The fact that IIT students are all technical people can also be a limiting factor. “It becomes a disadvantage sometimes as most students are from a similar stream of education and think alike. So, classroom discussions and industry interactions can get quite boring,” says Nangia.

BACKGROUND CHECK: As most students are from similar backgrounds, classroom discussions and interactions have less variety

... And The Different
The eligibility criterion at the IITs is a bachelor’s degree in any branch of engineering or technology (minimum four years after 10+2). Those having a Masters degree in mathematical sciences or commerce and economics can also apply. “These programmes are aimed to develop techno-managerial skills in engineers,” says Aradhna Malik, associate professor at VGSOM.

IITs conduct a separate MBA entrance test called joint management entrance test (JMET). “The quantitative aptitude of JMET is much more difficult than CAT, but reasoning and data interpretation are of the same level; English, however, is easier,” says Manish Baweja, a first-year student at IIT-Delhi’s DoMS. JMET is also easier because the number of aspirants is lower. This year, around 300,000 candidates gave CAT for 2,000 seats in IIMs, whereas JMET was taken by not more than 30,000 students competing for less than 500 seats.

Some Way To Go
Some regular IIT alumni, however, still prefer IIMs for their MBA degree. “An MBA from IIT wouldn’t have opened the right kind of career options for me, as their marketing programmes aren’t that reputed,” says Ravish Chaubey, an IIT-Madras alumnus pursuing MBA at IIM-Lucknow.

“One of the reasons why IITs don’t enjoy equal stature is that IIMs are more than 40 years old,” says Nangia. It has been 15 years since IITs started offering MBA courses, but given the distance they have covered already, the gap is fast closing.

chetna at bworldmail dot com

(Businessworld Issue Dated 19-25 May 2009)