B-schools on top

As admissions across B-schools in the country have shown, intake of students has gone up. Recession, say industry experts, is bringing with it the much needed stability in markets
An aspiring MBA joins a B-school to gain new skills, get new insights into the managing of organisations, to meet new people and to learn the skill-sets needed to become a good manager. In reality, most aspiring MBAs join B-schools to enhance their job prospects and earn a tidy remuneration package. In India, management graduates had it going for them in the last three years. Salaries touched all time highs and recruitment drives on most B-school campuses saw an over drive. Considering the current volatile market scenario, many aspirants are being made to believe that this may not be the right time to pass out of a B-school or the right time to get into a B-school. With recession playing havoc on the economy and several sectors taking pay cuts and lay offs, is it wise to pursue an MBA? "Salary packages for MBAs are stabilising after a period of escalation,"
The market was to stabilise at some point industry insiders feel and the recession is just bringing on the stability. Moreover, as most experts believe, the skill sets one gains are useful to any individual regardless of the market situation, as is evident from the number of multi-disciplinary students from medicine, engineering, arts, media etc who are pursuing MBA to boost their corporate careers. The 2008-10 batches of students at IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Calcutta consist of about 90 percent engineers. Students who had enrolled for a MBA programme in 2006 had not the faintest clue about the economic slowdown. Although they may face the heat now, the situation is bound to improve as the economy picks up. For aspiring MBAs this is the best time to pursue a programme. When they graduate in 2011, the economic condition will have improved again. Mid-career personnel looking to enhance their skills with a MBA should also consider pursuing an MBA at this point. As admissions across B-schools in the country have shown, intake of students has gone up and some B-schools have also increased the number of seats from 2009. IMT - Ghaziabad and Indian School of Business - Hyderabad (ISB) have reported an increase of 10 percent and 40 percent respectively in the applications received. . The bottom line is that opportunities remain even in tough recessionary times.