Noida institute to start in August

To cater for emerging employment opportunities in retail marketing, advertising, event management, public relations, marketing communications consulting, and similar related areas, a new institute called the International School of Marketing Communications (ISMC) is being set up in Noida.

It will provide a post-graduate diploma course of 18 months in marketing and corporate communications.

The ISMC aims to narrow the gap in skills and knowledge of students graduating from business schools and those required by firms and agencies for their marketing functions.

The first batch of about 60 students will commence classes in August at the newly developed campus. It will spend about Rs 8 crore in this campus in its first phase of development by 2008.

However, it will scale up operations in four years and it is planning to move to a new campus spread over 10 acres in Delhi by 2010 with an investment of Rs 125-150 crore; the new campus will include a convention centre, a hostel, a library, and a guest house for the visiting faculty.

It will also introduce courses like graduate programmes in marketing communications; design, merchandising and packaging; and event and exhibition management. And over time the number of seats will be increased to 200.

Syed Ahmed, Director, Strategic Alliances, International School of Marketing Communications, said, "Industry analysts estimate a conservative demand of 88,335 such professionals by the year 2010. This creates marketing communications employment in numerous areas, including advertising agencies, event management, public relations, PSUs, direct marketing, print and broadcast media, retail marketing companies, IT companies, manufacturing and financial services sector."

Industry professional Arati Gupta, former vice-president, Seimens Public Communication Network Ltd, said, ''Unfortunately, even today, many academic programmes continue to treat communications functions seperately. But, its really heartening to learn that ISMC- which is by the industry and for the industry- will teach strategy and implementation skills. The insittute's close proximity to capital would help in giving the exposure to the students and the course is designed in a way to provide hands on experience to the students.''

He said ISMC would be the first institution in South Asia to teach integrated management of all marketing communications at multiple levels and ''has envisioned and designed a unique programme that would train and equip the students for challenges posed by the business world in future as it combines all the varied channels of customer centric marketing communication, with business skills in marketing, finance, statistics and organisational behaviour. The driving force of the market place today is not the company with products to sell, but the consumers who control market decisions of what to buy, where to buy, how to buy and when to buy," he said speaking to Business Standard.