May 21, 2003 01:12 PM
16341 Views
(Updated May 21, 2003 01:13 PM)
I am an alumnus of ISB. Having said that I will try to be as objective as possible in sharing my knowledge for those who are considering an MBA or its equivelant.
First of all, ISB is a one year intensive program, with no holidays. It is meant for people who already have work experience (the average is about 4.5 years). Most of the faculty are visiting faculty from the best schools in the world, such as Wharton, Kellog, LBS, Univ of Texas, Insead, as well as from Indian schools such as the IIMs. So the teaching quality is the best in the world. I would go so far as to say that it is amongst the top 2 or 3 since they get the best profs from the best schools.
The infrastructure is awesome, even Kellog exchange students are jealous. In terms of IT, living conditions, library resources, food, etc.
The students are from all walks of life, from hard core investment bankers, to IT engineers, to factory managers, to air hostesses, to models, to entrepreneurs, to doctors...this brings out very interesting debates both within and outside the classroom.
Placements have gone reasonable well, with about 99% placement. The average salary is at a decent 8.5 lakhs. This is very good taken in the context that it is a new school, yet to establish its credentials, as well as the current economic scenario.
Exchange programs with partner schools (Wharton, Kellog, LBS)
The negatives:
1 year means that you have to prioritize what areas you want to go in depth in. You don't have time to get deep understanding of all subjects.
There are no internships, which many business houses use as a gauge to finally offer full time jobs.
The Indian corporate world is still not used to hiring at lateral levels.
Cost: compared to other business schools in India it is very expensive. However, compared to other business schools in the world, it is extremely cost effective. One factor to keep in mind is the opportunity cost of the extra year of education at the 2 year programs. People say that the other Indian business schools cost only 1 or 2 lakhs. However they don't take into account the fact that they would be earning about 8 lakhs after one year at ISB...so cost wise, it is not a bad deal.
Being a new school, the alumni network has yet to reach a critical mass. So this is a negative
Before ending, I would like to say that I am not saying the ISB is better than the IIMs or XLRI or wherever. I am saying that it caters to a different target audience, and is a pioneer in business educations. I invite constructive feedback on my review.
