What is the difference between PGDM and MBA?

While MBA is a degree courses, PGDM is a diploma. Read this article to know more differences between MBA and PGDM.

"What is the difference between MBA and PGDM?” asked a management aspirant on Shiksha Café.

Post Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM full form) or Post Graduate Programme in Management (PGPM full form) and Masters in Business Administration (MBA) are both management courses at Master’s level. Both the courses have a commercial orientation and there is not much of a difference between PGDM and MBA. “MBA and PGDM are both business-orientated courses. The main aim of both the courses is to equip a person who wants to move up in the hierarchy or enter the management field,” says expert Nikhilesh Mathur.

While both the courses have the same outcomes in terms of employment perspective, there are some subtle differences. Below, we have listed five differences between PGP(M)/PGDM and MBA:

1. PGDM vs MBA

At the end of PGP and PGDM courses, candidates are offered a Diploma whereas at the end of MBA programmes, candidates receive a Degree.

Many students tend to think that a Diploma course does not hold the same value as the Degree course but that is not true. Many Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) and other top B-Schools such as XLRI, Jamshedpur and SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai offer PGP or PGDM courses. Most of these institutes are autonomous bodies (not affiliated to any University). There is only the difference of nomenclature but not of professional value. Both MBA and PGDM are highly valued in the job market as they are same in terms of course accreditation, curriculum and pedagogy. 

2.MBA vs PGDM: Syllabus

In most cases, the MBA course curriculum is designed by the university. The core syllabus (and sometimes even elective subjects) will be pretty much the same in two MBA colleges under the same university. However, PGPM or PGDM courses are determined by the individual institute. This gives certain flexibility to the course curriculum. Syllabus undergoes a change according to industrial requirements every year. Universities tend to lag behind and change their syllabus after a few years.

“For people who are interested in the corporate world or want to be an entrepreneur, PGDM would be a more suitable choice,” further says Mathur.

3.MBA vs PGDM: Susceptible to Fraudulence

Since PGP or PGDM courses are offered by autonomous bodies, students need to be careful while taking admission. Many smaller colleges and institutes make claims but do not have proper accreditation status. MBA degrees are conferred by varsities, and hence there’s a lower chance of fraudulent claims. Management aspirants should look for genuine accreditations. Apart from UGC recognition, management institutes are accredited by NAAC, AACSB, AMBA and Equis. 

Also Read: Understanding MBA Accreditation

4. MBA vs PGDM: Focus

Both MBA and PGDM courses have common core subjects. However, some experts claim most MBA courses focus more on theoretical and technical aspects of management rather than adopting a practical approach. PGP or PGDM courses on the other hand, have an industrial orientation and focus on skills-based on market requirements.            

5. MBA vs PGDM: Cost

It has been observed that most MBA courses have lower tuition fees as compared to PGP or PGDM courses. This may be so because mostly government approved universities offer MBA degrees. These universities receive financial aid and grants from the government, making the degree cheaper for the student. In case of a PGP or PGDM degree, students have to bear the cost of the entire programme. However, this is not an ironclad rule. There are MBA programmes which charge high tuition fees.

Difference between MBA and PGDM

There are several other factors which make MBA and PGDM different entities. The below table indicates the basic differences between MBA and PGDM:

Parameters	PGDM	MBA
Approving Authority	AICTE, Ministry of HRD, Govt. of India.	AICTE, Ministry of HRD, Govt. of India, UGC Approval is needed at the university level.
Validity	Valid and equivalent to Post Graduate Degree.	Valid Post Graduate Degree.
Eligibility for PhD. and Lecturership	PGDM with a minimum of 55% aggregate are eligible to enrol for PhD. From Indian Universities. Also PGDMs eligible to teach PG students.	MBA with a minimum of 55% aggregate are eligible to enrol for PhD. From Indian Universities. Also MBAs eligible to teach PG students.
Placements	Depends upon the institution. Most of the PGDM institutions have better placement records than MBA institutions.	Depends upon the institution. Comparatively, Some of the MBA institutions like FMS, JBIMS have better placement records.
Course Syllabus	Dynamic, Gets updated as per needs of the industry. The syllabus is approved by AICTE.	The syllabus is prepared by universities and gets updated less frequently.
Innovative Practices	Teaching and training are multidimensional. Cases, simulations, presentations, short term training are part of pedagogy.	Limited scope for innovation as practices are defined by syllabus prepared by central body i.e. University.
Ranking in general (by business magazines and student-centric websites)	90% of top 100 are PGDM institutions owing to better teaching, training, exposure and placements. Eg: IIMs, XLRI, MDI, IMT, GIM, and many more.	Approximately 10 out of the top 100 are MBA institutions such as FMS, NMIMS, KJSIMS, SCMHRD, etc.
Equivalence	Equivalent to MBA from any Indian University. For PhD, Teaching (UGC NET) and all other purposes.	MBA a post-graduate degree.
Entrance Process	Thorough CAT/ MAT/XAT/ATMA and some state-level examinations like TSICET, MAH-CET etc.	Thorough national and state tate level entrance examinations like CAT, MAT, CMAT, TSICET, MAH-CET etc.
Examinations	PGDM institutions are authorised by approving body, AICTE, to conduct the  Examinations	Examinations are conducted by University

Colleges Offering MBA or PGDM

Here is the list of IIMs and other Top Management Colleges Offering MBA and PGDM/PGP courses:

College Name	MBA/PGDM (PGP)
IIM Ahmedabad	MBA
IIM Bangalore	MBA
IIM Calcutta	MBA and PGDM
IIM Lucknow	PGP
IIM Kozhikode	PGP
IIM Indore	PGP
IIM Shillong	PGP
IIM Ranchi	MBA
IIM Rohtak	PGP
IIM Bodh Gaya	PGP
IIM Visakhapatnam	PGP
IIM Trichy	PGPM
IIM Jammu	MBA
IIM Kashipur	MBA
IIM Sambalpur	MBA
IIM Udaipur	MBA
IIM Amritsar	MBA
IIM Nagpur	MBA
IIM Raipur	PGP
IIM Sirmaur	MBA
XLRI Jamshedpur	PGDM
MDI Gurgaon	PGDM
SPJIMR	PGDM
NMIMS	MBA and PGDM
IMT Ghaziabad	PGDM
IIFT Delhi	MBA
FMS Delhi University	MBA
JBIMS Mumbai	MBA (MMM)
Symbiosis International Deemed to be University	MBA and PGDM
IIT Delhi-DOMS	MBA
IIT Bombay - SJMSOM	MBA
IIT Kharagpur - VGSOM	MBA
IIT Roorkee- DOMS	MBA
IIT Madras-DOMS	MBA
IIT Kanpur-DOMS	MBA
IIT-ISM Dhanbad	MBA
IIT Jodhpur	MBA

Read More:

• MBA Admission: Check Application Deadline of Current Session
• MBA fees in India: Check college wise MBA fees
• Top MBA colleges in NIRF-MHRD ranking 2021
• Top 20 MBA colleges apart from IIMs

FAQs on Difference Between MBA and PGDM

Q: What is the difference between MBA and PGDM?

A: To put it in simple terms, MBA refers to a management degree issued by a University and PGDM refers to Post Graduate Diploma in Management offered by a private college or university, affiliated by AICTE. Apart from this, there is no major difference between MBA and PGDM.

Q: Which is more valuable between MBA and PGDM?

A: The value of MBA and PGDM is determined on the basis of certain factors such as the quality of the course curriculum, pedagogy and the institute’s ranking and repute.

Q: Is PGDM equivalent to MBA?

A: PGDM is Diploma course whereas MBA is a degree course, hence it cannot be claimed that PGDM and MBA are completely equivalent. However, in terms of core subjects and curriculum, MBA and PGDM are largely similar.

Q: Do IIMs offer MBA or PGDM?

A: Some IIMs offer MBA and some IIMs offer Post Graduate Programme (PGP) or Post Graduate Programme in Management (PGPM). Until 2017, the IIMs offered PGDM and PGP, but the IIM Bill passed that year allows them to offer MBA degree as well. Also Read: President gives not to IIM Bill, institutes can award degrees.

Q: Which is better among MBA and PGDM?

A: There is no hard and fast fact which can furnish an MBA or PGDM to be better than the other. The quality of management course, be it MBA or PGDM, depends on factors like quality of curriculum, pedagogy, faculty, industry and international exposure, to name a few.

Q: Is it possible to pursue an MBA after completing PGDM?

A: As per the eligibility criteria of the MBA, candidates should have a bachelor’s degree from a recognised institute or university. Postgraduate candidates are also eligible to apply for MBA. Hence, if a candidate wants to pursue MBA after completing PGDM are eligible to do so.

Q: What are the scopes of higher education after completing MBA and PGDM?

A: After completing an MBA, students can pursue PhD in Management. Students who want to pursue academics can opt for Fellow Programme in Management. Since PhD is a doctorate degree which can be opted after completing a master’s degree, PGDM students will not be eligible for PhD. However, FPM is equivalent to PhD.

Q: Is it necessary to do an MBA to get a Government job?

A: No, it is not necessary to have an MBA degree to get a managerial job in a Government organisation. A PGDM in a relevant specialisation can also be equally eligible or suitable for a managerial role in a Government organisation. However, having an MBA or a PGDM degree is not enough for getting a job in any organisation. The candidate has to fulfil other eligibility criteria or other skills required for the role.

Q: Which course is more affordable among MBA and PGDM?

A: Generally MBA programmes are more affordable than PGDM. Especially those MBA programmes which are offered by Government or public universities. The fee range of MBA programmes in government colleges and universities is under Rs 2 lakh while in private institutes and universities it can go up to 25 lakh.

Q: Which are some of the top MBA colleges in India?

A: Some of the top MBA colleges in India include Faculty of Management Studies (FMS), University of Delhi; Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies (JBIMS), University of Mumbai; KJ Somaiya Institute of Management Studies and Research (KJSIMSR), Mumbai, to name a few.

Q: Which are some of the top colleges offering PGDM?

A: Some of the top management institutes in India that offer PGDM include IIMs, Management Development Institute Gurgaon, XLRI Jamshedpur, SPJIMR Mumbai, among others.