Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta seeks Global Recognition

Aspirations at Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Calcutta have always been sky-high. Living up to the standard it has set over the years, the institution is now vying for global ranking.

IIM-C has applied for accreditation from what is considered to be the most prestigious global agency - The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). Two sister IIMs - Ahmedabad and Bangalore - have got accreditation from the European Quality Improvement System (EQUIS).

Over the next few months, mentors from different top business schools will visit the IIM-C campus to help the institute fine-tune its teaching-learning process and make it worthy of the accreditation.

According to sources, a number of changes are being brought into by the faculty to make academic experience for students vastly different from what it was earlier.

On Wednesday, the first mentor, Gonzalo Garland, will arrive on campus from the Institute De Empresa, Spain. In August, K Tang of the University of Taipei will arrive to oversee the progress of the institute on its newly charted path.

Right from fine-tuning of syllabi to the modules to be taught and the way they would be professed to students, the examination and grading patterns - everything will be updated as per AACSB standards.

"For instance, in the business ethics course it will not be enough to tell students what is be considered ethical behaviour. We have to create real-life situations of corporate ethical dilemma and elicit students' reactions," explained Anindya Sen, dean (academics) of the institute.

According to Sen, creative thinking and communication will become an important fulcrum around which 19 common courses rotate.

Students will be encouraged to think differently so that they are able to come up with innovative solutions to problems of the industry.

"While EQUIS evaluates an institute based on the data provided by it, AACSB looks at mission-vision alignment of an institute with its achievements. An AACSB accreditation is more difficult to achieve," Sen added.

The Harvard and Wharton business schools are both accredited by the AACSB.

If everything goes well, IIM-C should get the accreditation by the beginning of 2014. "In today's world, global recognition is a must. Once this mission is accomplished, IIM-C will become a chosen destination for global students as well," said institute director Saibal Chattopadhyay.