FAST FACTS
Location: Khandwa Road, Indore
Director: Dr. P K Gupta
Approval/ Accreditation: AICTE approved
Flagship programme: MBA
Student intake: 120
Fees (full-course): Rs. 74,000
Admission test: MET – No info available on cut-offs
Full-time faculty: 28 (Professors: 6; Readers: 8; Lecturers: 11)
Faculty with industry experience (over 10 years): No info available
Average placement salary: Rs. 4 lakhs
Top recruiters: Aditya Birla, Irevna, Johnson & Johnson, HDFC, TCS
Student activities: Hyurisko (annual management festival) alumni meet
Web site: www.ims.edu

THE Institute of Management Studies at Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya has one of the most coveted MBA programmes in central India, after obviously the PGDM offered at IIM-Indore. The first preference is usually given for IMS by the top rank holders in the Madhya Pradesh Entrance Examination, held for admission to management courses in the state.

The two-year full-time MBA programme is spread over four semesters and offers specialisations in the areas of Marketing, Finance, Information Systems and Human Resources Development. Students are exposed to various dimensions of management and behavioural sciences with dual specialisation - major and minor.

When we reached the beautiful 60-acre Takshashila campus, we came to know that classes start early while the office opens later in the day. We met Director Dr. PK Gupta in his office, which is so accessible to all, sometimes it becomes difficult to complete the conversation.

Prof. Gupta shares his views on the robust course structure, the wealth of intellectual capital that can be shared across departments in the university and the infrastructure support that IMS gets, being a part of the DAVV university. The placement officer Avnish Vyas joins us in our conversation and says, “Our students are offered higher pay packages by corporates as compared to what they offer elsewhere, particularly in central India.”

We notice that the placement cell, which is managed by the students, has made a practice of displaying the names of candidates alongside with their photographs and the name of the organisation that they will be joining, at the the main entrance. 

The students reside in hostels, which are located at a walking distance from the academic complex. There is a separate hostel for women, located much closer. The common facilities at the hostels include a television room, a gymnasium, sports facilities and the mess. Mess charges amount to a little over Rs. 1,000 per month.

Our interactions with students indicate that they strive very hard to take their institute to a higher level and to be among the best. They take great pride in saying that the alumni support is extremely strong.

However, several factors act as a constraint, according to the students. For instance, less technology orientation in the learning curriculum  is one of them. Secondly, industry exposure needs to be more.

Building structures and classrooms could do with some renovation, and studies could be more case-based. The institute celebrates placements in a unique practice - the Saraswati Kund ritual. Anyone who has been offered a job through campus placements needs to take a dip in the small pool near the entrance. “The number of dips is actually proportional to the package that has been offered,” quips a student.