IIM Ahmedabad, Bangalore climb ranks in FT Masters biz school rankings 2020

S P Jain Institute of Management & Research debuts as the only private business school in the rankings, taking 36th position.

Indian Institutes of Management (IIM) Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Udaipur improved their performance in the Financial Times Masters in Management (MiM) Rankings 2020 for their flagship two-year Masters in Business Administration (MBA) programmes. IIM Calcutta fell four spots. 

IIM Ahmedabad climbed one spot from 21st rank last year to 20th rank this year, with IIM Calcutta securing 21st rank after falling from 17th position last year. At 36th position, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s S P Jain Institute of Management & Research (SPJIMR) became the only privately run Indian B-School in the top 50 ranks in the FT MiM Rankings 2020.

IIM Bangalore shared the 36th position with IIM Ahmedabad, rising from 44th rank last year. IIM Udaipur climbed four places from last year's 76th rank to 72nd rank this year. 

Around 114 MiM programmes took part in the ranking process in 2020, up from 111 last year. To be eligible for FT MiM Rankings, B-schools must have full-time, cohort-based programmes with a minimum of 30 graduates each year. B-schools must be accredited by either AACSB or Equis with their courses typically of one or two years in length and must be directed at students with little or no work experience. 

The ranking has 17 criteria carrying varied weightage including current average salary, salary increase, value for money, career progress, female faculty, female students, women on board, international course experience, international mobility, international board, international students and faculty with doctorates, among others.

Commenting on the 2020 Rankings, IIM Calcutta director Anju Seth said that besides being the motivation for the B-school to buttress the leadership position it holds in several criteria, the rankings were also a great source to inform IIM Calcutta's strategic decisions. "In line with our vision of global eminence, our continuing endeavour is to further promote curricular relevance, international engagement, and diversity for a dynamic learning experience that positions our students as global leaders," Seth added.

According to IIM Calcutta, the premier B-school had an advantage over its competitors as the only B-school to be a part of the prestigious CEMS. The Global Alliance in Management Education or CEMS is a cooperation of leading business schools and universities with multinational companies and NGOs. The CEMS Global Alliance includes 33 academic institutions on five continents, nearly 70 corporate partners and seven social partners from around the globe. 

The FT MiM Rankings are calculated using two separate surveys: one completed by the participating business schools and the second by alumni who finished their Masters programmes in 2017.

SPJIMR dean Ranjan Banerjee said the business school focused curriculum, industry integration, and experiential learning. "The FT ranking places a lot of emphasis on alumni performance in industry, and is thus a validation of our approach. We will continue to learn, innovate and get better," said Banerjee.