-Chairperson, Admissions, IIMA, explains “Our admissions policy helps us admit students with diverse perspectives to contribute greatly to the discussion-based learning that we employ at IIMA. We believe that having a broad mix of participants without compromising on quality will enrich the academic experience of IIMA students even further.”
Professor Errol D’Souza added, “Diversity in the student population helps in enriching the learning process. We consider surface-level Diversity that has easily identifiable characteristics such as sex or educational backgrounds to be important. The institute believes such Diversity has an impact on the heterogeneity of the deep and enduring attributes such as values, attitudes, opinions, and perspectives of students which enhances their creativity and performance in an organizational context.”
Dr Manav Mehta, MBA 2020-22 Student, said, “During my MBBS, I realized that I couldn’t envision myself being a clinician all through my life. I was more interested in the business and managerial side of healthcare. Hence, I decided to do an MBA. IIM Ahmedabad was naturally my first preference owing to its astounding reputation, unmatched alumni network, and the plethora of opportunities it provides. I consider myself extremely lucky and blessed to have been selected for its flagship PGP Programme. I have always believed that as much as the healthcare system needs more doctors, paramedical staff, and healthcare facilities, it also needs competent managers to utilize these resources more efficiently. It requires entrepreneurs and people who can innovate. The recent COVID outbreak has made this need even more apparent and urgent, which would translate into more opportunities in the near future.”
, saidParul Gupta, MBA 2020-22 Student with a background in Psychology, said, “What started as a tiny spark of interest in psychology during childhood turned into a blazing fire of passion for realizing my true potential in the business world; through a journey of learning, exploration, and perseverance. The deeper I delved into the field, the more I recognized my calling. Social Psychology happened to add fuel to the flame. I was intrigued by the study of why humans think and behave as they do in social settings. Understanding the complex thought processes that go into making the simplest of decisions and analyzing theories of attitude and behaviour change kindled the desire to witness them in action. Inevitably, I found myself engrossed in multiple marketing internships, working across different domains that came under it. This experience became the final surge turning the flame to a fire and I landed here, at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, to continue learning from the best.”
Prachodaya Das, MBA 2020-22 Student with a degree in Mass Communication said, “The entire media industry is going digital, and the pandemic has bolstered this growth, to operate in such a competitive market one needs to have a holistic approach. It is becoming part of a bigger phenomenon that demands not only a balance of creativity and analysis but also dynamism since it is evolving at an exponential rate. I feel PGP at IIMA with its rigorous curriculum will help me broaden my perspective and deepen my understanding. The case study-based learning and industry exposure will help me learn how organizations and consumers behave. This will help me gain the required skills to execute ideas in a better fashion. In the long run, it will help me attain expertise which will propel me to make a difference.”s
