The Higher Education Review

As the business world is growing like never before, a large section of students in our country carries innovative ideas in their mind with which they want to make a big brand in the industry. However, there is an absence of an appropriate guidance and platform to will help them to not only execute their ideas but also get access to the scopes, which will bolster their respective plans. "The learners of the contemporary era are extremely passionate about their dreams. They just need the right exposure and platform, and we at ISME- School of Management & Entrepreneurship are immensely resolute to give them the same by going beyond the limited syllabus of the business studies," says Dr. Indu Shahani, Founding Dean, ISME. Established in the 'city of dreams', Mumbai, the institute gives enough scope to the aspiring entrepreneurs and job seekers in the form of rich academic acumen, unmatched opportunities, and robust hands-on training.

Through ISME's 3I Start-up Program (Inspire, Incubate and Ignite), the students with an entrepreneurial bent of mind get access to specialize entrepreneurship ecosystem, where they are encouraged to bring their visionary ideas to life with the assistance of a team of experienced faculty members and network of professionals. Additionally, the Futurepreneurs club in the ISME campus emphasizes to create a soft infrastructure, which acts as a springboard for entrepreneurs. Meena Desai, Associate Dean, ISME pinpoints, "Unlike other institutes, we never ask our students to choose a stream. They are taught Finance, Management, Marketing, and Entrepreneurship, thus giving them a holistic education and the opportunity to build on a varied set of skills. We strive to create an atmosphere where they can freely realize their dreams." ISME opens a prosperous path for business aspirants through offering UG and PG programs in Business Management & Entrepreneurship

along with an 11 month Program (PG) in Management, Business & Entrepreneurship.

Dr. Shahani shares, "Taking the plunge to keep a tune with the technological advancement, electives based on coding, the blockchain, robotics, 3D printing, 360-degree marketing and so on, have been incorporated in the curriculum." All the programs at ISME are designed in a way to promote optimum use of experiential and project-based learning, allowing the students to obtain ample real-life experiences and be acquainted with the nuances of the industry where they will be working tomorrow. "We have taken on board a very vibrant and young team of faculty members who are appropriate for delivering education to the students of 21st and 22nd century. Given their continuous effort of enhancing the learning experience, 30 students of ISME have successfully led startups over the past 3 years coupled with placing several students in top-notch companies," proudly says Desai. Admitting all the students after a thorough selection process, the institute ensures to provide each student with an academic advisor who will be responsible for looking after various aspects of their growth.

"ISME is housed on a corporate campus in the innovation hotspot of Lower Parel, surrounded by 109 companies"

Addressing the Emerging Areas
The factor that acts as the cherry on the cake for ISME students is its location. ISME is housed on a corporate campus in the innovation hotspot of Lower Parel, surrounded by 109 companies. This undoubtedly gives the ISME students the extra edge over other business graduates when it comes to possessing practical training. Desai opines, "Our prime location has allowed us to build strong relations with the corporate companies that subsequently let our students experience corporate lectures, exposure to corporate board meetings, coupled with undergoing observerships and internships." Imbibing avant-garde facilities like digital lab, 3D printers, state-of-the-art accelerator, 400 seater multi-use hall with advanced multimedia technology for immersive lecture series from world-renowned faculty, multiple co-working pods, digital libraries, and computer labs, to name a few, the institute introduces the future professionals and

entrepreneurs to a world full of opportunities.

Dr. Shahani claims, "In order to make our students socially responsible individuals with sound business knowledge, we involve them in CSR campaigns. We have included Corporate Social Responsibility into our curriculum through School Social Responsibility (SSR) initiatives where we are working with corporations such as Diageo, Eureka Forbes, Bajaj Electricals and so on." The students regularly are motivated to engage in completing live projects, making them job-ready. All the projects, however, are examined and presented in front of professionals so that students can get an accurate feedback.

Maintaining a curriculum that is duly updated by the industry experts in a regular interval, ISME also prioritizes to indulge the students in recreation activities. To facilitate this, the institute has been endowed with a gaming area, two cafes and three lounge areas. "Comprehending the need of the hour, we are on the verge of launching new UG courses in the space of Data Science, Liberal Arts and also focusing a lot more on integrating technology within business," concludes Desai.

Dr. Indu Shahani, Founding Dean
Dr. Indu Shahani, President & Chairperson- ISDI, ISME, ISDI, WPP and Founding Dean of ISME, is the driving force behind the institution's energy and excellence. Along with four decades in academics, she has been Sheriff of Mumbai, Member of the University Grants Commission, Principal of HR College of Commerce & Economics, Vice-Chair on the Board of Governors of the International Baccalaureate. She currently sits on corporate boards of Colgate, Bajaj Electricals, United Spirits, BNP, Franklin among others.

Meena Desai, Associate Dean
With a teaching experience of over 15 years, Meena is widely loved by her students and is a passionate teacher at heart. In 2016, Meena was awarded the "Emerging Woman Leader" by the Higher Education Forum. Meena has been the recipient of a fully paid Capacity Building Scholarship for a Masters in Human Resource Management at the University of Westminster, London (2007-2008). She also holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Education Management from NMIMS University, Mumbai. Currently, she is pursuing her Ph.D. from the University of Mumbai.