Expectation of Students from B-School

The present world is changing and getting innovated day by day. The students having immature mind and boiling blood also start expecting the higher outputs from the institutes. It should be clear that institutes are for making students employable and they are not the “placement agencies”. Moreover, the other expectations of the students are also somewhat genuine and somewhat unrealistic. Hence, this research paper is throwing light in this area that what students expect from a business school.

“Don’t lower your expectations to meet your performance. Raise your level of performance to meet your expectations.” – Ralph Marston
“A master can tell you what he expects of you. A teacher, though, awakens your own expectations.” -  Patricia Neal

Mr. X is very happy these days, the reason being, his (superior) regional manager is getting retirement this month. He is on the same post of SALES MANAGER since last 5 years. He has all the capabilities for the occupying the chair of REGIONAL SALES MANAGER. But surprisingly, a new employee Mr. Y gets the post. The reason being Mr. Y is an “MBA”.
In disgust, Mr. X decided to do MBA soonest possible.
After 2 years… 
Mr. X is an MBA now and applying for the same designation of REGIONAL SALES MANAGER.
But…
Again he fails to get the job because this time the degree he got is not genuine.
Whatsoever he expected he didn’t get.
This is not the case only with Mr. X but this is the very common scenario these days. Whatever the student expects, while taking the admission in B-School’s, he does not get the same.

1.    What is Business School?
“A business school is an institution that provides degrees in Business Administration. The curriculum contains accounting, administration, economics, finance, information systems, marketing, organizational behavior, public relations, strategic management, human resource management, quantitative methods and other management related subjects.”
The expectations of the average MBA student, as regards career prospects, are very high.  And rightly so, but it should be based on the right premises.  We think the main conclusion from the study is that schools should stop promising students that they will be guaranteed a 100K a year job after the completion of their MBA. No school can promise that - it is not the MBA that will guarantee such a job and especially not if you change career tack completely.
It is the student in combination with your degree; the way you sell yourself; the way you appear interested/ prepared/ knowledgeable about your future employer and career.  Hence, preparation is everything when going for a job interview.  Practicing an 'elevator pitch' is eminent in that respect but you also need to be up to speed of the company/ organization you are seeking employment with.


 Student, Pioneer Institute of Professional Studies
2.          B-schools should tell how to cope with real-life situations???
Most full-time students are fresh graduates, and they do not have any knowledge of corporate hence work experience before beginning a management program is essential.

It is easier to apply the concepts and theories taught to real-life situations if already experienced the practical side in working lives. The conceptual knowledge that is provided by an MBA program provides valuable tools and insights to any practicing manager and can be applied in other areas of life as well. Each student, passing out of a B-school, faces different work-related situations later on. How they are able to apply the B-school learning to real life work and other situations is entirely dependent upon their capabilities. Without the well-structured MBA program, student can never been effective in such functional areas. Nevertheless, B-schools also need to introduce to their students some of the critical elements that invariably determine one’s success in the corporate world. Most fresh B-school graduates have unrealistic expectations from the corporate world. Happy with their fancy pay-packets and dreaming of scooting up the corporate ladder, they either don’t realize the effort they will have to put in or prefer not to think about it. Even the best B-schools do not prepare you for the darker realities of the corporate world. The alumni of the B-school also play an important role by sharing their experiences, whether through regular, well-structured lecture program or through seminars. A B-school education is the critical minimum effort required to make a meaningful education in the world of business. It is the first important step, but certainly not the last. The expectations of students on various criteria are as follows:

3.    Placement: The students after getting bachelors degree are quite matured and they think themselves accordingly. As a result, they are keen to get good jobs, since they want to stand on their own feet. But due to high degree of competition, the efforts done by them go in vain, since the companies require higher qualification, therefore the student decides to take admission in B-school for further studies. Students have the impression that they will get the good job (package in five figures every month) after acquiring the degree. These promises of B-school’s works as fuel to ignite more and more expectations. Hence, as a result, students start thinking b-school as “placement agency”. And when afterwards they do not get a good job and they get frustrated and some students even go to extent of attempting suicide.
Facts on attempting suicide:  In 2009, 5,857 students — or 16 a day — committed suicide across India due to placement stress, reported the Times of India recently. The problem here is that when the student was required to gain skills and when there was a need to groom them, at that time they were in schools where they were treated as kids, and when they came in to U.G. courses, at that time also either they were immature or they were not properly guided. Mainly misguidance or lack of guidance is the main problem with students.
One another aspect is that B-Schools should not promise that much, which they are not able to deliver.

4.    Fees: Fees structure is another aspect which affects students. If we talk in terms of economics or simple purchasing, we pay according to the services provided to us. Similarly, students expect ROI i.e. return on investment that means, the money they are investing in their education, they should get placements accordingly. As for example there are some colleges with fees structure of 7-10 lakhs and providing campus placements of only 2-2.5 lakhs or even less than this. Also, 80% of students who have to take education loan for fees of their respective courses, which are unable to pay back, result in high depression and frustration.

5.    Experienced Faculty: This is one of the most important requirements of any management student. Since, it is only the faculty who can make students efficient and productive to work in corporate. And especially in case of B-schools the faculty required must have experience in “corporate”, so that they can deliver the skills required in corporate sector. Also, institute should have a placement cell directed by a qualified placement officer who should have connections with many reputed companies to help students to get placed easily. Also, the faculties must be more interactive, that will help students to ask anything and clear the doubts without getting hesitated. The main aim of faculty must be that they should provide students with the requisite knowledge, skill and attitude to lead the corporate world. Frequent Guest Lectures by prominent personalities from the corporate world, as well as renowned thought-leaders, management gurus, Indian and international academicians, bureaucrats and revolutionaries from their respective fields should be organized at our campuses from time to time. These interfaces with the real world will serve to enrich the over-all learning experience for students.
6.    Infrastructure: Infrastructure consciously or unconsciously affects the mindset of student. Although by infrastructure we mean the kind of facilities that are being provided by the respective institute. must be equipped with state-of-the-art teaching aids, LCD projection systems, OHP’s, public address systems and video cameras, all enhance the academic delivery. It must have modern learning resource facilities based on international paradigms.

a. The Libraries: The libraries serve as a backbone to all academic activities at all the centers across the country. They house a collection of text and reference materials, journals, magazines, periodicals, and audio-videos, CD- ROMs research reports, which have been carefully selected from a number of national and international professional institutions.

b. The Computing Facilities: Computer laboratories equipped with internet access constitute an integral part of every campus. It helps the students to update themselves with latest technology and latest happenings around the world.
c. The Cafeteria: The aesthetically designed cafeteria serves luxurious options to students and faculty at subsidized rates as students have to spend most of the time in college campus only, So good canteen must be there in college premises.
d. Hostel for boys and girls: A holistic ambience contributes significantly to superior academic performance. That is why, campuses must be spacious, fully furnished with plenty of storage space, power backup and 24-hour security. The facilities often include cafeteria and various indoor and outdoor sports facilities, with banking, shopping and medical facilities in close vicinity. Separate accommodation is provided for boys and girls.

7.    Genuine Degree: Genuine degree is also a matter of concern for students as there is a flood of MBA institutes in the country providing degrees from various known and unknown universities. The universities must be AICTE and UGC approved as the problem arises when student wants to study further from a reputed institute since many institutes do not entertain the students having degrees and certificates of non-AICTE approved institutions. On the other hand, if student goes for employment there also he/she has to face many problems since now day’s companies are also paying keen attention towards the recognition of the degrees. Moreover, getting the education loan is also a tough job when student wants to pursue degree from these (non-AICTE approved) institutes. But still because of huge promotion strategies and schemes (i.e. free laptops, foreign tour and languages) students get attracted toward these institutes. This is really a matter of concern as many of us get attracted and loses money.
Also government now has realized and is taking serious steps. Mr. Kapil Sibbal our respected Human Resource and Development minister declared the names of 44 fake universities who were befooling students from long time.
8.    Extra or Co Curricular Activities: This includes the activities other then theory classes like classroom presentations, seminars, roll plays, business ideas, extempore and various other activities which help students to come forward and help them to be extrovert.

9.    Comparison with International Curriculum: After getting the higher degrees a students want good jobs and if they want to get into MNC Company they face problems since the curriculum of international b-schools are quite different from Indian curriculum. Hence the curriculum of the institutes must match the requirements of the industries. And the new technologies must be introduced in the studies to make them aware about it.

10.    Student Institute Relationship: Student institute relationship is also an important issue which must be taken seriously. Institute must show concern towards their students. The management must be co-operative and must be ready to help students always. The subject faculty must help students in identifying their weaknesses and to enhance their strengths. This makes student more interactive during classes.

11.    Specializations Offered: The specializations offered must be according to the industry requirements and it must contain updated knowledge of the subject, so that, it must be proved beneficial for the students.

11.    Ethics: Institute must inculcate moral values, discipline and punctuality in their students which will help students to work in the merciless corporate world.

12.    Analytical Mindset: A student must be able to think critically and tolerate complex, open-ended problems. This is different from intellectual ability or quantitative ability. It is the ability to cut through a mass of data and extract the critical variables, to sort and connect relevant ideas, and to see patterns and develop optimal solutions from them. Not surprisingly, analytical skills are heavily demanded by the case method and are the basis of solving the case that consulting and other firms use for recruitment.

13.     Maturity and Professional: A student should be able to looks talk and act like a grown up.
Immaturity will be signaled, by giveaways, such as whining about past failure, recriminating circumstances beyond control, blaming others for bad calls, showing an inability to see own weaknesses, and poor self-restraint, particularly when dealing with others.
These problems arise when the students go to work in industries and they have bad impression in their mind about the corporate world or have immature level of mindset.

14.    Perseverance and Mental Toughness: Successful managers and leaders are the people who come to the front when times are tough, profits are down and obstacles are seemingly insurmountable. They have the drive to keep going, when others fall, take whatever tough decisions are necessary, and get their companies ahead, no matter, what the obstacles are. So the institutes must prepare the students accordingly.

16.    Conclusion: Being in control of your life and having realistic expectations about your day to day challenges, are the keys to stress management, which is perhaps the most important ingredient to live a happy, healthy and rewarding life. Hence, it is concluded that B-Schools should promise, only, as much as they can deliver, and students should not leave everything on schools, but should groom themselves, according to corporate world and varying conditions. The conceptual knowledge given in an MBA program provides valuable tools and insights to any practicing manager and can be applied in other areas of life. But this knowledge cannot be gained only by institution but self performance is also essential.