NOT STRICTLY COMMERCE
Online contests. Marketing exercises. Creative endeavours. It’s no wonder FMS remains on top.
When Eshan Sett, 25, decided to pursue MBA from Faculty of Management Studies ( FMS), Delhi, little did he know that he would soon be selling roses, designing pop art handkerchiefs and performing stunts in Connaught Place—all to earn some extra cash. As president of the institute’s Marketing Society, Sett was part of FMS’s flagship Merchants of Delhi exercise this July.
With only Rs 500, no cellphones or Internet at their disposal, 15 teams were asked to earn as much money as possible in six hours. Using innovative marketing techniques and sales pitches, they earned Rs 1.20 lakh, the largest sum recorded in the six-year history of this fun initiative. “This exercise not only gives participants a chance to interact and work with their classmates but they also gain confidence in their marketing skills,” says Sett, who joined FMS in 2012.
Merchants of Delhi apart, there’s plenty happening—such as online banking simulation contests to knowledge transfer sessions and LAN gaming events— to keep students engaged.
Last year also saw FMS incorporating many new infrastructural changes to both its campus and admission process. The institute became the third B-school in the country to set up its own financial lab in partnership with Bloomberg. The new lab is credited to be the biggest in the country. The year 2012 was also the first time FMS selected candidates based on their results in the Common Admission Test ( CAT). The cut-off for the general category was pegged at 98.73 percentile in the CAT to ensure quality candidates for the
IN 2012, FMS WILL SET UP ITS OWN FINANCIAL LAB IN PARTNERSHIP WITH BLOOMBERG. THE NEW LAB IS THE BIGGEST IN THE COUNTRY.
interview rounds. “Accepting CAT has enabled us to benchmark the quality of our students better, especially when it comes to placement. Now companies know that our students also come from the same pool as the IIMs,” says Raj S. Dhankar, dean of FMS.
The institute is also constructing a building at Delhi University’s South Campus and will shift base there in the years ahead. “Our campus will be 60 years old next year. We started with just one evening diploma programme. Today, one can pursue a full-time two year MBA, an MBA executive evening programme, an executive MBA in healthcare administration, a management development programme and a PhD. The focus has been to enhance infrastructure,” adds Dhankar.
With its new campus, which is spread over three acres and boasts of bigger halls, more classrooms, state-ofthe-art libraries, dedicated research labs and hostels, FMS is all set to take on the country’s best in the years ahead.