Students’ Speak: Knowledge is key to a selection process at Pondicherry Central University

Placement plays a vital role for the students in the selection of colleges when planning to pursue MBA. With unemployment rising in India, placement ensures that you are getting a job soon after the completion of your course.

In Department of Management Studies (DMS) of the Pondicherry Central University, there is a placement cell and the head of this cell changes every two years. This cell plays a key role in the success of DMS. If you look at the history of DMS PU then you will find that in the year 2008-09 there was 100 percent placement but then PU changed its selection process from CAT to the university entrance. So, it lost its charm. Recently, DMS PU again changed the selection process to CAT. This move is expected to boost the placement drives in the university.

The average placement salary offered to the students is about Rs 7 LPA. While the starting package is Rs 6.4 LPA, the highest package offered is Rs 9 LPA. There is not a great difference between the highest and the lowest package but the return on your investment will be high.

In institutes such as Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) or Xavier School of Management (XLRI), you spend around Rs 22-24 lakh on a course and get placed for an average salary of Rs 15 lakh. This means you will need at least four years to settle the loan amount or whatever you will be spending.

Many companies that come for the placement may ask for the first division, some may ask for 75 percent attendance or else. So, better to have everything in order. It is mandatory to have 70 percent attendance in order to sit for the university's exam. So, indirectly it is mandatory to have 70 percent attendance.

Companies come for the placements in the month of September during the third semester. Some companies ask that there must not be any backlog while some ensure a two-year mandatory course duration.

Marks, during placements, play a small part in the selection process. Knowledge is what decides the selection process. Companies examine the knowledge level in different stages. Last year, one company took a personality test and selected on the basis of that for the next round.

The selection process mainly consists of at least three steps examining every aspect of the student. Companies such as HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, ITC, Bharti AXA, etc., come for the placement and everyone has different selection processes and different criteria for selection.

About the Author:

Rakesh Kumar Sahoo is a student at Pondicherry Central University. He is pursuing MBA.