MBAUniverse.com interviewed the Director of the B-School, Dr. Kalyani Rangarajan to know what makes VIT Business School unique, the future plans and the importance of Chennai in the map of MBA education in India.

VIT Business School, VIT University is one of the top B-schools in Chennai. Established in September 1994 as the Department of Management Sciences under the University of Madras, VIT Business School (VITBS) has expanded along multiple fronts.

MBAUniverse.com interviewed the Director of the B-School, Dr. Kalyani Rangarajan to know what makes VIT Business School unique, the future plans and the importance of Chennai in the map of MBA education in India.

Dr. Kalyani Rangarajan, Director, VIT Business School Chennai is a postgraduate in Mathematics and has done her PGDM from IIM Ahmedabad. She is also a doctorate in Health Economics from Bangalore University.

Starting her career in banking Dr. Kalyani moved on to consulting and training after her MBA.  Her passion for teaching gradually drew her into academics and she has taught in B Schools in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.  Her last stint was with PES Institute of Technology as Director of their MBA Program.

Excerpts from the exclusive interview:

Q: How has been your journey so far as the Director of VIT Business School? What are your key learnings?

A: The journey so far has been very exciting.  Compared to Karnataka, where I had operated previously, the scope for establishing a high-end B-School at Chennai is better, as the market place is not crowded to the same extent as in Bangalore.

As we are a fledgling B-School, first of all, we have to quickly attain a high awareness level about our existence among B School faculty and MBA aspirants. I have learnt that networking quickly with the the local academic and industrial community, is of utmost importance. High end placements will lead to better quality admissions, which will go a long way to building a strong B School. We provide plenty of value addition to the students’ learning through industry-oriented add-on courses.

Q: As the Director of the VIT Business School, what are the initiatives you have taken?

A: We are toning up the academic inputs to the programme.  We have taken significant efforts to get in touch with VIT alumni , besides organizing a Corporate Conclave to bring senior industry executives to visit our campus.
Currently our focus is on finding suitable placements for our first batch of MBA students, who will be employment- ready by May 2012. We are also making efforts to have quality admissions through CAT, XAT, GMAT and MAT channels.  This time we have increased our online marketing efforts. Admissions will be done on an all-India basis.

The focus on research has commenced right from the beginning and we have admitted our first batch of full-time and part-time Ph. D scholars in a wide range of areas such as Derivatives, Microfinance, work-life balance. Our faculty members have applied for funding to various research organizations such as ICSSR, UGC etc.

Efforts are on to form a strong academic advisory body.

Q: How does a university B-School have an edge over stand alone B-schools?

A: Since VIT Business School comes under the well known VIT University, the B-School is able to offer a full fledged MBA program. The advantages of a standalone B-School are incorporated by having independent premises, flexibility in framing of the curriculum and separate budget for the B-School.

Q: How is VIT Business School different from other B-schools in India in terms of curriculum, pedagogy and other factors?

A: We have endeavored to make our programs and projects innovative. Some of the qualities that we have imbibed in our program include Fully Flexible Credit System (FFCS), Overseas Experiential Learning Program (OELP) to name a few. Experiential learning constitutes 40 per cent of the continuous assessment in many courses and Interactive, learning centered pedagogy. Elective courses are handled by a congregation of visiting faculty from top companies and leading business schools such as XLRI, IIMs etc.

The achievements of the programs and the projects include successful implementation of FFCS and adoption of ‘RUBRICS’ as a tool for assessment, class discussions based on cases developed by the faculty, ‘Higher Order Thinking’ skills tested in examinations and need based industry internship and two overseas experiential learning trips have been organized during the current year, one to Dubai and another to Malaysia or Singapore.

Q: The admission process of VIT Business School is going on at the moment. What qualities do you look for in your prospective students?

A: We will look for reasonably high cut off scores, good communication skills and will be picking up students with initiative and drive.

Q: What are your future plans for your institute?

A: We expect VIT Business School to emerge among the top B Schools in South India.

Q: What are your views on the state of management education in India?

A: Management education is in a state of flux with over 4000 B Schools, the MBA aspirants are confused as to which one to apply for and what to look for in a B-School. There will be a shake-out when foreign B Schools enter the fray!

Q: Chennai is not on the map of Indian management education like Delhi, Pune or Bangalore is. What lies in future? What are the USPs of Chennai region from the perspective of a potential MBA student.

A: It is an advantage for us.  We will endeavor to position ourselves as a premier institute of management education in Chennai. The B-School fever is yet to catch on strongly in Chennai, as reflected in the number of MAT and CAT applications every year.  Since Chennai has always been a strong centre of academics and high academic and research credentials are a must for any top-end B School, there is room for an academically strong B School in Chennai. We plan to occupy this niche.

source: http://www.MBAUniverse.com / January 02nd, 2012