Aptitude test for MBA Preparation

Aptitude test for MBA Preparation

Organisations use many methods to assess applicants: application forms; interviews; written tests and exercises; group discussions and practical exercises. They use these to choose the most appropriate candidate for each vacancy. Different methods provide different sorts of information. One method that is increasingly used is aptitude tests.

Aptitude tests are structured systematic ways of evaluating how people perform on tasks or react to different situations. They are characterised by standardised methods of administration and scoring with the results quantified and compared with how others have done at the same tests. They are increasingly administered on a computer.

No test is perfect, and some candidates such as those with disabilities, may be at a disadvantage when taking this type of test. Employers should make allowance for this.

Tests are usually only part of the overall assessment procedure. Employers will use them alongside interviews, application forms, academic results and other selection methods, so test result usually be the only information looked at.

The section on quantitative ability in CAT (and other competitive exams also) now shows a shift towards questions having greater element of commonsense rather than pure maths (this might have something to do with paper-setters having more commonsense!!!). This doesn't mean that we don't need formulas and calculations now, but that we use calculations or formulas in the situation when logical thinking (a euphemism for commonsense!!!) needs to be supplemented with these and we don't rush to the formula at the sight of the questions.

Before you enter the CAT room, the invigilator would instruct you to keep calculators and other helping gadgets (so desperately required near the half time!!!) out. Fortunately, there is no instruction to keep the commonsense out. So, take it along and use it profusely. This could be your best bell (oops, bet) for the CAT.

Let's take an example. In this season of "sale" every where, you find on one shop a board that says "Buy 3, get 1 free". And on the nearby shop "Get 30% off". Ask the students in a maths class to find out the better offer and they are zapped. Many of the mathematicians will promptly find the discount in the first case to be 33.33 % and in the other to be 30%, thus declaring the first offer better. However, a little common sense (which somehow appears only when you are in the market and disappears as soon as you enter the class room!!!) would tell that in the first case, you are getting a discount of 25%, as you are not paying for 1 out of 4.

Now, ask someone to find out the sale price when an object costing Rs. 151.25 is sold at a loss of 130%. The mathematician will enter the jungle of formulas and calculation, while the one with commonsense (a rare species!!!) would know that nothing could be sold at a loss of more than 100%. Even if you give something free to someone the loss is 100%. And even if you spend something further on its disposal, that is added to the cost and the percentage loss still remains 100%.

Organisations use many methods to assess applicants: application forms; interviews; written tests and exercises; group discussions and practical exercises. They use these to choose the most appropriate candidate for each vacancy. Different methods provide different sorts of information. One method that is increasingly used is aptitude tests.

Aptitude tests are They are characterised by structured systematic ways of evaluating how people perform on tasks or react to different situations. andardised methods of administration and scoring with the results quantified and compared with how others have done at the same tests. They are increasingly administered on a computer.

APTITUDE, ABILITY AND INTELLIGENCE TESTS

• Administered under timed examination conditions. These tests assess your logical reasoning and become increasingly difficult throughout the test. They commonly take the form of multiple choice with right and wrong answers.
  
  
• You are not expected to finish the tests, although of course you may do so. Your score relates your performance to a 'normed' group. So, your aptitude, ability or intelligence has a relative value to it. This is important to an employer who may want to know how well you can do something in relation to other applicants, the general population or people already doing the job.
  
  
• Your score can be used in different ways. There may be a pass mark, which, by achieving, you get the job. Or the employer may have planned to interview a certain number of candidates and provided your score puts you in this group you will continue on to the next stage of selection. Alternatively, your score could simply be a further measure considered by an employer alongside a variety of other measures, such as interviews etc.
  
  

SOME PREPARATION TIPS

• Practice makes perfect. Evidence suggests that some practice of similar tests may improve your performance slightly on actual tests. However, don't spend too long practising. It may be wise to brush up on your exam technique and perhaps become more familiar with the types of test you may face. Even basic word and number puzzles may help you become used to the comprehension and arithmetic aspects of some tests.

  
  
• Treat it as you would any other occasion when you visit an employer. Plan your journey to the test site, arrive on time and appropriately dressed. Listen to the instructions you are given and follow them precisely.
  
  
• Before the actual test, you will be given practice examples to try - make sure you ask questions if anything is unclear at this stage.
  
  
• Work quickly during the test, but pay attention to your accuracy. Try not to get bogged down on any one question, but remember that questions may get harder as you proceed. You can only score points for questions you answer, not for those you don't.
  
  
• Educated guesses are worthwhile. In math's tests you may be able to use the technique of estimating the answer rather than working it out exactly, to save time.
  
  
• If you have a numerical test coming up and haven't done any maths since school then brush up on your numeracy - Stop using a calculator for everyday calculations, practice your multiplication and division, ability to calculate percentages, and to read graphs and tables. Similarly if your English is weak brush up on this.
  
  
• REMEMBER - Listen to the instructions. They are crucial to your success in any psychometric test!

MBA Preparation - Tips for CAT

MBA Preparation - Tips for CAT M.B.A, Master of Business Administration is a degree which will never go out of fashion. It is the most coveted profession.

Common Admission Test (CAT), is the common entrance exam that you have to take to get admission to the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), at Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, Lucknow, Indore, and Kozhikode. Many other institutes like, MICA, Nirma Institute of Management, S.P. Jain Institute, also draw out their candidates based on the performance in CAT.

The exam itself consists of four parts which are Verbal Ability, Reading Comprehension, Problem Solving and Data Interpretation. All the questions are multiple choice and you should shade your choice of answer (only with a HB pencil) in the computer coded answer sheet. For every correct answer, one mark is awarded and for every wrong answer, 1/4th of a mark is deducted.

With CAT only few days away, it would be wise not to waste time working on anything new. In the next few days, just revise your fundamentals and take few full length or module tests. While revising, put stress on varied application of the same concept. Check if there is a better way of doing a question. At this stage, your study hours should be down to a minimum of 2-3 hours a day and all that you should work towards improving your concentration.

The Optimum Strategy:

There should be no fiddling with your Test-taking strategy at this late stage. As long as you know that the strategy you are using is giving you rewards, don't change it… For example, you would know if your best bet is to scan a passage and then move onto to the questions, while another person could be more at ease scanning questions before going onto the passage. So just stick to whatever works best for you.

Analyse the Tests:

Test-taking is the most important aspect of your preparation now. Take two or at the most three tests a week. Test-taking should be followed by an in-depth analysis of the complete paper. Analyse what mistakes you have committed and how you will rectify them. Also check the questions that you have missed, and whether you have missed any 'easy' question! That will help in your choice of questions later. Remember, CAT is not about last minute cramming and revising. It's about being alive and mentally alert, here and now.

For CAT-Day:

One of the biggest pitfalls is that as students we always search for short cuts, asking 'which is the easiest way out and which are the easiest questions?' A critical issue here is the tremendous urge to skip questions. We tend to lose concentration at different stages during the exam and tend to skip questions because of the pressures of time. But things get better if you follow a couple of golden rules. If you want to identify the questions to attend, it is imperative that you read all the questions.

Learn to relax.

CAT is not the end of your life. Many a time, very high potential students have not made it to the IIMs because they could not handle the pressure. So unwind, go for movies, do things that help you relax, go for walks, listen to soothing music, meditate…. People who stick it out, hang in there and continue to peg away will make it.

How much time should I spend on CAT preparation?

This is the most common question asked by many cat takers esp. those who have just started their preparation and it is the most difficult question to give an answer. One can be give the guidance only if all the details of that person are known. To find a standard answer to this question one must consider few parameters. Go through the following few lines carefully if are unsure about how much time you should spend on your preparation, it might help you.

Before preparing for CAT you must know your competency level in all the three departments that IIMs assess through CAT. There are very few persons who have the same level of competency in Maths, DI/DS and English. Out of the three, there must be one or two section which you like most and you can easily score high in CAT. My advice to all who are about to start their CAT preparation -The first thing you need to do is to arrange last year paper and attempt it as if you are appearing the real CAT.

While taking the test, be sure you are true to your self. Take the test for 15 minutes less than the allocated time (2 hours or 2.30 hrs). As it’s your first test you should give equal time to all the sections, during the test if you feel you have done enough to get a good score in that section continue with that section till the allocated time.(you are giving this test to judge your competency level). After you have done with your test check the answers .Match your results with last year cutoffs section wise.

If you have cleared the cutoffs then its great if not then check by how much marks you missed it. If you missed it by 2-4 marks then with a little bit of preparation you can cross the cut off level. 2 months of preparation with weekly 25-35 hours for the basics, then another 2 months on FLTs and revisions of basics should be sufficient. You should always fix last 2 & 1/2 months for Mocks.

If your score is in between than 60% - 80% of the cutoff, then you need to do a lot of hard work. It’s not that easy to increase the score in a very sort time span. You need to make a long term plan. I would suggest 4 months to basics. First check out in which area you find yourself comfortable. (for ex in Number System, Geometry, arithmetic, algebra ,etc ) Select only one section and give a full month or so to it. Start it from the basic and do all the problems in that section. Give few sectional tests without any time constrain and try to achieve 100%. With number of questions reducing & level of difficulty increasing, the importance given to accuracy should increase. When you find most of the questions are familiar to you go to another section.

If you have scored less than 60%, I ‘ll suggest please forget about IIM and target 2nd tier institutes. Less than 60% means you were not serious in your school and no way one can go to that level to learn the basics. You follow the methods that I have described earlier for 60% - 80% category. But if you feel you have all the basics but you couldn’t score well because of not remembering the formulas or for few silly mistakes then you can hope for IIMs too. In summery If you cleared the cutoff or missed it by 10%-20% then - 2/3 months of preparations + times for mocks should be your total time If you score 60% -80 % of the cutoff marks then - 5/6 months of preparation (with weekly 25-35 hours) + times for mocks should be your total time If you score less than 60% , start preparing now. Give how much time you can spend for your preparation.

Skipping tough questions is the key to success

CAT Preperation Tips

… Do not get unduly concerned if you seem to skipping questions. In the first go attempt only those questions that are really really easy (that will take around a minute or less to answer). Though this is generally true across all three sections, it gains greater importance in the quant section. As you go through each question if you encounter a question that you do not know or happens to be difficult, put an X mark next to it, skip it and forget it. If you find a question that you know, but will take 2 or more minutes, put an A next to it, skip it and proceed. Attempt in the 1st round only those that will take about a minute. After exhausting all these easy questions, if you still have time come back for the questions that you have marked an A. This way, your selection of questions follows the rule of attempting the easiest ones first and then the tougher ones. Putting X and A marks next to the question eliminates the necessity to re select questions when you revisit the section.

On an average, students who crack CAT need to get about 50% or lesser of the number of questions in the quant and DI section as their net score. That essentially translates to skipping every other question, provided you can maintain very high levels of accuracy. So, go ahead and skip questions that are difficult. It will be more detrimental to get stuck in a question and spending a lot of time on it than skipping a question that is easy by mistake.

2 feet above the paper view of each question

CAT Preperation Tips
Look at each question from a relatively macro perspective. As you read the question, see if the answer choices give you any clue. More often than not, it will not give much of a clue at this stage. It will just let you get an idea as to whether the answer choices are really close or are they spaced apart. For instance, if you find answer choices for a DI question as 34.3, 34.38, 34.42 and 34.55 skip the question. What is the point in wasting time computing to two decimal points accuracy. Anyway, after you become an MBA you will have the best of calculators and Pentium HT machines at your disposal. What the IIMs are probably testing with such questions is to find out if you are smart enough to skip the question.

You have skipped questions where answer choices really close. What next? Proceed to solve the question. In many instances, even though at the first step answers may not give you much of an idea, as you proceed with the second or third step of solving the problem the answer choices will start making lot more sense. Make it a habit to take a quick glance at the answer choices after each step. It is tantamount to taking a glance at the rear view mirror when you drive a car (that is provided you use the rear view mirror for the intended purpose!!). This time around, it will give you more clues that could help you eliminate answer choices that are not plausible. If your elimination leaves you with only one choice, go ahead and tick it and proceed to the next question. Do Not compute till the last step. It might help get a sense of satisfaction to get the answer after solving all the steps. But then, getting peace of mind in one question will surely cost you missing out on three more.

There will be adequate number of questions in quant section where you should be substituting the answer choices and solving them instead of solving up the logical way. This way you will cut down the time you take for that question by over 50%. Saving time on 10 such questions could mean you will be able to attempt 3 or 4 more questions. Well that is essentially the difference between getting four or more GDPI calls from the IIMs and getting no calls.

Striking a right balance - Accuracy vs Speed in CAT

CAT Preperation Tips
The usual dilemma that one faces while preparing for CAT takes the form of a trade off between accuracy and speed. Honestly, one need not trade off one for the other. In fact, to use a combinatorial term, these two are not mutually exclusive events. However, I will not definitely conclude these two events to be independent ones.

Accuracy is important. But you are not launching a space ship. Essentially this means that you should not hesitate to approximate whenever needed and proceed. For instance, if you realize that you have to find the amount of time taken by two pipes A and B to fill a tank. If these two pipes individually take 20 and 30 minutes respectively, do not spend time trying to solve the problem as 1/20 + 1/30 and then find the LCM and then the answer. If a pipe takes 20 minutes to fill a tank, it fills 5% in a minute. Similarly, another pipe takes 30 minutes to fill a tank, it fills 3.33% in a minute. So, together they fill over 8% a minute. This means they will take about 12 minutes to fill the tank. This kind of approximation and switching between % and fractions will help you gain time.
Similarly, one important thing that you need to keep in mind is that as you proceed with each step of solving a question, take a quick glance at the answer choices. This way, in may instances, you will find that you do not have to go to the last step and find the answer. Even if it is only one or two steps saved for each problem, that will give you enough time to crack another 3 or 4 more problems in CAT. That is a huuuuge difference when it comes to getting calls from the IIMs.

GD Preparation for MBA

GD Preparation for MBA

GROUP discussions are used by the B-schools as a selection tool because they provide a lot of useful information about the candidate’s personality in a very short time. GDs are used to assess certain group skills that cannot be evaluated in an interview situation. These skills include leadership skills, social skills, listening and articulation skills, situation handing ability and interpersonal ability. A typical GD involves 8 to 12 participants sitting in a circle or semicircle discussing a topic for a stipulated time, usually for 15 to 20 minutes. Most GDs follow one of the three formats: Structured, Unstructured, or Specialized.

1. Regular Structured GDs:
Here the time limits and topic is defined. No consensus expected at the end. No leader is to be selected for facilitating the process. These are easier to handle. Topics chosen are usually general and do not require technical knowledge.

2. Unstructured GDs:
Choosing a leader is mandatory and the group has to reach a consensus at the end of the GD. The leader has to direct the group, set the tone for discussion and control the dynamics of the group. Things are sometimes made more complicated by asking the group to propose a topic, discuss it and reach a consensus.

3. Specialised GDs:
These include role-plays or scripted GDs where the candidates are given a certain brief about a role that they need to play. For example, a business situation where to companies are negotiating a deal may be used. Candidates would be given the profile of the two CEOs, marketing managers, HR managers, advisors, and a neutral entity like a consultant. Alternatively, candidates could be given the role of the five Pandavas and the main Kauravas negotiating the distribution of their kingdom in 20th century setting.

Content Vs Process

It is crucial to understand the difference. Content refers to things like your level of preparation, the ability to organize your thoughts in a logical way, understand the topic in its totality and the ability to innovate. Process includes manner of expression, communication skills, body language and the attitude of the person.

Most candidates are preoccupied with process. Consequently, all too vital questions like ‘what should I say? ’,’ do I have enough reasoning to sustain my line of argument? ’,’can I think of examples to substantiate my logic? ’, take a back seat. A preoccupation with process alone is fraught with disastrous results. Both content and process are equally important for an effective contribution to a GD.

Take A One Minute Pause:
This is the only way to ensure that you perform above a threshold level of quality. Take your mind off the context for one minute. Utilise this one minute to focus on WHAT you are going to say and to organize your thoughts. All this must be done much before you are swept away in the maelstrom which will follow.

Critical Success Factors In A GD

• Innovativeness: Ability to have an entirely different perspective.
• Quality Of Content: It shows the level of preparedness.
• Logical Ability: Ability to reason, think and debate the pros and cons.
• Behavioural Skills: Aggressiveness is negative while assertiveness is positive. Assertiveness is standing on your own feet, while aggression is trampling on others’ feet.
• Communication: This includes articulation, listening and body language. Clarity of thought leads to articulate language and frequent and consistent participation. Fundamental knowledge of language is all one needs.
• Leadership: Leadership involves all the above skills. More importantly, the fundamental strength that you need to portray to be effective is MOBILITY. It is mobility that lets you demonstrate leadership skill as the context demands.

Roles People Play

Broadly speaking, participants play the following familiar roles in a GD.

1. Mr. Brain/Plant

He brings in a lot of substance and comes up with wide interpretations of the topic.

Downside: It is difficult to stop him, as he is preoccupied with topic discussion as opposed to group discussion. He is happily obvious to simple things like who is sitting next to him. At the end of the GD if you happen to ask him whether the person sitting next to him was a boy or a girl, the answer would likely be ‘I do not know’.

2. Shopkeeper:

He is the sales man who can sell anything, has the gift of the gab, a very strong ability to relate to people and be at the centre of things.

Downside: He does not usually come up with original thoughts himself. Needs Mr. Brains to feed him with readymade ideas that he can sell.

3. Watchman

His role is to maintain order in the group, usually content is low.

Pre-occupied with directing the group process such as controlling entry and exit of participants.

He is crucial for meeting time commitments made to the panel. Especially, in ensuring consensus.

4. Critic

He criticises everybody’s points without contributing anything new.

5. The Butcher

Does great service to the group by enhancing the quality of content by not letting participants get away with just about anything.

Is most welcome in a group which has one or two aggressive elements in it.

6. The Spectator or The Passenger

Is involved in the proceedings but plays a limited role.

Contribution is very limited and does not affect the out come of the group task.

So What Role Should You Specialise In?

Each role has several benefits. However, strong attachment to any single role throughout the GD could limit your chances of success.

What is more important is that you demonstrate leadership at every moment. You must be able to move across these roles as the situation demands. Anyone seen to be Performing more than three of these roles will definitely make a strong impact on the on the panel. Mobility is the keyword in becoming effective in GDs.

The key to success in GDs is to be able to effortlessly move from one role to the other depending on what the situation demands.

Holding Centre-stage In A GD

There are certain tricks that help you retain centre-stage for longer durations on time and which provide you with many chances to speak. However, these should be used with caution, and at appropriate moments, like the legendary Brahmastra in the Ramayana and Mahabharata.

Give data, examples, anecdotes, survey figures, compelling short stories. This gives people the impression that you know a lot, also, participants do not brand you a bore or Mr. Brains. In this way you avoid facing interjections or arguments. However, be sure of the validity/relevance of your data or story. Always remember the age-old formula for success: KISS-Keep It Short, Stupid.

PEST Analysis: Pest basically stands for aspects of the topic which pertain to

• Political
• Economic
• Social
• Technological

For example, you can start with a basic blasting of the politicians in the context of the topic and you will have the whole group swearing by you.

Use hand motions. When you start speaking, use your hands to count the points on your fingers. Everyone will get impression that you have several well-structured points in your head and they will not mess around with you.

Cardinal Sins In A GD/Interview

• Do not use slang like Yaar, Univ, Princi, etc.
• Do not pepper your language with an accent.
• Do not use verbal tics such as Hmm, like, But, etc.
• Do not use verbal stresses unless a method actor like Al Pacino or Naseeruddin Shah trains you for it.
• Never bluff as the panel will easily figure out that you are an accomplished liar.
• Never interrupt or finish a sentence for an interviewer.
• Never show up late.
• Never get defensive or try to rationalise.
• No negative words about anyone.
• Never give an answer that does not answer the question asked.
• Never allow yourself to lose focus after a string of unanswered questions.

Xavier Labour Relations Institute - XLRI

Xavier Labour Relations Institute
Courses offered:	Applications are invited for admission to 12 months 1. Postgraduate Certificate in Business Management" (PGCBM) 2. Postgraduate Certificate in Human Resource Management (PGCHRM), 3. Postgraduate Certificate in Industrial & Labour Law Management (PGCILL), 4. Postgraduate Certificate in Retail Management (PGCRM) and 5. Postgraduate Certificate in Sales & Marketing Management" (PGCSMM) of XLRI, Jamshedpur.
Eligibility:	Graduation from any recognized university with minimum 2 years work experience after graduation.
Application procedure:	1. To get admission to Satellite courses interested candidates have to submit the Application Form both Online and Hardcopy, along with 2 recent passport size photographs and work experience (if any). 2. To register/Online Application for the course PGCBM / HRM / ILL / RM / SMM courses candidates are requested to click on Apply For Registration. 3. DD detail is required to complete the registration processes. 4. A demand draft of Rs. 1000/- drawn in favor "XLRI, Jamshedpur" payable at "Jamshedpur" is required as application fee for each course. 5. The complete application form should reach to "Satellite Office; XLRI, Jamshedpur, Circuit House Area (East), Jamshedpur - 831001" before 5th September ’08. 6. The envelope should super scribed "Application for admission PGCBM / PGCHRM / PGCILL / PGCRM / PGCSMM ". 7. Please mention XSAT id and your name on reverse side of DD. 8. At the time of application proof of qualification and experience is not required. Credentials will be verified at the time of interview and admission.
Email :	satellitecoord@xlri.ac.in
Further details can be taken from:	Phone : 0657-3983212 Web : www.xlri.ac.in/satellite
Address:	Satellite Office; XLRI, Jamshedpur, Circuit House Area (East), Jamshedpur – 831001
Last date of submission of Forms:	5th September ’08
Interview dates :	24th Sep´08 to 17th Oct ´08

Conference on Digital Learning to be inaugurated today

New Delhi: Minister of State for Human Resource Development (Higher Education), D. Purandeswari, will inaugurate a three-day E-India 2008 (Digital Learning) Conference and Exhibition today at Hall No. 9, Pragati Maidan in the capital.

The Conference and Exhibition will put-forth views and ideas of well-known professionals and experts in the field of Digital Learning.

The first day will have four sessions, the highlight of which will be the inauguration by Purandeswari and the opening plenary which will be on 'Leading Change in e-Education: How to Succeed amid Endless Challenges'.

The second and third sessions of the day will be dedicated to the use of Information and Communication Technology for Higher Education and at the school level too.

"The Government of India has been giving special emphasis on ICT to galvanise the nation into a knowledge-driven society. Union Ministry of Human Resources Development has been pursuing this goal with unlimited vigour and accordingly is concentrating or taking the Indian education scenario to a level where ICT is available to all students and the community at large", an official said.

In order to deliver the benefits of ICT in the learning process, a new scheme named 'National Mission in Education Through ICT' will be launched with the objective of providing connectivity to the deserts to the 'Knowledge World' in cyber space and to make them 'Netizens' in order to enhance the self-learning skids and develop their capabilities for on-line problem solving.

The Mission would also work for creation of knowledge module with right contents to address the personalized needs of learners.

It will also give certification of competencies of the learners, acquired through formal or non-formal means, as also to develop and maintain the data base having profiles of human resources.

In order to deliver the benefits of ICT enabled learning, the Mission would focus attention on achieving technological break through by developing very low cost and low power consuming access devise, making available free band-width, for education purpose to every Indian and to build knowledge network between and within institutions of higher learning in the country.

The 11th Plan also accords priority to promoting research of high quality across the higher education system, modernizing curricula and evaluation system, and making them more responsive to current future challenges and needs.

During the 11th Plan Rs.85,000 crores have been earmarked for the expansion of higher education facilities.

This benefit will percolate to all parts of India as the Government is planning to set up a large number of institutions of higher education in various parts of the country.

'India has a potential to lead the world' - Management Guru at NMIMS

Mumbai: Leading management Guru Prof. C. K. Prahlad, visited the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS) recently to lay out his vision for India@75.

The event was organized by NMIMS in partnership with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Yi.

Prof. Prahlad, while addressing faculty members and students of NMIMS and other distinguished academicians, corporate executives and members of CII and Yi, emphasized on acquiring Economic Strength, Technological Vitality and Moral Leadership of the country.

He said that, "India has a potential to lead the world in 2022 with its predicted largest pool of manpower consisting of 200 million college graduates and 500 million trained and skilled workforce. It could be home for at least 30 of the Fortune 100 companies of the world and generate over 10% of the world trade, by nurturing a vibrant renaissance of world-class contemporary art, science, research and education could have at least 10 Nobel Prize Winners. This is possible in next fifteen years provided leaders focus on this goal as a priority."

He emphasized that this position is possible only when India works on all three fronts- economic growth, technology development & moral leadership.

He said that, "As a country, India must have high and shared aspirations like it had in 1929 when the leaders of the then Congress party declared their ambition as Poorna Swaraj. Since then, India has never had a national aspiration which every Indian could share."

Prof. Prahlad, while speaking about his vision, also shared the key drivers of the developmental context for India to achieve the above goal in next 15 years.

"They relate not to abject poverty but income inequality, changing life styles, urbanization and emergence of universal aspirations, a dramatic change in price-performance relationships, economic development and ecological crisis and finally the role of governance and the rule of law."

Elaborating these key areas, he said that India has reduced abject poverty dramatically during last decade. However, a more difficult problem will emerge in its place.

"An important consequence of rapid economic development and globalization of the economy are the lags and asymmetries in the benefit results. Some sections of society will benefit and some will lag behind. These asymmetries will create multiple new divides in society - divides between educated and the uneducated, the urban and rural populations, between regions of the country as well as between ethnic groups. As a consequence, income inequality will emerge as a source of social tensions", he added.

"When people come to the cities, their aspirations change dramatically. They look at the rich as a benchmark. Their income may not change as a rapidly as their aspirations change. Therefore, it is the lag between increasing aspirations and incomes that can fulfill those aspirations can lead to a significant increase in social unrest", Prof. Prahlad highlighted.

"With the changing life styles of poor class and emergence as consumers has altered the Price-Performance envelop dramatically. This increasing capacity to create life style equality can provide antidote to increasing income inequality. This trend is likely to be further supported by the changing nature of high technology markets around the world."

"The rate of the cost/unit of functionality is changing in high technology implies that the poor can afford products and services incorporating the latest technology. The consequence of this rise in affordability is going to create explosive growth in consumption. This huge market opportunity will also have significant implications to the environment and the demands it will put on it."

"The current development models for energy, water, packaging, waste per capita are inappropriate and we have to develop fundamentally new ideas. We have to find better use of resources and support new innovations in this area for uninterrupted inclusive growth with ecological sensitivity."

Talking about Focus on Governance, Prof. Prahlad explained the relationship between country's human development index and the quality of governance, he said that a nation does not get rich first and then become less corrupt.

"A nation becomes less corrupt before it gets rich. The explicit, quantifiable price we are paying for corruption and the neglect of human resources in the country is staggering and should be the focus of national debate."

Prof. C K Prahlad picked eight faculty members from NMIMS as his vision ambassadors, who will create a multiplier effect oh his vision, create excitement and a movement amongst people in the state.

The theme proposed especially for the youth is Play For the event, here they will be motivated to play matches against corruption, creating a greener city etc. The vision ambassadors will play an "aspirational role" and facilitate India's transformation to a global leader by 2022.

While speaking to faculty members, he spoke about emerging issues in India and the need for research.

IIT-Kharagpur to tie up with 15 foreign institutes

Kharagpur (West Bengal): The Indian Institute of Technology-Kharagpur (IIT-K) will soon collaborate with 15 foreign universities for academic and research activities, the director of the institute said here on Friday.

"We are all set to have collaborations at different levels with as many as 15 foreign universities and institutes, including Cambridge University, University of South Wales, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology of Zurich and Dresden University of Germany soon," Damodar Acharya said at the 54th Annual Convocation of IIT-K.

Among the other varsities in the line-up are University of British Columbia, City University of Hong Kong, Virginia Commonwealth University and University of Birmingham.

Acharya added that the institute has already signed memorandum of understanding with several universities in the US, Germany, Korea and Italy including University of Tokyo, Technical University of Berlin and University of Warwick for academic tie-ups.

"We are also setting up a global venture laboratory in collaboration with Finland's Jyvaskyla University and University of California at the institute's Science and Technology Park (STEP) to improve skills of the budding entrepreneurs," the director said.

He said that the the institute will also help other institutes of learning in the country to grow.

"This year, for the first time, a new institute - IIT-Bhubaneswar - has started operating under IIT-Kharagpur's mentorship. We have also increased the average of PhD holders from 12 to 17 a year from the present session."

"We have increased student intake by 13 percent for the year 2008-09 and have decided to increase it upto 54 percent in 2010-2011," he said.

Acharya said the institute is also considering two new five-year dual degree courses with under graduate in any branch and masters in financial engineering or engineering entrepreneurship.

Indian Institute of Foreign Trade - IIFT

Date of Issue: Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Indian Institute of Foreign Trade
Courses offered: The Institute invites applications for MBA (IB) Degree programme being offered at Delhi & Kolkata campuses for the academic session 2009 - 2011.
Eligibility: • Recognized Bachelor's degree of minimum 3 years' duration in any discipline. Candidates appearing for a qualifying examination can also apply subject to submission of proof of requisite qualification by 7 October 2009.

• No age limit.
Application procedure: Candidates can submit application online by visiting IIFT's website at www.iift.edu and clicking the "ADMISSIONS 2009" icon available on the homepage wherein detailed guidelines are available.

By Cash/Personally : The Prospectus and Application Form may be obtained on all working days between 10.00 a.m. - 4.30 p.m. on payment of Rs. 1,200 (Rs. 600/- for SC/ST/PH candidates and Rs. 2500/- for Foreign/ NRI/ Children of NRIs) in cash personally from Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, B-21, Qutab Institutional Area, New Delhi-110016 OR J-1/14, EP & GP Block, 7th Floor, Sector-V, Salt Lake City, Kolkata-700 091.

By Post : The Prospectus and Application Form may be obtained by post from IIFT DELHI CENTRE only by sending a request accompanied by demand draft/pay order of Rs. 1,300/- favouring INDIAN INSTITUTE OF FOREIGN TRADE payable at NEW DELHI (Rs. 700/- for SC/ST/PH candidates and US$ 75 or Rs. 3,000/- for Foreign/NRI/Children of NRIs) and two self-addressed (with Tel. No.) adhesive stickers. SC/ST/PH candidates to attach requisite category Certificate also.
Email : iift@iift.ac.in
Further details can be taken from: IIFT Bhawan, B-21, Qutab Institutional Area, New Delhi

Telephone: 011-26965124, 26965051, 033-2357 2854
Fax: +91-1126853956
Website: http://www.iift.edu
Address: B-21 Qutab Institutional Area, New Delhi-16
Last date of submission of Forms: 3rd September, 2008
Last date of Issue of application form : By Post: 20th August, 2008 ; ; ; At the Counter: 3rd September, 2008
Date of Entrance Test : 23rd November, 2008 (10.00 am to 12.00 noon ) at : : Ahmedabad, Allahabad, Bangalore, Bhubaneshwar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Coimbatore, Dehradun, Delhi, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Jamshedpur, Kochi, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur and Visakhapatnam
Selection Process : On the basis of Written Test, Group Discussion, Essay Writing and Interview. Based on the marks of Written Test, a limited number of candidates will be invited for second phase of selection process comprising Group Discussion, Essay Writing and Interview to be held at Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Lucknow and Mumbai. ------------------------------------- NOTE: ------ For Foreign /NRI/ Children of NRIs: Seats are reserved for foreign nationals, NRIs and children of NRIs and the admission is considered on the basis of General Management Aptitude Test (GMAT) score of which should not have been declared before 1 January 2

Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A)

Date of Issue: Monday, July 21, 2008

Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A)
Courses offered: Applications are invited for The two year Post-Graduate Programme in Agribusiness Management (PGP-ABM) commencing from June 2009
Eligibility: (a) The candidate must hold a Bachelor’s or Master’s Degree in Agriculture Sciences or in Agriculture-related disciplines, with at least 50% marks or equivalent CGPA in Bachelor’s Degree [45% in case of the candidates belonging to Scheduled Caste (SC)/Scheduled Tribe (ST) or Persons with Disability (PWD) category], of any of the Universities incorporated by an act of the central or state legislature in India or other educational institutions established by an act of Parliament or declared to be deemed as a University under section 3 of UGC Act, 1956, or possess an equivalent qualification recognized by the Ministry of HRD, Government of India. The Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent qualification obtained by the candidate must entail a minimum of three years of education after completing higher secondary schooling (10+2) or equivalent.

OR

(b) The candidate must hold at least a Bachelor’s degree or equivalent qualification in any non-Agriculture discipline, with at least 50% marks or equivalent CGPA [45% in case of the candidates belonging to Scheduled Caste (SC)/Scheduled Tribe (ST) or Persons with Disability (PWD) category] from a University or Institution as defined in the above paragraph and should have an interest in Agriculture, Agro/Food Processing, Rural and Allied sectors. The Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent qualification obtained by the candidate must entail a minimum of three years of education after completing higher secondary schooling (10+2) or equivalent.

Rules for conversion of CGPA, for computation of percentage scored, for the candidates appearing in the final year of qualifying examination, and for candidates who have completed degree requirements and are awaiting results, would be same as mentioned above in the eligibility criterion for admission to PGP for all IIMs. Please note that though the registration date for the PGP-ABM is June 1, 2009, students who are in the final year of their bachelor’s/Master’s degree education and may have to go back to complete their examination formalities during June 2009 will be granted special leave for this purpose. The provisional admission of students who DO NOT complete ALL their examination formalities on or before June 30, 2009 will be CANCELLED. Under no circumstances will an extension of this date of June 30, 2009 be granted.

Also, please note that the candidates, who are eligible under eligibility criteria (1) by virtue of a Master’s degree in Agriculture Sciences or in Agriculture-related disciplines but do not have Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture Sciences or in Agriculture-related disciplines, also need to fulfill the requirements of their Master’s degree by June 30, 2009. For all other eligible candidates, this condition is restricted to their Bachelor’s degree requirements. The admission of such candidates will be confirmed only when they submit the mark sheet and a certificate of having passed the Bachelor’s or Master’s degree referred to in the certificate issued by the Principal/ Registrar of their college/institute. The deadline for submission of the mark sheet and the certificate is December, 2009. Non-fulfillment of this condition will automatically result in the cancellation of the provisional admission.

For further details refer to the CAT advertisement of July 13, 2008 and the CAT Bulletin.
Application procedure: The CAT Bulletin containing the CAT Application Form and other information can be obtained at the designated branches of the Axis Bank listed in the CAT advertisement, between July 14 and August 8, 2008 for Rs. 1300/- (Rs. 650/- for SC/ST candidates). Under exceptional circumstances CAT Bulletin can also be obtained directly from Admissions Office of any one of the IIMs by sending a crossed demand draft for Rs. 1300/- (Rs. 650/- for SC/ST candidates if applied with a copy of the SC/ST certificates) drawn in favour of the respective IIMs. For details please refer the CAT Bulletin.
Email : pgpabm@iimahd.ernet.in
Further details can be taken from: Tel 91-79-26324688 / 26324689
Fax 91-79-2630 6896
Website: http://www.iimahd.ernet.in
Address: Vastrapur, Ahmedabad - 380 015, India
Last date of submission of Forms: September 5, 2008 (Friday)
Last date of Issue of application form : 1. CAT Bulletin from Axis Bank branches: August 8, 2008 (Friday) ; ; 2. CAT Bulletin from IIMS: August 13, 2008 (Wednesday)
Date of Entrance Test : Common Admission Test (CAT): November 16, 2008 (Sunday)

Amrita School of Business

Date of Issue: Monday, July 21, 2008

Amrita School of Business
Courses offered: MBA – Two Year Full Time programme – 2009 - 2011
Eligibility: The minimum qualification to apply for admission to the MBA Program is a Bachelor’s Degree (10+2+3 years of education) in any discipline which is recognized by the Association of Indian Universities, or any degree equivalent to the Bachelor’s degree with a minimum of 50% aggregate marks in the Secondary/Higher Secondary/pre-degree examinations (or equivalent) conducted by a Board/University.

Those appearing for the final year of the Bachelor’s degree examinations may also apply subject to completing their examinations or viva-voce at the time of admission.
Application procedure: Prospectus & Application forms will be available from the 1st September 2008 by sending a DD for Rs.1000/- drawn in favour of “Amrita School of Business, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham”, payable at Coimbatore.

Application form can also be downloaded from the institute’s website and the filled in form can be couriered to the institute along with the requisite amount of DD.

ASB application form can also be procured from select centers of IMS and TIME .
Email :
Further details can be taken from: Telephone: 91(422)265 6422
Fax: 91(422)2656 274
Website: http://amrita.edu
Address: Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Ettimadai, Coimbatore-641 105
Last date of submission of Forms: 15th January, 2009
Selection : All candidates seeking admission to Amrita’s MBA Program should appear for the Common Admission Test (CAT) conducted by the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) in November 2008. The selection is based on CAT Score conducted by IIMs & performance in personal interview conducted by Amrita School of Business.

Indian Institute of Management Indore | FPM

Date of Issue: Thursday, July 24, 2008

Indian Institute of Management Indore
Courses offered: Fellow Programme in Management (FPM)- 2009

Specializations in

Communication, Finance & Accounting, Financial Economics, Information Systems, International Business, Marketing Management, Operations Management and Quantitative Techniques, Organizational Behaviour and HRM, Strategic Management & Entrepreneurship.
Eligibility: Candidates should have:

Master's degree* in any discipline with at least 55% marks with minimum 50% marks for graduation (10+2+3 pattern); OR

A Bachelor's degree** with complete professional qualifications like CA, ICWA, CS, with at least 55 per cent marks and with minimum of two years post-qualification work experience, OR

A B.E./B.Tech degree with at least 60 per cent marks with a minimum of two years post-qualification work experience.

Those appearing for the final year Master's degree examination or its equivalent may also apply, subject to completion of all the requirements before the registration date.
Application procedure: Interested candidates are required to take the Common Admission Test (CAT) of IIMs or GMAT/ GRE /GATE/UGC-JRF (Research) for some of the specific areas.

Consult the brochure and website for details of eligibility. For CAT details, refer to advertisement that has appeared in leading dailies on 13th July 2008. Application forms for FPM can be obtained by post (In-charge, FPM Office, Indian Institute of Management, Prabandh Shikhar, Rau-Pithampur Road, Indore 453 331, M.P. Tel.: 0731- 4228675) by sending a DD of Rs. 300/- drawn in favour of Indian Institute of Management Indore, Payable at Indore or downloaded from the institute's website.
Email : fpm@iimidr.ac.in
Further details can be taken from: Phone: General: +91-731-4228 888/400/666,
FPM Office: +91-731-4228 675
Fax: +91-731-4228 800
Website: www.iimidr.ac.in
Address: Prabandh Shikhar, Rau-Pithampur Road, Indore 453 331
Last date of submission of Forms: November 12, 2008
Selection Process : Candidates for the FPM are required to appear for the Common Admission Test (CAT). On the basis of their performance in CAT , their academic background and experience, candidates will be called for an interview at IIM Indore, for final selection, during March/April 2009. CAT 2008 is not necessary for the following category of candidates: i. PGP Alumni from any of IIMs (Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, Indore, Kozhikode, and Lucknow). ii. Candidates residing abroad can send their GMAT scores (validity of these scores is for two years as on date of application), in lieu of CAT. iii. Candidates applying to the Operations Management and Quantitative Techniques area can send their GATE/GRE scores (GATE/GRE taken only in 2007 or 2008), in lieu of CAT. Similarly, Information system area would also accept candidates with valid GATE & GRE scores instead of CAT iv. Candidates can send their UGC/CSIR JRF (Research) qualifying certificates in relevant disciplines in lieu of CAT. Validity of JRF (Research) is two years as on deadline of submission of the application form.

Bharathisadan Institute of Management - BIM

Bharathisadan Institute of Management
Courses offered: Two-year full time residential MBA Programme with specializations offered in Marketing, Finance, Systems and Human Resource Management. (2009 - 11)
Eligibility: a) Bachelor’s or Post Graduate Degree or its equivalent in any discipline with a minimum of 50% marks.

b) Final Year Degree students may also apply, subject to completion of the degree requirements with minimum 50% marks by July 2009.

c) CAT 2008 Scores are used for shortlisting candidates who apply for admission to BIM.

d) All applicants to BIM should take CAT (Conducted by IIMs on November 16, 2008)
Application procedure: Prospectus and Applications can be obtained by any of the following ways:

• By sending a Demand Draft for Rs.1400/- (SC/ST Rs.920/-) along with two self-addressed slips by regular mail to the BIM address given below.

• By online registration at www.bim.edu with an option to pay either by Demand Draft by Credit Card. For Credit card payments an amount of Rs.1,520/- should be paid instead of Rs.1400/- and (for SC/ST Rs.1000/- should be paid instead of Rs.920/-)

• Demand Draft should be drawn in favour of “ Bharathidasan Institute of Management payable at Tiruchirappalli”.

(Note: Application money paid will neither be refunded nor transferred to another candidate under any circumstances)
Email : admissions@bim.edu
Further details can be taken from: Ph: 0431-2520796, 2520502
Telefax: 0431-2520733
Website: www.bim.edu
Address: P.Box No.12, MHD Complex, BHEL Campus, Tiruchirappalli – 620 014.
Date of Entrance Test : CAT - 2008: 16th November 2008
Note : Commencement of issue of application forms and Online Registration 1st September 2008

Management Aptitude Test (MAT) - All India Management Association (AIMA)

Management Aptitude Test (MAT) - All India Management Association (AIMA)

Date of Issue: Wednesday, July 23, 2008 Date of exam: September, 7, 2008 Date of Submission: : 16 August 2008 (Saturday) Examination name : Management Aptitude Test (MAT) – September 2008 Further detail: http://www.aima-ind.org Eligibility: Graduate in any discipline from a recognized university. Final year degree course students can also apply. Application procedure: To obtain MAT Bulletin and Application Form by post, send a Demand Draft of Rs. 790/- to AIMA-CMS, drawn in favour of AIMA-CMS payable at New Delhi alongwith two self-addressed slips/adhesive stickers. Send your request to Director, All IndiaManagement Association, Management House, 14, Institutional Area, Lodhi Road, New Delhi-110 003. ------------ OR ------------- Obtain MAT Bulletin and Application Form on cash payment of Rs 750/- at AIMA counter at Delhi (Tel:- 24653382), select Bank of Baroda (BoB) Branches, AIMA Nodal Centres and other outlets. ; ; -------------- Note:- To receive MAT Bulletins with Form abroad and / or to appear for MAT at Test centres abroad, applicants have to pay US$ 100 by Demand Draft in favour of AIMA-CMS payable at New Delhi. The test centre abroad will be activated subject to the registration of applicant. Contact Tel: 011 - 24645100, 24617354 Fax: 011- 24626689 Website: http://www.aima-ind.org Admission Admission to MBA Programme

Management Aptitude Test on 7th Sept'08

New Delhi: The All India Management Association (AIMA) will conduct the Management Aptitude Test (MAT) on September 7, 2008.

Lakhs of MBA aspirants appear for MAT every year, which has become popular with over hundreds of AICTE (All Indian Council for Technical Education) approved institutions & University departments.

Graduates in any discipline from a recognized university and final year degree course students are eligible to apply for the test.

MAT-2008 Notification

To obtain the MAT Bulletin and application form by post, a demand draft of Rs.790 drawn in favour of AIMA-CMS payable at New Delhi along with two self-addressed slips/adhesive stickers, must be sent to the Director, All India Management Association, Management House, 14, Institutional Area, Lodhi Road, New Delhi-110 003.

The MAT Bulletin and application forms are also available on cash payment of Rs.750 at AIMA's counter in New Delhi.

To receive MAT Bulletins with application forms abroad and / or to appear for MAT at test centres abroad, applicants have to pay US$ 100 by Demand Draft in favour of AIMA-CMS payable at New Delhi.

The test centre abroad will be activated subject to the registration of applicants.

IIM-Lucknow inaugurates course for Armymen at Noida campus

Noida (Uttar Pradesh): The Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow (IIM-L) yesterday inaugurated the first batch of the General Management Programme (GMP) for Defence Personnel at its Noida campus.

Major General, SG Chatterji, VSM, Director General Resettlement inaugurated the programme.

Prof. Punam Sahgal, Dean- Noida Campus, Prof. S.C. Bansal, Programme Director, Prof. Ajay Singh, Chairman MDP and Corporate Interaction Committee addressed the guests and the participants.

"Management education to defence personnel contributes to providing defence officers a second career choice after retirement. But the larger role in the national interest is to prepare a disciplined and responsible citizen to play important roles in today's competitive business scenario", said Prof. N. K. Gupta & Prof. S.C. Bansal, Programme Director.

The 24-week programme is the fourth in a series of Management Programmes for defence officers organized at IIM Lucknow and the first at IIM Lucknow's Noida Campus.

The idea behind the programme is to familiarize the officers with the requisite analytical tools and techniques and develop a holistic perspective and global mindset to understand issues of an enterprise.

BPO firm ropes in IIM Lucknow for management tips

New Delhi: Leading business process outsourcing (BPO) firm Genpact has roped in professors from the Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow (IIM-L) to give its employees lessons in management skills and improving productivity.

Through electronically enabled interactive sessions, workers at Genpact's operation hubs in Delhi, Gurgaon, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Jaipur will learn the finer nuances of management, soft skills and strategic planning from senior professors of the business school.

This is an e-certificate programme in general management (e-CPGM) and there are 119 participants, most of whom have worked for one to three years.

"The objective of this programme is to develop managerial capabilities among people who are at the early stages of their career to enable them to effectively undertake managerial responsibilities," said Ajay Singh, course director of IIM Lucknow.

The programme is divided into 12 modules. Keeping in mind the requirements of the industry, the modules are designed to create managerial and leadership competence among the professionals. There are 120 hours of e-enabled interactive sessions.

Singh said the programme was being run from IIM Lucknow's Noida campus, which was being developed as a centre of excellence in the area of executive education.

The India headquartered Genpact operates service delivery centres in India, China, Hungary, Mexico, the Philippines, the Netherlands, Romania, Spain and the US.

IIMs hike price of CAT application forms

New Delhi: Inflation seems to have hit even the Common Admission Test (CAT) which is conducted by the elite Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs).

The IIMs have increased the cost of application forms by Rs.200 for general category & OBC students and by Rs.100 for SC/ST candidates for CAT 2008.

Common Admission Test Notification 2008

Last year the form was priced at Rs.1,100 for general category candidates and Rs.550 for reserved category candidates.

The cost was increased in 2004 and 2005 to Rs.1,100 and Rs.1,200 respectively for general category and Rs.600 for SC/ST candidates.

The Common Admission Test (CAT) brings in large revenues for the IIMs.

A report by the V.K. Shunglu Commission had said that IIM-Ahmedabad netted Rs.168.96 lakhs in the 2002-03 CAT against Rs.4.25 lakhs in 1991-92.

At IIM Bangalore, the collection was Rs.247.07 lakhs, while the expenditure was Rs.51.4 lakhs.

1.72 lakhs students appeared for CAT 2006 and the number increased to 2.07 lakhs last year.

The IIMs have also confirmed that the Common Admission Test (CAT) will not be conducted online this year, as was thought earlier.

Subrata Mitra, admission chairperson at IIM Calcutta said, "Though we are in talks with several agencies for conducting the test online, it will be a pencil-paper test this year."

Himachal seeks PM intervention to start IIT in 2008

Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh government has sought Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's intervention to start an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in the state from the current academic session.

In a letter Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said: "The government is willing to provide all facilities to start an IIT at a temporary location till necessary infrastructure has been created. The government has already identified a piece of land in Mandi district for setting up of the IIT."

The institute could be started temporarily at the National Institute of Technology, Hamirpur, he said.

The central government on Thursday decided to set up an IIT in the state to start functioning from 2009 academic session.

IIT-Bombay conference in NY enhances Brand IIT

New York: The golden jubilee conference of the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay (IIT-B) held here over the weekend has achieved its twin objectives of enhancing the IIT brand and establishing the leadership of IIT-B when more IITs being set up will be competing for faculty and resources, the organisers said.

The validation came, they said, when the over 1,000 IIT alumni at the conference were addressed by Indian Ambassador to the US Ronen Sen and luminaries from the fields of science and technology as well as business.

During his keynote address on Sunday, Sen praised the IITs, saying that during his travels as ambassador in the US over the past four years, he has been filled with pride that "so many IITians were doing so well and contributing to the economic progress of the country".

Referring to the Dilbert cartoon introducing an IITian Ashok in the strip, he said, "IITs have become a symbol of new India."

Others who addressed the conference, organised by the IIT-Bombay Heritage Fund and the alumni, included Jamie Dimon, chairman and CEO of JP Morgan Chase; Frank G. Wisner Jr, Vice Chairman (external affairs), AIG, and former US ambassador to India; David Leebron, president of Rice University, Kristina Johnson, provost of Johns Hopkins University; and Rajat Gupta, senior partner, emeritus of McKinsey & Co and IIT Delhi alumnus.

The three-day conference titled "Looking Ahead: The Next Fifty Years", was co-chaired by Victor Menezes, retired senior Vice Chairman, Citigroup, and Nandan Nilekani, co-chairman, Infosys, both IIT-B graduates.

During the conference, as much as $7 million was raised through private donations from IIT alumni, including $5 million from Romesh Wadhwani, founder of the Symphony Group, the organisers said at a press briefing after the conference concluded on Sunday.

Defending having Dow Chemicals, current owner of the Union Carbide pesticides plant where the deadly gas leak happened in 1984, Suresh Shenoy, chairman of the conference planning committee, said: "In dealing with the byproducts of industrialisation and globalisation, we should not exclude dialogue with those who can be helpful in the process." He added that Dow happens to be one of the largest employers of IIT graduates.

Some IIT-B alumni and faculty had in a press statement, released earlier in Mumbai and Delhi, criticised Dow's sponsorship for the conference.

Uday Nadkarni, president of the Greater New York chapter of IIT-B alumni, said, "Dow sponsorship was limited to the conference and does not imply that we support their products or business practices."

A key point raised at the panel discussions was the need to create centres of excellence in individual IITs to avoid duplication by all the IITs trying to do everything. Incidentally, IIT-B has been asked by the government to mentor IIT Gandhinagar and IIT Indore, two of the nine being added to the existing seven IITs.

The conference featured networking, knowledge-sharing and thought leadership on various subjects such as globalisation, energy, technology, career development, and social entrepreneurship.

One presentation at the conference gave details of the contest named '10 Great Ideas to change the world in next 50 years (science and technology)' floated by the IIT-B, which not only goes beyond the IITs but also beyond India for the benefit of the whole humanity.

During his presentation highlighting the IIT-B's premier place as an educational institution of excellence, its director Prof Ashok Misra made a surprise announcement that he was quitting the post he has held since 2000. From October, he joins Intellectual Ventures, a private company based in Bellevue, Washington, that tries to create inventions capital network through developing a patents portfolio

MGR medical university to conduct courses in Tamil

Chennai: The Tamil Nadu Government-run MGR Medical University announced on Monday that from August its medium of instruction would be Tamil.

"A child hears conversation around him or her some five months before birth and has the language imprinted in the mind. Therefore, comprehension in one's mother tongue is the best for any student and more so in medicine," K. Mir Mustapha, the varsity's vice-chancellor, told reporters here.

This is the first time that medical courses will be taught in local languages in India.

With age no bar , non-formal education a hit in Kerala

Kozhikode: M.M. Jameela is 50 years old, but she is taking the Class 10 equivalency examination in Kerala next month in the hope of ultimately earning a graduate degree in Malayalam.

Government servants, bank employees and even grandmothers like Jameela are among the thousands of school dropouts making a beeline for the non-formal education scheme of the Kerala State Literacy Mission.

"I had to discontinue my schooling after Class 7. I got married when I was 15. Now I am a grandmother. But I want to study till my death," says Jameela, who is a member of the Feroke panchayat in Kozhikode district.

In the hope of being able to pursue higher studies or getting a career boost, nearly 13,000 people are expected to appear for the Class 10 equivalency examination being conducted by the literacy mission next month.

Jameela attends classes conducted by the literacy mission on the second Saturday and Sunday of each month. "There are around 70 students in the class. The classes are held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.," she says.

According to her, many of the students are lower grade government employees. "They will be eligible for promotions if they pass the Class 10 examination."

Kerala is a fully literate state but many have not studied in senior school; hence the enthusiasm for non-formal education.

N. Jayadevan, director of the Kerala State Literacy Mission, told sources "Classes for the second batch ended on Sunday. Last year, around 2,800 enrolled for the programme and 1,600 of them appeared for the examination.

"This year, 12,712 enrolled for the programme and most of them are expected to sit for the examination."

"The certificates for those who successfully qualify the Class 10 examination are issued by the Board of Public Examination just like those issued to the regular students and are equally valid. The certificate can be used for higher studies or for getting jobs," he said.

This year, classes were held at 146 centres across the state. At least 25 hours of teaching is ensured for each subject.

"In many centres, the teaching hours even exceeded the stipulated 25 hours due to the enthusiasm of the teachers. We are only providing them an honorarium of Rs.75 per hour for a maximum of 25 hours," said Jayadevan.

The annual course fee is Rs.1,200 while the students are charged Rs.500 for the examination. The classes for the equivalency programme are held on holidays and Sundays.

M.D. Valsala, the literacy mission district coordinator for Kozhikode, said: "For Class 10, there are 10 subjects, including an IT paper. The syllabus for the programme is different from that in regular schools. From Kozhikode district, 863 have attended the classes this year and most of them are expected to appear for the examination."

The literacy mission also conducts equivalency courses for Classes 4 and 5.

Valsala said enrolment for the next batch of the Class 10 programme has already begun. "We have already sold 1,750 applications in Kozhikode district for the next academic session."

Cambridge announces Manmohan Singh Scholarship winners

New Delhi: Three academically brilliant people, including an IITian who is a nature photographer and an Indian researcher at a Lahore varsity, have bagged the first Manmohan Singh Scholarships instituted by the Cambridge University, Britain.

Niladri Banerjee, an IIT Kanpur postgraduate, Manasa Patnam, an Indian engaged in research at the Lahore University of Management Science (LUMS), and Nitu Duggal, who was an M. Phil scholar at Cambridge University will head for St. John's College, Cambridge, to pursue their doctoral fellowship, the British High Commission said here on Friday.

"I always dreamt of being able to go to Cambridge. Probably because I heard that Isaac Newton studied there. The desire was very persistent, so much so, that it can safely be called a childhood dream," said Banerjee, who calls nature photography as his major hobby.

Earlier this year, the St. John's College had launched the Manmohan Singh Scholarships in honour of the Indian Prime Minister, who is a graduate and honorary fellow of the college.

Though academics are high on the agenda, all three winners have wider interests. While Banerjee is passionate about nature and spends his free time capturing its different aspects with a camera, Patnam is an avid climber and mountaineer and has formally trained at the Indian Mountaineering Federation. Patnam is also a Kathak dancer.

Duggal wants to engage herself in teaching activity and work along with teachers to reach out to maximum number of students.

The Indian Navy - Permanent Commissioned Officer in Logistics Cadre of Executive Branch - 2009

Become a Permanent Commissioned Officer in Logistics Cadre of Executive Branch

Course Commencing - Jan 2009

1. Applications are invited from unmarried Male candidates for grant of Permanent Commission (PC) in the Logistics Cadre of Executive Branch of the Indian Navy for Course commencing Jan 2009 at Naval Academy (NAVAC) Ezhimala, Kerala. Candidates to fulfill condition of nationality as laid down by the Government of India.

ELIGIBILITY CONDITIONS

2. Age: 19 & 1/2 to 25 years (i.e. born between 02 Jan 1984 and 01 Jul 1989; both dates inclusive).

3. Educational Qualification. A First Class Degree with minimum 60% marks in any of the following:

(a) B COM (b) BA (Economics) (c) MBA (d) BBA (e) BBM (f) MCA (g) BCA (h) BSc(IT) (j) BTech/BE (k) Graduate Degree with Post Graduate Diploma / Degree in Materials Management / ICWA / Chartered Accountancy.

Note: Candidates who have not completed their Degree (i.e. appearing candidates) need not apply.

4. PHYSICAL STANDARDS

(a) Height and Weight. Minimum height 157 cms with correlated weight.

(b) Eye Sight. 6/36, 6/36 correctable to 6/6, 6/12 with glasses and should not be colour/ night blind.

HOW TO APPLY

5. If you meet the above requirements, apply on plain A4 size paper (typed or handwritten) in the prescribed format duly completed in all respects with superscription on the envelope "PC- LOGISTICS CADRE - JAN 09 COURSE, Educational Qualification....... Aggregate Percentage.........% " are to be sent by 17 Aug 2008 to Post Bag No, 05, GPO New Delhi 110001

Note: Application sent by Speed Post / Regd Post / Courier will not be accepted.

SELECTION PROCEDURE

6. (a) Scrutiny of applications and short listing based on percentage in degree/graduate. Navy reserves the right to fix `Cut Off` % without assigning any reason.

(b) `Call up` letters for shortlisted candidates will be issued to appear for Services Selection Board (SSB) at Bangalore /Bhopa!/ Coimbatore during Aug to Dec 08.

(c) SSB : Stage I test consists of Intelligence test, Picture Perception and Discussion test on the first day. Candidates who fail to qualify in Stage I test will be routed back on the same day from SSB. Stage II test (04 days) consists of Psychological testing, Group testing and Interview.

(d) Medical Examination ( 03-04 days) at service hospitals for those who qualify SSB.

(e) Finalization of merit list based on performance during the SSB test and clearing medical tests.

(f) Issue of Joining Instructions to selected candidates as per the order of merit and vacancy.

Note: 1. No compensation will be paid in respect of injury sustained as a result of test. 2. Return 2nd class sleeper rail fare is admissible for the SSB interview, if appearing for the first time for the entry.

TRAINING

7. Candidates will be inducted as officers in the rank of Sub Lieutenant in Jan 09 and undergo Naval Orientation Course at the Naval Academy INS Zamorin, Ezhimala, Kerala followed by professional training at various Naval Training Establishments/Units/Ships. Full Pay and allowances are admissible to the Officers whilst undergoing training.

Terms and Conditions

8. You will be on a probation for 02 years from the date of reporting to the Naval Academy of the date of commencement of training whichever is later and on confirmation of rank of Sub Lt you will be granted Permanent Commission with retrospective effect. Any candidate found married or marries while undergoing training will be discharged. He shall be liable to refund full pay & allowances drawn by him and any other expenditure incurred on him by the Govt.

DUTIES OF LOGISTICS OFFICER

9. As a Logistics Officer you will be dealing with the Logistics aspects of Men & Material for the Warships. In no other career does an Officer gets exposed to such a wide spectrum of opportunities to keep abreast of modern and latest development in the field of management & finance.

ADVANTAGE INDIAN NAVY

10. On Induction into the Indian Navy, you join the elite group of intelligent, social, disciplined and lively Naval Officers of our Country. It provides facility to pursue any sport of your liking viz Yachting, Sky diving, Para jumping, Mountaineering, Hot air ballooning, etc . The Way of Life in the Indian Navy will make you an `Officer and an Gentleman`.

Last date for receipt of form: 17th August, 2008

For further details and information, contact or write to:

JDMPR (OI & R), Room No.204, “C”, Wing, Sena Bhawan,
Integrated Headquarters of MOD (NAVY), New Delhi – 110 001

Tel: 011 – 2301 0151 (2.00 pm to 5.00 pm)
Fax: 011 – 2301 1282
Website: www.nausena-bharti.nic.in

Maharashtra to open 1,600 colleges to clear admission rush

Mumbai: The Maharashtra Government has decided to open 1,600 new colleges all over the state this year to provide relief to thousands of students who have recently passed out of school but have not secured admission to junior colleges.

Education Minister Vasant Purke announced this while responding to a discussion on schools and higher technical education and the plight of students, initiated by the opposition parties in the state legislative assembly on Friday.

Assuring that "not a single student will remain without admission this year", Purke said that since the pass percentage of students in the state was higher this year than in 2007, more divisions and more colleges were needed.

He said that while the decision to start more divisions in existing colleges was already taken, the government will go ahead and start 1,600 new colleges from the current academic year. The government was committed to ensuring that each student who passed out of school this year gets a seat in a college of his or her choice.

The list of the new colleges with the number of seats, their locations and the courses offered would soon be announced and displayed on the state government website, he said.

Chennai gets India's first heart implant training centre

Chennai: India has got its first training centre for doctors to learn how to place implants in the heart.

Medtronic, a US-based medical technology service provider, opened its first therapy and procedure training centre (TPTC) in South Asia, in Chennai on Saturday.

A recent report in the premier medical journal The Lancet has said that by 2010, 60 percent of the world's heart patients will be in India. The majority of these patients will suffer from cardiac arrhythmias, heart failure and coronary artery diseases.

Implantable cardiac devices such as pacemakers, de-fibrillators, cardiac therapy devices and coronary stents play a major role in the treatment of these life-threatening conditions.

The process of implanting these cardiac devices is complex and requires highly specialised and technically skilled practitioners.

Launched in 2004, Medtronic has a TPTC mobile unit that travels all over the US, training doctors. It has, so far, trained over 8,500 physicians, nurses and other health professionals via its mobile training unit.

It also has 18 virtual training labs throughout the world, including in the US, central America, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, half a dozen European countries, China, Japan and Australia.

The Chennai centre, the first in India, is aimed at increasing the number of heart specialists who will know how implant life saving devices in heart patients.

The centre's state-of-the-art classroom and programmer lab will provide training to cardiologists on the programming and follow-up management of these devices. Besides hands-on training, there will also be simulator-equipped class rooms at the centre.

"The therapy and procedure training centre in Chennai is an example of effective training and education used by the company worldwide," Joon Hurh, Medtronic's regional vice president, said on the occasion.

"As more people around the world are in need of implanted medical devices like pacemakers, ICD's and other cardiac devices, so too is the growing need for well-trained clinicians to care for these patients," said Milind Shah, managing director, Medtronic India.

"India has a small number of electro-physiologists (just about 50) who implant high-end devices like CRTs and ICDs to manage heart failures and reduce mortality due to sudden cardiac arrest (SCA)."

"Medtronic is committed to increasing this number in India so that physicians are able to deliver these therapies effectively to more and more patients who need them," Shah said.

The use of simulators is quickly becoming a standard approach to Medtronic training programmes.

Introduced in 2003, Medtronic's virtual labs with state-of-the-art simulator technology provide a safe way for physicians to develop the skills and confidence to implant devices, and for other health professionals to better understand the implantation process, "with life-like implant scenario", the company said.

The simulators are designed to provide a safe environment in which to learn new techniques while avoiding complications and minimising costs.

Masters degree in Illusion from World's first University of Magic

Shillong: The world's first University of Magic will be setup in Kolkata by November this year, by acclaimed magician P.C. Sorcar (Junior).

Speaking to reporters here, Sorcar said, "About a dozen students have been selected for the university's maiden session scheduled to begin in November later this year."

"We have broken down the courses into various branches like Psychology, Acting, Mechanical and Lighting. Experts from the fields have also been roped in as faculty", Sorkar added.

Interestingly, students will be awarded a Masters of Illusion degree after successful completion of the course.

P.C. Sorcar (Junior), who has elevated the status of magic further more from the position where his father P.C. Sorcar (Senior) left it, says that the magic of today is the science of tomorrow.

"We have laid down strict procedures for selecting candidates for the course. We will only select witty students who have a good IQ and those who will benefit the society rather than harm it," he said.

It was P.C. Sorcar (Senior), father of P.C. Sorcar (Junior), who popularised the family art of 'Magic' beyond the boundaries of India, elevating the presentations to a more prestigious pedestal of theatrical form of International standard, keeping Indian traditions as the central motif.

Sorcar (Senior) gave a new lease of life to the dying art and thus is recognised as "The Father of Indian Magic".

"Ours is a family of magicians… and performing magic is our birthright. Even the cat in our house is a magician", says P.C. Sorcar (Junior).

Indian Institute of Management (IIM) - COMMON ADMISSION TEST (CAT - 2008) Date of Issue: Sunday, July 13, 2008

COMMON ADMISSION TEST (CAT - 2008): 16th November, 2008 (Sunday) from 11.00 am to 1.00 pm

Last date for receipt of completed CAT Applications by the IIMS: 5th September, 2008 (Friiday)

This advertisement along with the Common Admission Test (CAT) Bulletin details the eligibility, the admission process, and other terms and conditions related to admission to the Post-graduate and Fellow programmes of Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), for which CAT is an important pre-requisite. Candidates applying for admission to Post-graduate and Fellow programmes of IIMs and writing CAT are advised to keep the advertisement for future reference.

■ PROGRAMMES

• Post Graduate Programmes in Management (PGP)

IIM Ahmedabad: PGP, PGP-ABM
IIM Bangalore: PGP and PGSEM and PGPPM
IIM Calcutta: PGP-PGDM and PGP-PGDCM
IIM Indore: PGP and Ex-PGP
IIM Kozhikode: PGP
IIM Lucknow: PGP and PGP-ABM
RGIIM Shillong: PGP

• Fellow Programme in Management (FPM) [equivalent to Ph.D.]
IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Calcutta, IIM Indore, IIM Kozhikode, IIM Lucknow

Note: Separate advertisements will appear for the Fellow Programme of each institute as well as the PGP-ABM of IIM Ahmedabad, PGSEM and PGPPM programme of IIM Bangalore, PGDCM programme of IIM Calcutta, and the Ex-PGP of IIM Indore. See the CAT Bulletin for further information.

CAT Eligibility

The candidate must hold a Bachelor`s Degree, with at least 50% marks or equivalent CGPA [45% in case of the candidates belonging to Scheduled Caste (SC)/ Scheduled Tribe (ST) or Persons with Disability (PWD) category], of any of the Universities incorporated by an act of the central or state legislature in India or other educational institutions established by an act of Parliament or declared to be deemed as a University under section 3 of UGC Act, 1956, or possess an equivalent qualification recognized by the Ministry of HRD, Government of India.

The Bachelor`s Degree or equivalent qualification obtained by the candidate must entail a minimum of three years of education after completing higher secondary schooling (10+2) or equivalent. The percentage obtained by the candidate in the bachelor`s degree would be based on the practice followed by the university/institution from where the candidate has obtained the degree.

In case of the candidates being awarded grades/CGPA instead of marks, the equivalence would be based on the equivalence certified by the university/ institution from where they have obtained bachelor`s degree. In case the university/institution does not have any scheme for converting CGPA into equivalent marks, the equivalence would be established by the IIMs by dividing obtained CGPA with the maximum possible CGPA and multiplying the resultant with 100.

Candidates in the final year of bachelor`s degree/equivalent qualification and those who have completed degree requirement and are awaiting results can also apply. Such candidates must produce a certificate from the Principal/ Head of the Department/ Registrar/ Director of the university/institution certifying that the candidate is currently in the final year / is awaiting final results and has obtained at least 50% marks or equivalent (45% in case of candidates belonging to SC/ST/PWD category) based on latest available grades/marks.

• Eligibility for Post Graduate Programmes in Management of IIMs:

The candidate should meet CAT-2008 eligibility as detailed above. A candidate who is in the final year of bachelor`s degree/equivalent qualification, if selected, will be allowed to join the programme provisionally only if he/she submits a certificate latest by June 30, 2009 from the Principal/Registrar of his/her college/ institute (issued on or before June 30, 2009) stating that the candidate has completed all the requirements (the results may, however, be awaited) for obtaining the bachelor`s degree/ equivalent qualification on the date of issue of the certificate.

The admission will be confirmed only when the candidate submits the mark sheet and a certificate of having passed the bachelor`s degree / equivalent qualification referred to in the certificate issued by the Principal/Registrar with at least 50% marks (45% in case of candidates belonging to SC/ST/PWD category).

The deadline for submission of the mark sheet and the certificate is December 31, 2009. Non-fulfillment of this condition will automatically result in the cancellation of the provisional admission. IIMs would not allow any candidate to join their programme in case the candidate is unable to complete all the requirements for a bachelor degree on or before June 30, 2009. The IIMs would also not offer admission to any candidate after June 30, 2009.

• Special eligibility requirements:

IIM Ahmedabad: PGP in Agri-Business Management (PGP-ABM)

(1)The candidate must hold a Bachelor`s or Master`s Degree in Agriculture Sciences or in Agriculture-related disciplines, with at least 50% marks or equivalent CGPA in Bachelor`s Degree [45% in case of the candidates belonging to Scheduled Caste (SC)/Scheduled Tribe (ST) or Persons with Disability (PWD) category], of any of the Universities incorporated by an act of the central or state legislature in India or other educational institutions established by an act of Parliament or declared to be deemed as a University under section 3 of UGC Act, 1956, or possess an equivalent qualification recognized by the Ministry of HRD, Government of India. The Bachelor`s Degree or equivalent qualification obtained by the candidate must entail a minimum of three years of education after completing higher secondary schooling (10+2) or equivalent.

OR

(2) The candidate must hold at least a Bachelor`s degree or equivalent qualification in any non-Agriculture discipline, with at least 50% marks or equivalent CGPA [45% in case of the candidates belonging to Scheduled Caste (SC)/Scheduled Tribe (ST) or Persons with Disability (PWD) category] from a University or Institution as defined in the above paragraph and should have an interest in Agriculture, Agro/Food Processing, Rural and Allied sectors.

The Bachelor`s Degree or equivalent qualification obtained by the candidate must entail a minimum of three years of education after completing higher secondary schooling (10+2) or equivalent.

Rules for conversion of CGPA, for computation of percentage scored, for the candidates appearing in the final year of qualifying examination, and for candidates who have completed degree requirements and are awaiting results, would be same as mentioned above in the eligibility criterion for admission to PGP for all IIMs. Please note that though the registration date for the PGP-ABM is June 1, 2009, students who are in the final year of their bachelor`s/ Master`s degree education and may have to go back to complete their examination formalities during June 2009 will be granted special leave for this purpose. The provisional admission of students who DO NOT complete ALL their examination formalities on or before June 30, 2008 will be CANCELLED. Under no circumstances will an extension of this date of June 30, 2009 be granted.

You are required to produce the mark sheet and a certificate on or before December 31, 2009 of having passed the Bachelor’s degree/equivalent qualification on the date of issue of the Institute. The admission will be confirmed only when you submit the mark sheet and a certificate of having passed the bachelor’s degree/equivalent qualification as mentioned in the certificate issued by the Principal/Registrar with at least 50% marks (45% in case of candidates belonging to SC/ST/PWD category). Under no circumstances the deadline of December 31, 2009 will be extended.

IIM Bangalore: PGP in Software Enterprise Management (PGSEM)

Participants are admitted to the program based on a combination of requirements. First, the candidate must hold a Bachelor`s Degree of any of the Universities incorporated by an act of the central or state legislature in India or other educational institutions established by an act of Parliament or declared to be deemed as a University under section 3 of UGC Act, 1956, or possess an equivalent qualification recognized by the Ministry of HRD, Government of India.

The Bachelor`s Degree or equivalent qualification obtained by the candidate must entail a minimum of three years of education after completing higher secondary schooling (10+2) or equivalent. Second, applicants need to have (or are expected to have) a minimum of two years experience in the Software Industry as on June 10, 2009.

Applicants having 4 to 5 years or more of work experience are likely to gain most from this program.

CAT applicants applying for PGSEM are required to submit a separate application for PGSEM available from December 01, 2008. The application may be submitted online, or can be downloaded from our website (http://pgsem.iimb.emet.in).

Application forms will also be issued free of cost on request. Completed applications along with a Demand Draft worth Rs. 500/- if using CAT/GMAT ; Rs.1300/- if using PGSEM test payable to the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, must reach the PGSEM Office, Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, Bannerghatta Road, Bangalore 560 076 by January 31, 2009.

Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy and Management (PGPPM)

Apart from eligible Government Officials, PGPPM is also open to Civil society functionaries, mid career executives belonging to PSUs and Corporate Undertakings and other individuals with minimum 7 years of professional experience. CAT applicants seeking admission to PGPPM are required to submit a separate application which can be downloaded from our website (www.iimb.ernet.in) from 1 September 2008 onwards.

Completed application forms along with a demand draft worth Rs.500/- payable to the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, must reach the PGPPM office, IIMB, Bannerghatta Road, Bangalore 560 076 by December 31, 2008. PGPPM admissions will be separately notified in national dailies, journals and magazines during end August 2008.

IIM Calcutta: Post Graduate Diploma in Computer Aided Management (PGDCM)

Candidates can apply to both the Post Graduate Programmes, i.e. PGDM and PGDCM, by darkening the circles against PGP-PGDM and PGP-PGDCM along with other options. Please note that no further application fee is to be paid. Further, no separate application or test for admission will be required for the PGDCM Programme from this year.

The eligibility criterion for the PGDCM candidates will be the same as detailed under "Eligibility for Post Graduate Programmes in Management of IIMs". For further details, kindly refer to the CAT Bulletin.

IIM Indore: Post Graduate Programme in Management for Executives (Ex-PGP)

The candidate must hold a Bachelor`s Degree, with at least 50% marks or equivalent CGPA [45% in case of the candidates belonging to Scheduled Caste (SC)/ Scheduled Tribe (ST) or Persons with Disability (PWD) category], of any of the Universities incorporated by an act of the central or state legislature in India or other educational institutions established by an act of Parliament or declared to be deemed as a University under section 3 of UGC Act, 1956, or possess an equivalent qualification recognized by the Ministry of HRD, Government of India. The Bachelor`s Degree or equivalent qualification obtained by the candidate must entail a minimum of three years of education after completing higher secondary schooling (10+2) or equivalent. The candidate should also have a minimum of 5 years of managerial/ entrepreneurial/ professional experience as on May 31, 2009. Work experience obtained only after graduation will be considered. Organizational sponsorship is welcome.

A separate Ex-PGP Application form also needs to be submitted for applying to Ex-PGP For obtaining the Application Form and Brochure, write to Ex-PGP Office, Indian institute of Management Indore, Prabandh Shikhar, Rau-Pithampur Road, Indore - 453331, with a crossed demand draft for Rs.1000/- (Rupees One Thousand only) drawn in favour of IIM Indore, payable at Indore along with a self addressed A4 sized envelope. Application Form can also be downloaded from the website www.iimidr.ac.in . The Ex-PGP Application Form(s) will be available from August 01, 2008 to October 25, 2008. The last date for receiving the completed Application Form is November 12, 2008. For further details, kindly refer to CAT Bulletin.

IIM Lucknow: PGP in Agri-Business Management (PGP-ABM)

Candidates should have any of the following qualifications:

(a) A Bachelor`s degree in Agriculture Science / Agricultural Engineering or allied subjects with at least 50% marks (45% in case of SC/ST/PWD category) or equivalent CGPA from any of the Universities incorporated by an act of the Central or State legislature in India or other educational institutions established by an act of Parliament or declared to be deemed as a University under Section 3 of UGC Act, 1956, or possess an equivalent qualification recognized by the Ministry of HRD, Government of India. The Bachelor`s Degree or equivalent qualification obtained by the candidate must entail a minimum of three years of education after completing Higher Secondary schooling (10+2) or equivalent.

OR

(b) The candidate must hold a Bachelor`s degree with at least 50% marks (45% in case of SC/ST/PWD category) or equivalent CGPA of any of the Universities incorporated by an Act of the Central or State legislature in India or other education institutions established by an act of Parliament or declared to be deemed as a University under Section 3 of UGC Act, 1956, or possess an equivalent qualification recognized` by the Ministry of HRD, Government of India. The Bachelor`s degree or equivalent qualification obtained by the candidate must entail a minimum of three years of education after completing Higher Secondary schooling or equivalent with at least two years experience or strong interest in the field of Agriculture or allied sector.

Such candidates (eligible under criteria-b given above) must submit a special form available with the Admission Office, IIM, Lucknow. This form can also be downloaded from the IIML website http.//www.iiml.ac.in. This form should be directly submitted to the Admission Office, Indian Institute of Management, Prabandh Nagar, Off Sitapur Road, Lucknow-226013 by September 19, 2008.

Candidates in their final year Bachelor`s degree programme can also apply. However, if selected, they will be allowed to join the programme only if they complete their examinations, practical, viva voce, and all other requirements for obtaining the degree before 30 June 2009 and produce a certificate to this effect from Principal/Registrar of the college/Institute at the time of registration. There will be no relaxation on the deadline under any circumstances.

■ CAT SCORE CARD:

The CAT score-card will be mailed to the candidates after January 14, 2009. The CAT score will remain valid for admission to PGPs of IIMs only for the year 2009-10, unless specified otherwise. For further details, kindly refer to CAT Bulletin.

■ SCHOLARSHIPS/FINANCIALASSISTANCE:

It is the endeavour of all IIMs that no student be denied opportunity to pursue the Post-Graduate Programme in Management for want of adequate financial resources. Substantial need-based scholarships are available for students belonging to economically disadvantaged families. (Please see the write-up on each IIM in the CAT Bulletin for details.)

RESERVATIONS

As per the Government of India requirements, 15% of the seats are reserved for Scheduled Caste (SC) and 7 & 1/2% for Scheduled Tribe (ST) candidates. In addition, 27% of seats are reserved for Other Backward Classes (OBC) candidates belonging to the "Non-Creamy" layer. However, the implementation of this 27% reservation for such OBC candidates will be undertaken by each IIM in a phased manner.

3% seats are reserved for Persons with Disability (PWD). The three categories of disability are: a) low-vision/blindness, b) hearing impairment, and c) locomotor disability/cerebral palsy.

Candidates belonging to SC/ST/PWD categories are required to enclose a photocopy of their caste/category certificate at the time of submission of CAT application form. Candidates belonging to "Non-Creamy" OBC category are required to enclose a photocopy of the certificate to this effect as per the suggested format available in CAT Bulletin.

The candidates belonging to categories for which seats are reserved need to note and read carefully the eligibility requirements before applying. It should be noted that while it is the endeavour of IIMs that the candidates belonging to SC/ST/PWD/Non-Creamy OBC categories join the Programme in proportions mandated by the law, they have to meet the minimum eligibility criteria and a certain minimum level of performance in the admission process. The candidates should read carefully the description of admission process followed by each IIM in CAT Bulletin.

■ TEST CENTRES:

Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Coimbatore, Delhi, Gurgaon, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Jamshedpur, Kolkata, Kozhikode, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur, Noida, Patna, Pune and Varanasi

Note: IIMs reserve the right to change or cancel any test centre at their discretion.

■ SALE OF CAT APPLICATION FORM AND BULLETIN BY BANKS

The CAT Application Form and Bulletin can be obtained from branches of Axis Bank, between July 14 and August 8, 2008 for Rs. 1300/- (Rs. 650/- for SC/ST candidates). Please note that a candidate needs to buy only one CAT Application Form irrespective of how many IIMs he/she is applying to. Candidates must enclose the 3rd Copy of Bank`s Pay-in Slip along with the CAT Application Form. Note that the name appearing in the pay in slip is that of the CANDIDATE only.

SC/ST candidates should submit a copy of SC/ST Certificate to the Bank at the time of obtaining the CAT Application Form. Candidates should ensure they meet the eligibility criteria of the Programme in which they are interested, before procuring the CAT Application Form.

CAT Application Forms of ineligible candidates and application forms with incomplete information will be summarily rejected. CAT Application Forms, once sold, will not be taken back and no claims of refund of CAT Application Fee will be entertained.

■ SALE OF CAT APPLICATION FORM AND BULLETIN BY IIMs

Under exceptional circumstances [such as (a) the stock of bulletins get exhausted in the nearby branch of the bank, (b) the bank branch is inaccessible to the candidate, and/or (c) the bulletin sale through banks has closed], CAT Application Form and Bulletin can also be obtained directly from any one of the IIMs till August 13, 2008 by sending a crossed demand draft for Rs. 1300/- (Rs. 650/- for SC/ST candidates with a copy of the SC/ST certificate) drawn in favour of the respective IIM. Request for the bulletin should be accompanied by a cloth-lined self-addressed unstamped envelope of size 12" x 10".

The completed application form for CAT 2008 with supporting documents should be sent so as to reach the concerned IIM on or before September 5, 2008.

IIMs will not be held responsible for non-delivery or postal delays in case of CAT Application Forms and Bulletins sent by the speed/ registered post/ courier and/or non-delivery or postal delays in receipt of completed CAT 2008 application forms.

Important Dates

Issue of Cat Bulletins by AXIS Bank Starts: 14th July, 2008 (Monday)

Issue of Cat Bulletins by AXIS Bank Ends: 8th August, 2008 (Friday)

Issue of Cat Bulletins by IIMS Ends: 13th August, 2008 (Wednesday)

Last date for receipt of completed CAT Applications by the IIMS: 5th September, 2008 (Friiday)

COMMON ADMISSION TEST (CAT - 2008): 16th November, 2008 (Sunday) from 11.00 am to 1.00 pm

Postal Address:

Admissions Office, Indian Institute of Management, Vastrapur, Ahmedabad-380015: admission@iimahd.ernet.in

Admissions Office, Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, Bannerghatta Road. Bangalore -660076 : pgpadm@iimb.ernet.in

Admissions Office, Indian Institute of Management Calcutta. D.H. Road. Joka, Kolkata-700 104: pgpadmissions@iimcal.ac.in

Admissions Office, Indian Institute of Management Indore, Pigdamber, Rau, lndore-453331: pgpadmission@iimidr.ac.in

Admissions Office, Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode, IIM Kozhikode Campus P.O.. Kozhikode-673570: admissions@iimk.ac.in

Admission Office, Indian Institute of Management, Prabandh Nagar, Off Sitapur Road, Lucknow-226013: admission@iiml.ac.in

Administrative Office, Ragiv Gandhi Indian Institute of Management Shillong, NEHU Mayurbhanj Complex, Nongthymmai, Shillong – 793 014 ; E-mail: admissions@rgiim.ac.in

Interactive Voice Response System Numbers

Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad: 079-26307258
Indian Institute of Management Bangalore: 080-26484650
Indian Institute of Management Calcutta: 033-24380266
Indian Institute of Management Indore: 0731-4058371
Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode: 0495-2803005
Indian Institute of Management: 0522-2736666
RGIIM Shillong: 0364 – 2230041

Websites

CAT WEBSITE: www.catiim.in
Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad: www.iimahd.ernet.in
Indian Institute of Management Bangalore: www.iimb.ernet.in
Indian Institute of Management Calcutta: www.iimcal.ac.in
Indian Institute of Management Indore: www.iimidr.ac.in
Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode: www.iimk.ac.in
Indian Institute of Management Lucknow: www.iiml.ac.in
Indian Institute of Management Shillong: www.rgiim.ac.in

Instructions for Candidates

1. CAT Application Forms are sold or sent (along with Bulletins) only to the candidates, who are interested in appearing for CAT 2008 and are applying to one of the programmes of IIMs. The CAT Application Form sold or sent to one person cannot be used by someone else for applying to IIMs. CAT Application Forms and Bulletins, once sold, would not be bought back by the banks or by the IIMs. The CAT Bulletin can also be perused or downloaded from the CAT website (www.catiim.in).

2. CAT Bulletin has considerable information on how to fill up the form. Please read the bulletin carefully before filling-in the form. The candidates should ensure that they meet the eligibility criteria of the programme(s), which they have applied for, that the form is complete in all respects and that they have read the checklist in the CAT Bulletin before forwarding the application to the concerned IIM.

3. If a candidate is eligible based on his/her performance in a professional examination (e.g. CA, ICWA), which is considered equivalent to graduation, he/she should indicate in the CAT Application Form marks obtained in that examination as marks obtained in graduation.

4. The candidate may note that his/her application would be summarily rejected if the application is incomplete in any respect, specifically if documents supporting qualifications and caste are not provided, any mandatory field is left blank, the form is not signed, photograph is not attached or the candidate fails to meet the eligibility criteria. No corrections will be permitted after submission of the application form. However, in case a candidate identifies any mistake in the submitted form, he/she may buy and submit a fresh form duly filled-in by September 5, 2008.

5. A candidate can check the information related to the admission process from CAT website (www.catiim.in) at different stages - (a) whether the application form has been received, (b) Allotted test registration number and the CAT "venue where a candidate will appear for CAT 2008. A candidate can also check the CAT website (www.catiim.in) for information related to (c) whether the application form has been accepted/rejected (d) CAT 2008 scores, (e) whether the candidate has been short listed for Group Discussions and Personal Interview of different IIMs, and (f) whether the candidate has been offered admission by different IIMs CAT-takers can also access their CAT-2008 scores by using SMS facility of mobile phones. For SMS, candidate can type `CAT test registration number date of birth (ddmmyy)` or `CAT test registration number application number" for example: "CAT 5370082 030482" or "CAT 5370082 123456" and SMS to "57333". IIMs have also made arrangements to deliver results by e-mail. Candidates who wish to get their results by e-mail should register themselves between October 17. 2008 and November 30, 2008 by sending an SMS to 57333 as follows: `CAT test registration number date of birth (ddmmyy) email id` Please note that only one e-mail id will be registered against a test registration number.

6. While CAT Bulletin and the CAT website would provide most of the information, a candidate may still have queries about filling the application form. In case a candidate needs further assistance, he/she can call up the concerned IIM. An interactive voice response system (IVRS) would help in resolving the queries. The telephone numbers given in this advertisement would allow the candidate to access this system. Please note that the IVRS provides answers to common queries related to admission process and IIMs are not responsible for any misunderstanding created by the IVRS in the mind of any candidate. IIMs, however, own up the responsibility for written responses to queries raised through e-mail/ letters/fax, for which addresses have been provided in this advertisement.

7. In case a candidate has any special query which cannot be addressed to by the IVRS or the CAT Bulletin, the candidate can write to the admission office of the concerned IIM quoting the application number before receipt of admit card and test registration number after receipt of admit card. The candidate must retain a photocopy of filled-in application form and the admit card as long as the candidate remains interested in the admission process of the IIMs.

8. In case the candidate chooses to write to any IIM, he/she may send an e-mail or may use any other mode of written communication. Please note that no IIM official will directly answer queries of the candidates over phone.

9. The candidates belonging to OBC/SC/ST/PWD categories are requested to indicate their status while filling-in their form and enclose supporting document as a proof that they belong to the specified caste/categories.

Please note that no change in category would be allowed after the last date of receipt of application form. In the absence of any supporting document or inappropriate supporting document, the candidates having paid full fees for CAT Bulletin would be treated as candidates belonging to general category. The applications from candidates who had only paid half the fee for CAT bulletin but who do not submit any supporting document or who submit inappropriate supporting document, would be rejected.

10. The admit cards of the eligible candidates, whose applications are complete would be sent starting from October 13, 2008. The candidates who do not receive the admit cards by October 31, 2008 should immediately write to the concerned IIM quoting their application number.

11. On the day of the test, candidates should reach the test venue by 9:45 AM. Please note that no candidate would be allowed to enter the venue after 10:00 AM. Please do not carry any valuable articles such as cell phones, calculators, pens etc., as only admit card, HB pencils and erasers are required for the test and all other articles would have to be left outside the test hall at candidate`s own risk.

12. The application form should be filled up by the candidate himself/herself. Any attempt to impersonate during the test or while filling up the form would not only lead to immediate and automatic disqualification from the admission process of IIMs but may also lead to prosecution. Please note that detection of such malpractice at any stage including after obtaining admission to any IIM would lead to immediate and automatic disqualification or expulsion.

13.The score card details of all the valid candidates, appearing in CAT 2008, will be available on the CAT website on 9th January, 2009. Subsequently, it would be dispatched to all the candidates. Adequate care is taken to ensure that there are no mistakes in reading the answer sheet by the machine. There is no provision for revaluation of the answer sheet of any candidate. The candidates should ensure that they have read section 3 of the CAT Bulletin carefully regarding the precautions to be taken while answering the questions.

Indian Institute of Management