‘MICA producing business leader adept in business and creative domain’ Prof Ashutosh Dutt, Admission Chair

Pursuing PGDM-C at MICA could be a different learning experience as the B-school will groom the business leader within you who is adept in creative domain, says Prof Ashutosh Dutt, Admission chair at MICA.

Admission process for PGDM-C at MICA is open. Candidates can apply online for MICAT-1, with an application fee of Rs.1965 latest by November 30, 2017. MICAT is MICA’s own admission test, to be conducted on December 17, 2017. Besides the candidates must have appeared in CAT 2017, XAT 2018 or must have valid GMAT scores.

MICA Ahmedabad is a premier Business school with a legacy of 28 years and 100% placement record in top companies. Established in 1991, MICA is the only residential institute in the country, and perhaps in the Asia-Pacific region, dedicated to creating leadership in Strategic Marketing and Communication. It differs from other B-Schools in terms of the range & depth of the courses that are offered to its students.  MICA is an autonomous, non-profit institution. It offers a wide-range of academic programmes including 3 residential programs: the Post Graduate Diploma in Management-Communications (PGDM-C), Crafting Creative Communication (CCC) and Fellow Programme in Management-Communications (FPM-C).

Important links:

• MICA Ahmedabad – Admission open for PGDM-C 2018-20
• CAT 2017: Prepare devising your own Exam day strategy; suggest CAT toppers
• CAT 2017: Follow the turns and twists in revised CAT syllabus and CAT exam pattern to score 95+

The B-school has created a niche in management education with consistently achieving and aspiring for yet higher standards. It is a unique institution with unique approach in pedagogy and learning; in selecting the students for admission to its flagship programme.

Prof Ashutosh Dutt Admission Chair at MICA shares how distinct and promising for career it is to pursue management course at MICA rather than other B-schools.

With a more than 13 years of experience as faculty including 7 years in the area of of Marketing Analytics at MICA, Prof Dutt is an Associate Professor at MICA. He has also taught at IIM Kashipur, Symbiosis Pune and DMI Patna. He also consults the current Delhi government and Delhi Commission for Women on matters pertaining to Research and Analysis.

Sharing with MBAUniverse.com Prof Ashutosh Dutt highlights the USPs, admission process, learning experience, career opportunities, placements at MICA.

Below are given the excerpts of the interview:

Q. MICA is a leading B-school. Please share your vision and the key achievements of this coveted B-school.
A. MICA is India’s premier business management institute offering AICTE approved courses dedicated to creating leadership in Strategic Marketing and Communication. MICA produces a different leader - one who is adept in both business as well as creative domain. Our students can not only blend numbers and interpret the story behind them, but also possess the ability to do so with creative and innovative insights. MICAns understand customers and brands from a unique 360 degree view. At the intersection of sequencing and imagination, linear thinking and intuition, facts and opinions, MICA’s strength is in fostering innovative leaders in strategic marketing and communication!

Q. What makes MICA a preferred MBA/PGDM destination for the candidates? Please share  
A. MICA’s Post Graduate Diploma in Management – Communications (PGDM–C) has a predominant focus on Strategic Marketing and Communications. Our curriculum is designed to integrate conceptual rigor and industry relevance. The key focal points of our curriculum are an interdisciplinary perspective and holistic approach and it aims at being disruptive and challenging the status quo.

Unique Specializations
We have pioneered program innovations in the areas of Digital Platforms & Strategies, Media & Entertainment, Marketing Analytics, Strategic Communication and Strategic Marketing area. MICA offers unique specializations such as:

• Advertising and Brand Management
• Marketing Analytics
• Digital Communication Management
• Media and Entertainment Management
• Development Management and Social Enterprise

Balancing the Left and Right Brain
MICA is the only top institution in the country with its own community FM station, MICAVAANI and a Creative Lab where analytical mind-sets meld with creative thinking to tell a story on every wall. What stands apart is the fact that, the innovative pedagogy at MICA harps on peer-learning and developing the intuitive traits and emotional intelligence of the participants.

Appreciating Diversity
The diversity that exists in the student body is noteworthy. The men and women account for almost 1:1 ratio in the student body. It’s encouraging to see that this diversity is by default, not by design! In addition, nearly of the students at MICA right now come from non-engineering backgrounds. This is a unique distinction from other B-Schools.

Empowering Entrepreneurs
Committed to motivate and support young entrepreneurs, MICA’s own Start-Up Incubator and the Entrepreneurship Development Cell encourages students to start-up their ventures and further helps them with ideation and implementation. Several MICAns have been successful in establishing their own unique startups. Rajat Tuli and Rahul Anand (Happily Unmarried), Sachin Sharma and Shreya Parashar (Culture Opus), Varun Dua (Co-Founder, Coverfox.com & Founder- Acko) and Shraddha Sharma (Your Story) are few of the many such entrepreneurial MICAns.

Alumni Network
Today, it is the alma mater of professionals serving in leadership positions in some of the best known companies in India and the world. They are well represented in marketing, brand management, research and analytics, advertising, media, digital and other fast-changing dynamic and creative domains

MICA has been the alma mater to many industry stalwarts such as:

• Sushant Dash (Regional President - India at Tata Global Beverages) 
• Manmeet Vohra (Chief Marketing Officer, VISA)
• Pankaj Bhalla (Director, P&G) 
• Nishant Kaushal (Executive Director, Head of Kantar TNS Singapore) 
• Prem Kamath (Dy. Managing Director, Asia Pacific, A+E Networks)

Q: Who is an ideal applicant for admission in MICA?
A. MICA looks for the following qualities in candidates:

1. Inherent ability to think out of the box and apply it meaningfully for problem solving
2. Strong inclination to excel in the areas of strategic marketing and communications as against doing a generic MBA
3. Highly motivated to learn and unlearn and relearn in a digitally enabled world of today

Q: Are there any major changes in your admission process 2018? Please share key changes.
A. There are no major changes in the process of the current admission calendar. We still have a 3 stage admission process wherein a student should appear for

1. Written Exam: CAT/XAT/GMAT and MICAT - MICA's entrance exam conducted twice a year.
2. Group Exercise (GE)
3. Personal Interview (PI)

 Q: MICA accepts CAT & XAT scores. What is the importance of CAT and XAT scores in your selection process?
A. Candidate should have any of the three scores viz. CAT 2017, XAT 2018 or GMAT 2016 or later while applying to MICA.

MICA will consider this score at 2 stages. Once while shortlisting for GE and PI, MICA would calculate a cut off by looking at an aggregate score of both MICAT and CAT/XAT/GMAT.

Also, MICA will look at this score while preparing the final list of selected students. At that time CAT/XAT/GMAT score will have a weightage of 20%. 

Q. MICAT is mandatory exam for admission to MICA. Please share about its importance and weightage in admission process.
A. MICAT is MICA's written entrance exam. It will be conducted twice i.e. on 17th Dec 2017 and 17th Feb 2018. It is a mandatory exam to clear while applying to MICA

MICAT has 6 sections in it. They are: Psychometric, Verbal ability (VA), Quantitative ability and Data Interpretation (QADI), General awareness (GA), Divergent and Convergent Thinking (DCT) and Descriptive Section. 

It is extremely important to score well on MICAT score is considered at 2 stages. Once while shortlisting for GE and PI, MICA would calculate a cut off by looking at an aggregate score of both MICAT and CAT/XAT/GMAT. Also, MICA will look at this score while preparing the final list of selected students at which time MICAT score will have a weightage of 30%. 

Q. What are the key placement trends at MICA? 
A. MICA has consistently had 100% placements for both final and summer internships. Some of the most respected companies and brands of the world recruit from MICA. Given its premier position in study of strategic marketing and communication, these recruitment are across industry verticals, including FMCG, FMCD, Digital, Media, Entertainment, Advertising, Analytics etc. 

We have seen a consistent rise in both the number of participating companies as well as the ​salaries and stipends paid. The last year final year highest salary was Rs.56 lakhs/annum and the average Rs.12.65 lakhs/annum. Summer internships this year have risen to a new high of Rs.2 lakhs as the highest stipend and average of 61,000. Both final and summers have had international placements.

Q: CAT 2017 is hardly 30 days away. What is your advice to aspirants?
A. Keep your conviction about MICA strong, prepare well for CAT and MICAT and be yourself in the Group Exercise and Personal Interview stages. MICA is the place to be in – join it if you wish to be in the exciting world of Strategy Marketing and Communications. When it comes to marketing there is no one better than us to learn from.

Stay tuned to MBAUniverse.com for more updates on MICA Ahmedabad

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