Democratisation of management education

A business management programme is one of the most coveted programmes for those looking at making their mark in the corporate circles as well as start-ups. With greater demand from the industry for talented individuals possessing management skills, inter-disciplinary expertise, and innovative spark, working professionals are opting for it to skill-up for career progression and young graduates are enrolling for management programmes to become business-ready.

Management skills are likely to see an increase in demand. Therefore, it is technology that will be a game-changer in taking management education to the grassroots. Online delivery channels will provide accessibility to students and professionals from top tier cities and those in the recesses of India.

Online education has breached every barrier of geography, economy, employment status, and gender. Further, online programmes provide the flexibility of learning ‘any-time, anywhere’. This allows candidates to pace their study as per their comfort and convenience. Thus, allowing working professionals to maintain their work-life balance. Students also benefit from connecting with a worldwide diaspora of alumni and faculty. This opens up a plethora of opportunities for students and professionals, even if they are located in Tier 2 & Tier 3 cities in India.

Changing perception

Online and distance learning have covered much ground since the advent of the first few schools of open learning in India in the mid-'80s. Typically, distance and online programmes are not perceived to be at par with full-time programmes on parameters of effectiveness and experience. However, EdTech platforms are now changing this narrative.

These platforms paved the way for top Indian universities to launch their online divisions. With top universities committing to uphold academic integrity, there was a significant improvement in the quality of open education in India. Greater investments are being made in pedagogy, personalisation of education delivery and stringent procedures for evaluation and certification. Thus, corporate acceptance towards these programmes also increased and so did approval from students as well as parents.

Programme delivery

The fulcrum of the online medium is about striking the right balance between the academic quality, the overall experience of learning online and the ability of the university to provide support services throughout. However, not all institutions can achieve this. Universities struggle on these parameters of student services, student engagement, and providing a personalised and superior learning experience. On the other hand, purely EdTech providers fall short on academic know-how, delivery, and rigor of education that an institution of repute offers. Only a few players have been able to ace this balance with years of groundwork and committed investment in the requisite technology, academics, and student support.

In India, higher education space currently accommodates 35 million seats. The Indian government’s vision is to double the number of seats to 70 million and increase the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) from 25.7% currently to 50% by 2025. Doubling student intake and seats within the next five years is an arduous task and seemingly untenable without the contribution of online and distance education. Our Finance Minister’s recent proclamation to allow top-100 universities to provide online education shall provide the much need impetus to further encourage this segment.

Affordable smart-phones and internet have empowered people across India. Institutes of excellence have pushed the envelope further by infusing more rigors into their programmes and upholding the quality of education and examination. These factors together have provided every student and working professional across the country with an incredible opportunity to enrol for truly world-class management education.

(The author is CEO and Director, NMIMS Global Access School for Continuing Education)