SPJIMR Mumbai realigns PGDM Admissions, Curriculum & Pedagogy and Student Engagement during COVID 19 Crisis; commences PGDM 2020-22 Batch online

SPJIMR Mumbai commenced its new PGDM 2020-22 Batch on August 1 and is conducting classes virtually. SPJIMR is known for innovations in non-classroom teaching with key initiatives such as ADMAP, DOCC, Abyudaya, PG Lab and Science of Spirituality. SPJIMR also has a unique admission process that focuses on finding future business and social leaders. So how did SPJIMR Mumbai remodel its PGDMadmissions, student engagement, curriculum & pedagogy, during the COVID 19 Crisis? This exclusive MBAUniverse.com article offers a sneak-peek.

Let’s first begin with the PGDM Admission 2020 process.

Admission Process
The application process for admission to PGDM at SPJIMR began on September 19, 2019 and closed on November 22, 2019, just before CAT.  The process included profile based shortlisting as well as profile cum score based shortlists after the declaration of CAT/XAT exam results, subsequent interviews from January 2019 to February 2020 and final selection announcement before COVID 19 became a pandemic.

Student experience is an integral part of SPJIMR culture. SPJIMR ensured that the admission process was one of the best experiences for candidates - right from their interview process to the time they joined campus.It was also personalised and facilitated by admissions committee comprising students.

Batch profile:
In spite of the exceptional circumstances of the ongoing pandemic, SPJIMR PGDM 2020-22 Batch profile continues to be diverse and amongst the top ten management institutes in India. Here are some facts:

• Batch Size: The batch size for the PGDM batch of 2020-2022 is 240
• Geographical Representation: Participants come from about 105 different cities and towns across the country.
• Work-experience: The batch brings diverse backgrounds and work experiences from 40 different industries enhancing the classroom experienceand also contributing to better engagement.
• Gender Ratio: The batch also has a well-balanced gender ratio with more than 40% of female participants. SPJIMR has consistently had a gender ratio with more than 40% female participants every year.
• Non-engineering Student arewelcome:SPJIMR has been a votary of diversity for a long time. This year, participants from a non-engineering background come from a variety of areas such as Arts, Architecture, Finance & accounts, Business management and Fashion Technology.

Commencement & On-boarding process
SPJIMR PGDM 2020-22 Batch commenced on August 1, 2020 with an inauguration and orientation online. The orientation focused on the experience of student life and the anticipated journey in SPJIMR, giving them a glimpse of what events await them as well as a feel of the entire campus through curated videos. Few weeks before the programme commencement, familiarization through various digital platforms was done through campus pictures and curated videos to help them be a part of the SPJIMR family and to inculcate a sense of belonging.

Other Initiatives for Digital Engagement
Realising that, in the online world it is more challenging to engage the participants as compared to face to face interactions at campus, SPJIMR planned numerous activities on its digital platforms to help the students feel at home and get better acquainted with faculty members, their fellow batch mates as well as their seniors in the programme.

To add a fun element, SPJIMR also had a talent hunt on all leading social platforms providing an opportunity for the new batch to showcase their talents and creative pursuits in art, music, dance, and even culinary skills in the #TalentatSPJIMR series.

SPJIMR holds Talent Hunt for student bonding
The 2nd year students also welcomed the new batch with their insights on MBA life in the #SeniorGyaan series.

Seniors interact with Juniors online at SPJIMR
SPJIMR also had the professors sharing their thoughts and wisdom on several topics through the #Gurugyaan series.

Faculty too engaged with new batch at SPJIMR
All these initiatives encouraged incoming students to engage and bond with each other, as well as Faculty and Seniors at SPJIMR.

Online Pedagogy and Curriculum
Anticipating the COVID 19 disruptions, SPJIMR successfully switched to online classes as early as in April 2020 making it a smooth transition within a few days of lockdown implementation. This helped SPJIMR faculty understand the nuances of Online Teaching and be well prepared for the new batch.

Traditional Courses:Taking them Online
SPJIMR made a smooth switch to online classes for the 2nd year PGDM studentsin April within a few days of the lockdown implementation with agility and adaptability.Both faculty and students worked together to make the sessions interactive and engaging. Every aspect of classroom sessions and group works were recreated in an online mode. Quickly moving to online sessions in early April gave SPJIMR a head start in further enhancing the online experience of the new PGDM batch of 2020-2022.

SPJIMR students appreciated the efforts and liked the online learning experience. “Although we are attending classes from home, distance has not limited our learning experience. I feel more connected. Each one of us has got personal attention from professors during the online sessions,” says NiharikaKarnani, Class of 2021.

Sourabh Singhal, another student of Class of 2021 said, “Enormous efforts were made by the faculty to ensure interactive sessions. We enjoyed every part of it although we continue to miss our friends and the campus. It has been a great journey so far”.

Experiential Courses: Making it Interactive
Some courses that have a high experiential learning quotient require greater levels of class engagement. SPJIMRusedinteractive presentation software like ‘Mentimeter’ to get increased interaction between faculty and students during online classes. Tools like ‘Padlet’ (a virtual wall) have replaced whiteboards and post-its.

Two of the key experiential pedagogy at SPJIMR are Design Thinking and Simulations. How did SPJIMR facilitate their transition to the online world? Let us find out:

Design Thinking: Some of the physical group challenges involving hands-on participation that were previously conducted only in a face to face setting in Design Thinking were creatively replicated online with one member assembling a structure while others from the group instructing them over a video call.

“Introducing these tools in our online classes has facilitated better gathering of ideas through group collaboration online, sharing them and also modifying them for future use, “says Dr Ranjan Banerjee, Dean, SPJIMR.

Simulations: Experiential learning through simulations are also being conducted in the online format. The instructors have replicated the group work environment with breakout rooms. The decision making in a virtual setting has also helped participants get a feel of what the future could be. Virtual teams, decision making in an online world is what experiential learning with simulation has been able to offer to participants. Faculty of SPJIMR feel that this continues to be an effective form of learning even in the online mode.

Adapting ‘Non-classroom courses’ to Virtual World
SPJIMR’snon-classroom courses have also been redesigned to be conducted online effectively. “The philosophy of non-classroom initiative has been preserved and modifications have been done keeping in mind the three distinct levels of learning: self-awareness, self-management and societal awareness,” says Prof Aditi S Divatia,Associate Programme Head - PGDM.

Many of the annual events associated with the non-classroom courses will be replicated into online webinars.Several components of non-classroominitiatives such associal internships (DOCC), mentorship programme for underprivileged children (Abhyudaya) and Leadership Lab have been realigned and shifted to the later part of the programme in the academic calendar allowing for more flexibility.

SPJIMR is one of the few B-schools in India to have earned prestigious international accreditation from both AACSB and AMBA. With stellar Placements and a long list of illustrious Alumni, SPJIMR is a go-to B-School for those aspiring for getting into Top 5 B-schools in India.

Stay tuned to MBAUniverse.com for more highlights from SPJIMR and MBA Admission 2021.