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ISB launches Executive MBA in Public Policy one year part time MBA
Babuji Tez Chalna: ISB launches Executive MBA in Public Policy
0The bureaucracy in India (often referred to as Babus which means ‘official’ but carries connotations of laziness and comfort), much like the bureaucracy elsewhere around the world, is famous for taking things slow. That might just change thanks to the Executive MBA in public policy launched by ISB in sync with the government of India.
Senior government officers, much like their counterparts in the private sector, will get to arm themselves with an MBA degree from the prestigious Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad without taking a long break from work.
In a first such initiative, the Centre has tied up with ISB for a one-year part time management programme in public policy, to be launched from April 2015, which civil servants and IPS officers can attend through short-term residences lasting just a month in all over the year. This will allow the officers to undertake the programme while continuing with their jobs.
ISB runs a similar Executive MBA programme for senior private executives (PGPMX) who have demanding work schedules and high level of responsibilities at work. The 15-month executive programme requires executives to attend a week-long classroom learning every sixth week at ISB campus that entails teaching on all seven days, allowing them to study without quitting their full-time jobs.
The business school has tailored a new course on similar lines for the government, which will not have to spare its officers for a full year, especially “when the selected officers are holding important positions or organisations are facing shortage of officers”, the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) said in a October 27 circular.
Specialized programmes in public policy are not new to India however the prominent ones till now have been full time courses: IIM A offered a one-year full time programme called PGP-PMP which got a good response initially but was eventually discontinued because it didn’t attract participation from senior officers as the institute had expected.
Officers will have to travel to ISB campus in Hyderabad only six times for five days each during the year-long part time course
IIM B is one of the other premier B-Schools in India that offers a similar full time programme: the Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy Management. IIM B has been running the course for over a decade.
The programme has been structured in a manner that the officers will be required to attend even shorter residencies than the private sector executives. “The course is proposed to be delivered through a hybrid model with short-term residencies coupled with online and Internet mediated training. Unlike other long-term programmes, the programme is structured with minimum relocation of officers from their workplaces, allowing them to continue with their current assignment during duration of the course,” the circular said.
The officers will have to travel to ISB campus in Hyderabad only six times for five days each during the year-long course, which will include intensive classroom sessions on all such days while the rest of the course will be through online teaching and an e-learning module, according to the DoPT. The entire cost of the course, nearly Rs 13 lakh, and cost of the officers’ travel to Hyderabad will be borne by the government, which will treat the officers as “being on duty” for purpose of pay and allowances.