The course curriculum is periodically updated with experts from academia and industry as our advisors, says Assoc. Prof

In a conversation with Shiksha.com, Dr KVR Rajandran, Associate Professor Management Studies at Periyar Maniammai Institute of Science and Technology talks at length about the importance of practical exposure to management students. He goes into detail by talking about the experiential learning and flipped learning teaching methodologies adopted by the institute.

Dr KVR Rajandran is a PhD degree holder with expertise in management education.

Read the complete interview below

Q: What are the salient features of the teaching methodology adopted by your college? How does this differ from others?

A: I teach courses on Human Resource, Marketing, Finance, System, and Entrepreneurship for MBA. Before every class, I suggest students to refer E-Books from other reputed Institutions which have been prescribed for their course. Most of the time, I use books from the University of Melbourne, George Washington University and the University of Michigan. This is to allow the student to get exposed to foreign university syllabus. 

I practice experiential learning using board games to make the students understand the concepts and the principles. I use online material to demonstrate and practice with the students to have a practical understanding of the course. Moreover, it also promotes critical and lateral thinking among the students. Students are encouraged to publish research papers in UGC Care listed journals and even in SCOPUS Indexed journals, which gives them an opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge and skill.

In order to build confidence in students, I give them seminars topics to prepare and present. During the presentation, I invite other teaching staff to contribute to students’ learning. We facilitate a lot of practice portfolios such as Finance Manager, Human Resource Manager, System Manager, etc. so as to hone their skills and help them become industry-ready.

PMIST is different from others because of the Outcome-Based Education system and the need-based curriculum gives the teachers to conduct the course and use online materials, projects for teaching and also to adapt teaching methodology that is best suitable for the students.

Q: How are you preparing your students to be Industry ready?

A: Before preparing the lessons, I cross-refer with the latest trending areas in Industrial sectors and include them into the lesson for reference.  I ensure that I cover the latest projects that have been undertaken by the business sectors to give a big picture to the students. This prepares them to be industry-ready. Courses such as Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, and Business Analytics are taught to them to withstand the demand of the industrial sector. Besides these, I train them in using excel to tackle business performance such as charting, trending and presentation of marketing performance etc.

Q: What are the qualities you are looking for in student applicants? What qualities do they need to do well in your course?

A: During the comprehensive selection process, I prefer to select students who have the zeal to learn and progress. The students should possess analytical thinking to analyse any business problems.

Q: How do you ensure that your course curriculum is up to date and meets industry requirements?

A: The course curriculum is periodically updated with experts from academia and industry as our advisors. The academicians cover the contents and their relevance to the context. The industry expert verifies the syllabus content in alignment with industry requirements. This process ensures that the curriculum remains up to date.

Q: Is your college receptive to innovation, technology, science & entrepreneurship? How? Could you cite some examples of these?

A: Every programme whether it is UG or PG, innovation, technology-based, Science and Entrepreneurship is covered as a course. This prepares the students to be innovative and to start up a business on their own. We have an exclusive Periyar Technology Business Incubator which assists the student to set up a business and become an Entrepreneur.