Spreading Wings

For Mumbai-based 25-year-old Naman Sachdev, life as an investment banking analyst depends on how global markets, economies and politics emerge. While the political impact of Brexit is being debated, the economic fallout will not only have impact in Britain, it will also impact scores of foreign nationals in the UK and the EU. The cascading effect of it will hit the business environment, which someone like Sachdev factors in his day-to-day work. He is able to relate better to several global incidents because of the exposure he got while pursuing a Masters in Global Business from S.P. Jain School of Global Management.

“Over the two years that the course lasted for, I stayed in Sydney, Dubai and Singapore and interacted with students and faculty which had a global view,” he recounts. Dr. Tapan Panda, Dean, School of Management, BML Munjal University, says: “Given the extent of globalisation in today’s world, from a student’s perspective, studying a course that offers greater global exposure will be a huge benefit.”

Global aspirations

The dazzle of a foreign degree has always lured several Indian students. The biggest deterrent in such decisions has typically been cost. Today, several Indian universities have started to have tie-ups with global players to have a global exposure for their students. Such tie-ups are focusing on quality offering, with the flexibility to pursue the programme in ways that costs are manageable.

The kinds of global arrangements vary, but you get an idea on how these workas the options are pretty much standardised when it comes to entering a global tie-up. For students, this route opens a completely different window that lets them to opt for courses that may otherwise not be available in India, or better still get the experience of learning from the experts in the subject while studying here in India.

Take for instance Shubhi Ahuja, 22, a first year student who is currently pursuing a dual degree MBA (Business Analytics) from BML Munjal University which has tie up with Imperial College, London for its MBA programme. She will be attending a three-week exchange programme at the Imperial College as part of the programme and feels that these programmes are the best bet for students who want to gain foreign exposure and cannot afford to bear huge cost of foreign MBA programmes. “For a threeweek course at the Imperial College Business School, the university has taken care of everything from travel to stay and to top it all, we will get the opportunity to interact with the best in business,” says Shubhi. After completion of the course, the students get a certificate from Imperial College and a proper degree from BML University. Says Col. Girish Kumar Sharma, Director, Planning and Coordination, Manav Rachna University: “From the perspective of a student, it is sensible to opt for such programmes if the provision of getting dual degrees exist and if the curriculum being offered is from a reputed foreign university.”

Do your homework

There are many parameters that institutes consider when they plan on collaborating with foreign universities. “Institutes look at level and type of courses being offered, qualifications of faculty, compatibility of curriculum, provision of aid or scholarship, and feasibility of work permit before collaborating with foreign universities,” explains Col. Sharma.

Says Gurinder Singh, Group Vice Chancellor, Amity University: “If the cost of the complete programme abroad is exorbitant, one can opt for such dual degree programmes, which is comparatively less expensive and yet delivers what it promises.” While zeroing in on the university, it’s extremely important to take into consideration various factors such as political and academic reputation of the country along with credibility and history of institution where one is planning to pursue the degree. It is equally imperative to verify that the universities are legal and accredited by a recognised educational body in that country.

Of equal importance is the need to check the course curriculum and prospects from students pursuing such courses to get a fair idea on where it stands. Most importantly, remember to follow a course that will help you with your career. Sachdev is pretty pleased with the course he undertook, even as Shubhi, prepares to leave for London to study at Imperial College for exposure in Business Analytics from those who are part of cutting edge research in the same space.