Having been recognized as a constant innovator in terms of program designing, IIM-Shillong on Thursday formally launched its first executive post-graduate programme (PGPEx) on international business with special reference to China, which is being dubbed as the first ever in the arena of business studies.

"The programme is an outcome of visionary leadership paving the way for a fruitful collaboration with the Ocean University of China located at Qingdao," a spokesperson for the youngest B-school in the country said.

"This is a strategic move, and we have chosen to deliberately tie up with OUC's economics department rather than its business school. We are of the opinion that this will help enhance synergies and derive better insights into the Chinese economy and business culture. Our motto is to never duplicate resources but in fact synergize to get the best out of collaborative efforts in terms of expertise and use of resources," said Ashoke Kumar Dutta, director of the institution.

Addressing the first batch of 35 students undertaking the PGPEx, Dutta's exhorted, "We expect you to be morally upright, intellectually competent, socially committed and spiritually inspired, all the while taking advantage of being a member of the IIM-S community."

TKA Nair, adviser to the Prime Minister, lauded the innovative approaches of IIM-Shillong in terms of its use of technology and more so its programmes. Nair said in a changing global economy in the context of changing relationships with China, the avenues for business must be grasped to ensure a sense of well-being for the general populace of both countries. "China's role and global economy is bound to grow in the days to come and we have to learn to live and compete as a friendly neighbour," he said. Nair portrayed that the programme, being launched by IIM-Shillong, is "extremely timely and will benefit the country at large."

Source: TOI

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City's local colleges have been adding new courses this season. With popularity of once defunct course, BBA picking up gradually, city's MCM DAV College for women has started a this course from 2012-2013 current academic session.

The college has got approval from Panjab University to start three new courses- M.A. - I (Economics), M.Com - I and BBA - I.

The much awaited news has opened another door of opportunities for students, who have been looking for commerce post graduation in colleges, which till few years ago was offered only by Panjab University.

Source: TOI

Know More About Panjab University,

The highly-anticipated first cutoff list of Rajasthan University's constituent colleges - Maharani's, Maharaja's, Commerce and Rajasthan was finally out on Tuesday. Much on the expected lines, the cutoff in different subjects in these colleges has seen a rise between 2% and 4%. Besides, 12% increase in number of applicants compared to previous year has made the competition tougher.

The highest cutoff is for BCom in Maharani's College. It has touched an all-time high with 93.6% in the general category. "This is the highest cutoff for BCom course in any college in the state. It is presumably higher than many colleges of Delhi University," said Anjali Krishamurti, principal of Maharani's College.

In a similar manner, BSc pass course touched 90% followed by BA pass course that has cutoff at 80%, both in general category. Maharani's College declared cutoff for 80% seats on Tuesday and the rest 20% seats will be declared in two lists later in the week. The college which has 2,300 seats has received over 12,000 admission forms. It has also received applications from Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.

Commerce College, against the expected lines, saw a fall of 2% in the first cutoff list. It touched 86.2% against last year's 88.31% in general category. The fall can be attributed to the average result of Board of Secondary Education Rajasthan. For SC candidates this year the cutoff list is 70% and for STs it is 68%.

Commerce College has 960 seats against 6,000 forms received. The college has also received applications from Delhi due to the high cutoff in Delhi colleges. "The high cutoff has been the trend for the past two years. The decline this year indicates that many students have moved to private colleges and other universities," said RK Jat, former principal of Commerce College.

Students rush to the college notice board as soon as the cut off marks list displayed hoping to see their name in the list.

Around 25 students have already deposited their fees. CM Sharma, principal of Commerce College said, "There will be two more cutoff lists which will be displayed on June 29 and 30. This year the number of admissions seems to be less as compared to last year."

When the second and third lists are announced the cutoff may decrease between 3% and 5%. "In many cases, students applied for both pass course and honours. It is most likely that few of them will not turn up for admission," said Sharma.

The final list has been prepared by special software. SMSes have already been sent through the software to students whose names are included in the final list. The SMS reads - 'Provisionally admitted in University Commerce College BCom Part I, deposit your fee till July 29 positively'. "This facility will help students to complete all their formalities," said Commerce College principal.

Maharaja's College too brought out the list for pass course with cutoff for general category in biology at 72.83%, almost the same as previous year. The cutoff for maths is 84.46% for general category. "Because of the rising number of engineering colleges the students have become less interested in pursuing BSc," said the college's principal. Maharaja's College has 320 seats each for BSc in Biology and Maths. It has received close to 5,000 forms against 1,200 seats in all programmes.

Rajasthan College also registered a slight increase in the cutoff list for its BA pass course, which touched 78.20% in general category. The college will announce honours cutoff list soon.

Traditional courses in demand again

The cutoff for graduation in humanities in Government College is 63.8% while for maths it is more than 72%. Traditional courses here are once again in demand after a gap of five years. Last year the cutoff for humanities was less than 55%. The interest in graduation courses increased among students just after the sixth pay commission.

"There are chances that the cutoff will decrease in the second list and I am waiting for that. I have filled forms in three colleges and will join as soon as I get a seat," said Bhanwar Singh, a student.

College sources said that on the first day, about 30% of the students submitted their fees. "Last year we had to wait long for students and two years ago the condition was worse. That year many seats in humanities and science remained vacant," said a college source.

The trend seems to be changing as many students now want government jobs rather than professional courses like MBA, etc.

According to sources in Government College, Ajmer last year there were hardly 10 forms against 67 seats in honours courses. However this year the number of forms has increased five times. "A good number of forms are being sold and girls are showing interest in this college," said Chitra Arora, principal of Government Girls' College.

Goa University has introduced a unique five-year integrated MBA programme in hospitality, travel and tourism. Students will also be able to exit the programme after three years, if they desire, with a BBA degree.

"This course will stop the outflow of students from Goa to other states for similar programmes, which are sought after by a large number of students from Goa. We are also exploring the possibility of providing the option to students of undergoing the course on a part-time basis, which will enable working people to benefit from the programme," a Goa University official said.

The course will follow a credit based system in force at the Harvard University. Admission to the course will be done through a national level entrance exam and hostel facility will be made available to outstation candidates.

Organisational behaviour, tourism concepts, economics of tourism, hotel engineering, hotel laws, nutrition science, marketing management, food production, food and beverage practicals, human resource management, front office services will be some of the topics students will learn in detail during the course.

Students can join the course after Class XII. The course has an intake of 30 seats. The programme also includes a summer internship in the hotel industry during the vacation breaks of each academic year.

The programme has an impressive list of faculty including that from an Indian Institute of Management, an official of the Rome embassy, Asian School of Management in Manila and University of Applied Sciences in Germany.

A source from Goa University said that the university is also planning to offer degree, diploma and certificate programmes in hotel management and tourism after standard XII so that Goan students will have an advantage over students of other states when they appear for the entrance exam to get into the MBA programme in the subject at GU.

Source: TOI

Crafting Creative Communications at MICA

This six-month programme leads to a certificate in Crafting Creative Communications with specialisation in Crafting Copywriting or Art Direction, depending on the module chosen by the student. The main objective of this programme is to develop students into high caliber professionals for creative careers in Marketing Communications.

The programme specifically attempts the following at MICA:

• To equip participants with conceptual, behavioural and technical skills
• To offer hands-on experience to become effective communication professionals
• To impart a sense of values that encompasses not only professional work ethics but also a commitment to and passion for creative communication
• To discipline creative instincts and to encourage the use of imagination in diverse fields
• To work towards meeting the objectives stated in the brief and deliver within the deadline

Overview & Pedagogy

PEDAGOGY

Most sessions will be interactive using diverse examples and exercises, case studies, classroom discussions, group exercises and presentations to create an atmosphere of learning-by-doing. Periodic assignments will allow participants to develop skills required for the complete process of idea-generation and elaboration from doodles to full-blown multimedia campaigns. Although there are two modules to choose from (and two mandatory), there are common classes for both, which means that every student is required to assimilate information from all four modules. There is no final examination; instead, every student has to prepare a portfolio of work done during the year and present it at the end of the course to jury members. The student will be graded based on his or her chosen module.

Apart from learning at the institute each student will be offered an opportunity to work as an intern with a leading ad agency, a design house or a production house.

• Who are we looking for?
• We are looking for participants who are intellectually curious and imaginative, have diverse interests and a sense of humour. A flair for writing and the ability to visualise will be seen as a major advantage. They should be knowledgeable about advertising, possess lateral thinking prowess, and above all show strength of character.

With every new batch of Crafting Creative Communications (CCC) at MICA, we hand-pick a bunch of boat-rockers, mavericks, wranglers and disrupters-of-the-status-quo, and put them through a creative commando boot camp. Then we release them upon an unsuspecting world as copywriters, art directors and TV commercial makers.

Curriculum at MICA

• An Overview of the Advertising Industry
• These sessions will explain how an ad agency works, the key departments, and the functions of each of these departments.
• The Basics of Brand Management
• Identifying brand stakeholders
• Understanding how stakeholders currently perceive your brand
• Studying competition and market trends
• Defining brand positioning
• Defining brand promise
• Advertising Strategy

Admissions Criteria at MICA

This course does not require participants to have passed CAT (Common Admission Test). However, a Bachelor's degree or an equivalent qualification in any discipline recognised by the Association of Indian Universities is requisite. For participants in the Crafting Creative Art Direction (Module B), an equivalent diploma/degree in Fine Arts or Applied Arts is mandatory.

Application Process and Timelines

HOW TO APPLY at MICA

• The application form can be downloaded from here.
• The completed form should be sent along with a crossed demand draft for Rs. 1750/- in favour of Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad, payable at Ahmedabad. The same can also be obtained from the Admissions Office, MICA.

SELECTION PROCESS at MICA

Completed application forms and demand draft for Rs. 1750/- should reach MICA before the final date of receiving applications. The selection process is simple yet institutionalised. Every applicant is given the opportunity to take the written test.

The written test is conducted through internet/Email and successful candidates will be shortlisted for a campus interview to be held at MICA. The final selection of candidates will be based on overall performance.

IMPORTANT DATES for Take Admission at MICA

• Last date for submission of forms : June 20, 2012
• Date for online written test : June 25, 2012
• Personal Interview : July 25/26/27, 2012
• Final list of the candidates : July 30, 2012
• Last date for Submission of Fee : August 11, 2012
• Programme Commencement : Mid August 2012 (The date will be announced later)

Know More About Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad (MICA) - Gujarat