ISB and IIFT under list of unapproved institutions put out by AICTE

Updated on: Friday, November 09, 2012

A prized degree from some of the country's leading management schools may not have much value. The latest list of unapproved institutions put out by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) features some popular names second only to the IIMs or even considered on par with them.

The Indian School of Business (ISB) in Hyderabad, the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade in Delhi, and Great Lakes Institute of Management in Chennai have made a name for themselves within and outside the country, but are also on the AICTE's list of unapproved institutions. Others include the Indian Institute of Planning and Management, ICFAI, Amity Business School and ITM.

The institutions do not seem unduly worried. "ISB's one-year postgraduate programme does not fall under the ambit of AICTE's current regulatory mechanism for business schools and hence we have not sought approval," was ISB's official response to being in the unapproved list. Sriram Gopalakrishnan, director, marketing and communications at ISB, said, "The students are fully aware of the credentials of the course, which is targeted at mid-career professionals. Student interest, the institute's reputation and how recruiters review our students' performance has not been affected."

Strangely, Great Lakes Institute of Management (GLIM) finds place in both the approved and unapproved lists. Director of external relations and professor of marketing at GLIM T N Swaminathan believes that it is a different institution and said they would take it up with the council.

Arks Srinivas, CEO of coaching centre Vista Mind, said institutions such as ISB did not want to get involved with AICTE norms as they were restrictive in terms of curriculum and infrastructure. "Management curriculum is always changing, and AICTE does not have the wherewithal to keep changing it accordingly," Srinivas said.

AICTE has said that unless the institutions apply for fresh approval and meet all the conditions, it will initiate penal civil and/or criminal action against the defaulting institutions, societies, trusts, companies or associated individuals.

The council has identified 311 technical institutions offering management, hotel management and fashion technology courses without its approval. Maharashtra has the highest number of unapproved institutions at
126, followed by Delhi at 65, Andhra Pradesh 43 and Tamil Nadu 11.

ISB and IIFT under list of unapproved institutions put out by AICTE

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