Diversity drive at IIMs: A good move?
Garima Upadhyay Rawat
Driving diversity in campuses seems like the new mandate for B-Schools. Various stakeholders in management education, industry and academia, sensed a lacunae in B-school classrooms in terms of academic and gender diversity. Consequently, many IIMs decided to tweak the entrance exam pattern and award extra marks to students coming from non-engineering streams and to women candidates in order to enhance the student mix on campus.
For example, IIM Calcutta replaced 'the group discussion' with a written business situation analysis. The institute registered a four per cent hike in the number of women candidates. IIM Rohtak has decided to offer 20 marks each to women candidates and non-engineers. So, a woman candidate who is a non-engineer will get 40 bonus marks. Similarly, all 13 IIMs have come up with a distinctive admission process to enhance diversity in their campuses. On the other hand, Indian School of Business (ISB) has decided to offer diversity scholarships to attract talent.
While the move is being lauded by some, many are raising concerns about the efficacy of such mechanisms. Over the years, B-Schools have received a lot of flak for following admission processes that favour a certain kind of student. So, is it to break this image that these measures have been introduced or is there more depth and strategy behind the move?
“IIM-R has been doing this since last year. Our admission process encourages such (women and non-engineers) students, but we know how to be transparent in our selection process. A good mix of students in a class leads to healthy debates and discussions in the classroom. It also helps widen the exposure of students and enriches their interaction with one another,” says P Rameshan, director IIM Rohtak.
The current format of most management entrance exams predominantly tests one’s analytical and mathematical aptitude, and therefore, students of a certain background outnumber the others. One may ask that if diversity leads to enriching classroom debates, then why not change the format of the exam to provide a level-playing field to all candidates?
“We cannot blame a student for faring well in an exam. Other alternatives need to be worked out to counter this. Setting up newer institutes can be one option and we must understand that the top-most institutes and exams will continue to attract the best of students,” says Rameshan.
However, there is also a gendered argument to this discourse. “Women and non-engineers in management education haven’t been able to crack the glass ceiling,” believes Prof KV Bhanumurthy, dean of Faculty of Commerce and Business, University of Delhi.
While there is agreement on the need for increasing the number of women in management education, but opinions differ on how to do it. “It is not gender which is more important. It is the socio-economic background based support which is required for women. Supporting women in academics needs to be initiated more in rural areas as the access to education is more difficult for them in rural areas. Evaluation of socio-economic profile of women students should be the basis. For example, first-generation educated girls from poor families will encounter more problems than a fourth-generation educated girl coming from a metro,” opines Vijaya Bandyopadhyaya, associate professor and coordinator-PGPM, Chandragupt Institute of Management Patna.
According to Bhanumurthy, “There is a large representation of women in other post-graduate courses. I am not sure why a fillip is required in an MBA programme. In general, post-graduate courses see around 30% participation from women, but, the numbers are low in B-Schools.” Though he agrees that enhancing diversity in a B-school helps as the curriculum of an MBA programme comprises varied subjects, ranging from business laws to economics.
The student community, however, seems to be eyeing the change with suspicion. Says, Shikha Naithani, an MBA hopeful in Mumbai, “I am not sure how the extra marks are going to make a huge difference in my chances to make it to a B-School. When we have to work so hard to ace the CAT, I don’t mind working a little extra. I don’t need the extra marks. Why the special treatment for women? I understand that as a society, we have discriminated against women, and for a lot of them this is a blessing in disguise, but there should have been a well-thought out move.”
“Will including non-engineers and women in a classroom really lead to diversity in a campus? I think we are stretching it a bit too far. Even now a lot of students from non-engineering streams make it to the realms of B-schools on an equal footing. But, I think it remains to be seen how the move will actually impact the diversity factor in a B-School,” says Bhanu Verma another MBA aspirant.
While one may have to wait to see the actual results of the move, the decision definitely is a step closer towards bringing diversity in classrooms. What do you think? Share your views in the comments section.
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