The Higher Education Review

Management education in India, though only about 74 years old, has made rapid strides in recent years and has seen a massive change in terms of how Management as a subject is taught in Business Schools. The technological revolution sweeping the world in the last couple of decades has influenced this change and Business Schools have been quick in adapting to this changing environment. Ramaiah Institute of Management Studies (RIMS) has been constantly changing its pedagogical practices and incorporating industry-relevant syllabi to make its educational offerings robust, relevant, and meaningful. By doing so, RIMS is able to prepare its students to become industry ready the moment they step out of the portals of the Institute.

While RIMS offers regular subjects to students, it also delivers value-added certification courses in the areas of Business Analytics (certified by KPMG, a big four accounting firm in the world), German Language (certified by IITE) and Aptitude skills for the two-year Post Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM) course.

To add to it, RIMS also offers new-age dual specializations like Business Analytics and International Business apart from regular specializations like Marketing, Finance, HR, and Operations in the second year of the PGDM program. RIMS also delivers specialization-based Analytics courses and a few technology-based courses like Digital Marketing in the second year of the PGDM program. All students are offered dual specializations too.

“In order to make its students industry-ready, RIMS ensures that the problem is addressed at the grass root level by involving the industry in framing the syllabus for every subject that will

be taught over a period of two years of the PGDM program. The inputs given by industry experts are taken into consideration and the syllabus is framed accordingly. Further, the syllabi are presented before an Academic Advisory Board consisting of eminent people from the industry and academia. The suggestions of the members of the Academic Advisory Board are taken into account before finalizing the syllabi”, says Dr. M.R. Pattabhiram, Founder Trustee, Ramaiah Institute of Management Studies (RIMS), (An Institute under M S Ramaiah Foundation, Bangalore).

Equipping Students with the Best Facilities
RIMS campus is aesthetically designed to meet the needs of modern-day students who are technologically savvy. Apart from a Wi-Fi-enabled campus with a 100 Mbps Internet connection, it has two computer labs with the latest hardware and software to foster learning. The library is also well equipped with the latest management books, national and international journals, and magazines, apart from providing access to EBSCO – a leading database that facilitates learning and research.

All classrooms at RIMS are equipped with well-designed furniture, air conditioners, and overhead projectors to make learning comfortable. RIMS also has a few smart classrooms to enable students to explore and learn. Students also have access to indoor sports facilities and a cafeteria to unwind themselves.

The institute is very conscious about protecting and preserving the environment in which students live and towards this, they have taken measures to ensure that students and staff are exposed to clean air by having plants and trees in the campus area.

With the aim of preparing students for career opportunities, RIMS also has a very active Training and Placement department that works with the sole objective of providing meaningful employment to every student. The department offers pre-placement training for all students in the areas of resume building, mock group discussions

and personal interviews, etiquette, communications, and leadership. Further, the RIMS Training and Placement department has been highly successful in attracting the cream of the industry to visit the campus for campus placements and year after year, the placement record of the Institute has been impeccable with almost 100 percent of the students finding meaningful employment. During the placement season, the Institute attracts prestigious companies such as Ernst & Young, Deloitte, KPMG, Price Waterhouse Coopers, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, SBI Life Insurance, The Times Group, Berger Paints, Sonata Software, and ANZ to name a few.

Carving a Future Full of Opportunities
RIMS has recently signed an exclusive MoU with KPMG International, a multinational professional services network, to deliver a Business Analytics program and certification to all the students, thus enhancing employability of the students. In addition, RIMS is also a member of numerous corporate bodies such as the Bangalore Chamber of Industry and Commerce, the Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry, the Association of Indian Management Schools, and the National Institute of Personnel Management. The Institute is also a member of the Oracle Academy and is in the process of signing MOUs with reputed organizations such as the Entrepreneurship Development Institute and the Indian Institute of Materials Management.

"RIMS is able to prepare its students to become industry ready the moment they step out of the portals of the Institute"

For the future, RIMS is committed to taking the PGDM program forward and providing an opportunity for students to get trained in the latest technologies and trends in the business world. RIMS will constantly seek collaborations with industry bodies at both the domestic and international levels to make the PGDM program one of the best in the country by way of designing a syllabus that is in line with the expectations of the industry.