IIM Bodh Gaya organized a press conference on 24th March 2021 regarding the launch of the Integrated Programme in Management (IPM). The course is designed for undergraduate students interested in the field of business studies coming from not only the engineering background but also from other fields of study.
Dr Vinita Sahay, Director, IIM Bodh Gaya, said that the number of opportunities for students interested in entering the corporate world is significantly less, especially at the undergraduate level. IPM will be a gateway for ‘fresh out of school’ students interested in the corporate without having to wait to reach the postgraduate level. The first three years will be for undergraduate studies, and the next two years will be for core management studies. The IPM course will culminate with an MBA degree. The course will be carried out in a semester format which will let the students reflect upon the learnings that will be imparted to them.
Dr Vinita Sahay, Director, IIM Bodh Gaya, emphasized the importance of IPM in current times as she mentioned the limited options available for the students, straight out of the twelfth standard, to enter the institutes of national importance. She said IIM Bodh Gaya aims to “catch them young, allow them to dream and facilitate them to fulfil it”.
The institute believes that B-school education should not be a privilege. The candidates will be judged on merit, to make the process fair and transparent for all candidates. The eligibility criteria to apply for the entrance test is minimum marks of 60 % in Class 10th and 12th, with a 5% relaxation for the SC, ST, Transgenders and PWD students. IIM Bodh Gaya has taken a bold step, not to include any weightage on the personal interview. The institute plans to hone the students in the field of communication and personality once they join the programme.
The programme is launched with an objective to provide a strong management skills foundation to the students and making them mindful managers who are socially conscious. The institute emphasizes on honing entrepreneurship among its students in order to contribute to the vision of “Atma-Nirbhar Bharat.”
IIM Bodh Gaya focuses on developing mindful business leaders. Dr Sahay quoted the recent Harvard Business Review that mentioned the most significant qualification needed in contemporary times is ‘mindfulness’. The institute puts great emphasis on the importance of mindfulness and its requirements in our daily lives and aims to build holistically developed and mindful business leaders.
IIM Bodh Gaya is well-connected with both the airport and the railway station in proximity. The campus has all the in-house amenities for its students. The permanent campus is in the making and is proposed to come up by the end of 2022 with the current pace of 600 workers on-site on an average. The new campus expects to welcome 1000 students by the next couple of years and will have various modern-day facilities like the huge sports stadium. The Director also emphasized the importance of recreational activities like sports to keep the students healthy and happy. Dr Sahay also hinted at having an incubation center to boost the entrepreneurial culture among its students. “The need of the hour is just not to get jobs but to create jobs as well”, she opined.
