Time to reboot education

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Time to reboot education

Wednesday, 18 September 2019 | Ashish Munjal

Time to reboot education

Majority of the country’s MBAs have little or no understanding of the most elementary management concepts, says Ashish Munjal

India’s education system has its successes and failures however the latter far out weight the former. Perhaps the most striking example of this failing is that the majority of the country’s MBAs — who are expected to have a nuanced understanding in the newest business techniques — often have little or no knowledge of the most elementary management concepts. Also, rather than being taught practical skills that help solve real business challenges, most Indian MBA students are taught theory which is often outdated and irrelevant.   

Of even graver concern is that MBA graduates from hundreds of colleges don’t have the basic skills to thrive in corporate settings. It’s not uncommon to find MBA graduates lacking the knowhow to use everyday software like MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. While there are several reasons why Indian management education is failing so many students, a few that deserve to the remarked upon are provided below.

Curriculum is Obsolete: An MBA programme is meant to train young minds to solve the business challenges of tomorrow. The curriculum is meant to be rigorous and must incorporate the latest findings from the world of business. In practice, MBA programmes in most Indian colleges are antiquated and have remained unchanged for years and sometimes even decades. Students who graduate from such programmes expect to reach the upper echelons of the corporate world yet in practice they have little or no practical skills of use to employers. Certainly graduates from leading business schools are armed with skills that help them succeed, however, the number admitted to such schools are a fraction of total MBA enrolments nationwide. Hence upon completion of their MBA, most students who believe they are assured of financial success shortly are disappointed when they apply for jobs with leading companies.  

Little or no industry interaction:  For a student to succeed in the corporate world he or she must gain the pulse of the industry even before working in it. Sadly many MBA programmes provide no interaction between students and industry. Without such interaction students enrolled in professional courses aren’t able to contextualise their subjects concerning their applications in industry. Hence many students complete an entire programme without understanding why they are studying the subjects taught.

Poor quality faculty: Yet another reason why the education system is failing so many students is that faculty in numerous colleges don’t have skills to prepare students for the real world. Many faculties in professional postgraduate programmes in India are nearly uninterested in their jobs as educators. Hence their lack of enthusiasm for teaching is obvious to pupils who subsequently lose interest in learning. It's also not uncommon to find faculty that is eager to teach but lacks the skills to effectively do so.

Today’s jobs are more demanding than ever before yet this is a reason for cheer because students who have the right skills are poised for stellar careers. However, too many today in the education system are under the assumption great things lie ahead because they’re enrolled in professional courses while the reality is quite the opposite. If the education system is to be fair to all stakeholders especially its biggest stakeholders, students, it must tackle the challenges described above.

The writer is Co-Founder & CEO, Sunstone Eduversity

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