B-school review: Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies

Earlier this month Careers360 issued the top 50 B-school rankings in the country. The magazine also reviewed 25 top institutes in India, along with vital information students should be aware of when choosing their B-school.

Today we feature Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai and take a look at what makes it one of the best B-schools in the country.

That NMIMS is expanding is undeniable; construction work is in process across the campus. The old structures were demolished and rebuilt, and the school is currently operating out of temporary premises. But there is nothing temporary about the school, both in infrastructure and programmes. With a pedigree built over two decades of offering the MMS programme, the college has its academic processes in place.

What stands out is the tie-up with Harvard Business Publishing for cases, for all courses on offer at NMIMS. Shelling out about 3.75 USD per student per case, the investment is something Dr Rajan Saxena, vice chancellor and professor of Marketing, is proud of. "We want to offer the best to our students," he comments. The college over the next five years intends to train about 40 per cent of the faculty on the case method of teaching as well, by sending them in batches to Harvard. "We will be moving to case-based teaching completely in the future," says Dr Saxena.

Interestingly NMIMS has a Board of Studies for each teaching area, instead of one for the school. The idea, Dr Saxena elaborates, is that functions within the discipline of management are so well developed and distinct that a separate board would be in a much better position to appreciate and design course contents, useful for a student's career.

Other reviews:

• Symbiosis Institute of Management Studies, Pune
• Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad
• Amrita School of Business, Coimbatore
• Amity Business School, Noida
• Acharya Institute of Management and Sciences, Bangalore

NMIMS, post becoming a Deemed University, has launched a series of named programmes, in terms of verticals (pharmaceuticals) and in terms of function (capital markets). But as it has the same specialisations offered to the flagship programme's students as well, when it comes to placements, students feel it creates unavoidable competition within the student body, and at times friction, too. But this is true for most schools that offer such named degrees.

International faculty is a trend which Dr Saxena agrees might add value, but he is more gung-ho on student exchanges. It is students who need to experience different cultures and diverse business environments. This is a domain the school will focus on in the future.

Guest faculty is another value-add, like in most other good Mumbai business schools. That NMIMS is known for its finance specialisation is reinforced by the new Capital Markets Research Centre set up in collaboration with the Bombay Stock Exchange. More than the infrastructure, it's the data and software for trading that BSE brings to the table that is of great value to the students. "The learning is unmatched especially with historical data," says a student specialising in capital markets.

The college has no campus to speak of, and the ambience is strictly functional. Do they miss a sprawling campus, I ask the students. Yes, a big campus would be nice. But they would rather have the privilege of being in Mumbai, any day.