IIM-Trichy offers course for Chennai executives

IIM-Tiruchirapalli will commence the inaugural batch of its three-year post graduate programme in business management ( PGPBM) for working executives at its Chennai Centre from August this year. The flagship programme of the institute is specifically designed to enable working executives who aspire to equip themselves with a formal management education.

Chairman of the three-year programme and assistant professor, marketing at the Trichy centre, Suresh Paul Antony said the programme was open to graduates having a minimum of three years' working experience. The programme will also consider intake of self-employed professionals. The intake for the first batch is estimated at 40-45, with a course fee of Rs 10 lakhs payable in nine instalments. The prospective candidates can meet the faculty at an interactive session organised in Chennai on July 8.

Candidates have the option of completing the course within five years, if they have to take long breaks during the original schedule for work-related reasons. The first batch will be awarded PGDBM at the annual convocation at Trichy in March 2015. Currently, IIM-Lucknow is offering such a programme from Noida Centre. IIM-Trichy decided to offer the programme based on the feedback from industry, which showed there was an unmet demand from working executives for such a programme. IIM-Trichy officials said they thought Chennai was an ideal location for the programme as it had a number of industries for sharing experience. "We will strongly encourage the candidates to do projects (for the programme) in their workplace so that they will be able to identify the problems and find a solution", Antony said.

The participants will have the advantage of sharing their work place experience in the classroom and applying what they have learnt through the programme in their companies. He expected the programme to significantly enhance their career prospects. IIM-Trichy Dean, G Sethu said the institute would also utilise the Chennai centre to offer short-term executive education programme.

The centre will also serve as a platform to conduct placement-related activities for its full-time two-year programme offered at Trichy. There are now 13 IIMs across the country, of which IIM-Trichy was the 11th institute started on January 4, 2011. The first batch has 84 students and second batch 114 students. It also commenced in June this year a doctoral programme- fellow programme in management for five candidates.