Where are all the Indian business students going?
January 31st, 2010
While American enrollment in business schools in America seems to be very healthy given the poor state of the economy, it is not necessarily the case in India. As seen in the Wall Street Journal article titled “Student Scarcity Is a Major Concern for India’s Business Schools (Click Here),” the B-school attendance in India is dropping. However, the question is more centered on whether supply has greatly increased, or if demand is actually dropping. It seems that there has been a shift in the mentality of the government recently as they are quickly recognizing the need to train top business minds within India, instead of having them all pursue degrees internationally. This has potentially caused a lapse in accreditation standards, as many new schools have been recently certified, as well as many existing institutions to allow more students into their programs. There is an unintended consequence to this situation of inflated openings as the students who might have previously attended a less respected institution because there was not enough space, can now attend the more prestigious schools. This drastically drops the enrollment figures of the lower echelon schools. This means that there is a potentially large amount of funds being wasted on empty seats at many schools.
As with everything in India, rapid expansion needs to done under control, and with the highest of standards in mind. If India wants to be respected as more than just a manufacturing powerhouse, they must keep this philosophy in mind.
The curious case of Indian business students continues in America, as American business schools have seen a sizable decline in enrollment from Indian students by 13% (Click Here). Indian students don’t necessarily see the benefit of the huge cost of attending business schools in America as they once did. It is important that American business schools maintain a strong international presence on their campuses because many future business leaders will need to interact with people from all over the world.
It seems as though there is a competition for Indian business students both at home and in America, and both seem to be losing the battle. What do you guys think? Where are all the students going?
–Michael Minasian
Entry Filed under: 2010 Student Blogs, India, Misc.
4 Comments Add your own
1. Chris Carr | February 1st, 2010 at 7:49 pm
Good post.
Two off-topic, but kind of related thoughts …
Your Orfalea College of Business MBA program and degree is AACSB accredited. It’s the gold standard for international business education. Did you know that less than 5 percent of all business schools in the world have this quality control stamp and blessing? India (and China) has some good b-schools to be certain, but, not many are yet AACSB accredited. They are getting there, but also have a ways to go. Not saying your Cal Poly program is perfect; we have improvements to do make. Am saying, keep in mind the the quality of other programs out there in the domestic and global market.
Next, one way for each of you to build the brand of your own program and degree, and hence personal prestige and reputation is how you perform and conduct yourselves in India on a trip like this. That is, every word you say, every thing you do, the protocols you honor or dishonor, the quality of the questions you ask during your company visits, how you dress, whether you follow up with a thank you card or email to your hosts, etc., will be carefully watched and analyzed by your Indian hosts and counterparts. Whether you build and strengthen your own brand and degree there will be completely up to you. Do it right and they will remember you, Cal Poly and our United States of America in a positive light for a long time. Do it poorly, and, well, you know the rest. So if/when you see a classmate on the trip not holding the line in this regard, it’s up to you (not Dr. Singh, Vicki or Neetu) to take ownership of your own brand, pull them aside, and talk to them to get them back on track.
India and her people will change you for the better and positive if you open up and let them. There are some best business practices you/we can all learn from India. Have a great trip!
Professor Carr
2. John Barry | February 11th, 2010 at 1:53 pm
Just because the enrollment of Indian students has declined by 13% at American business schools doesn’t necessarily mean that they are choosing to no longer pursue graduate degrees in business. For a long time enrollment at many of the top 10 business schools in the country was dominated by Indian students in part due to their huge GMAT scores. Maybe as a way to diversify their programs, many of these institutions have scaled back a little on their recruitment of Indian nationals.
3. Alex Thornton | February 11th, 2010 at 5:12 pm
“The fee in most B-schools has also increased by 50% to 100% or more in the last three years. From a return on investment perspective, MBA education is not as lucrative as it was before the economic slowdown.”
I think this quote is key to understanding the student scarcity problem facing Indian business schools.
A B-school has two primary strategies: become a cost effective learning institution or attempt to advance to “A” level status.
I imagine that most of these schools are attempting to become top ranked. Naturally they are increasing student fees to pay for improvements to their universities. Of course, not everyone needs, wants, or has the grades to attend a high ranked university.
Instead, becoming a cost effective university is a perfectly sound strategy. Cal Poly, for example, does not match some private institutions in reputation; but at about $15,000 a year for an accredited masters degree, Cal Poly is perhaps one of the best returns on educational investment in the country.
Perhaps more B-schools should consider providing the greatest value to their students rather than focus on their rank.
4. Frederick Peemoeller | February 17th, 2010 at 1:59 pm
On top of costs, it should be noted that we are going through a worldwide recession. MBA applications are at an all time high in America because of so many young professionals that have been laid off from their jobs. The shear number of applicants allows for more prestigious schools to pick higher qualified applicants than prior years, which may be making it difficult for Indian applicants to be accepted to the school of their choice. Even if they get accepted, they may not be getting enough scholarship money or funding to attend the school because it may be going to more highly qualified students in the states.
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