Though this question has been answered in bits and pieces on multiple instances, I will collate all the pieces and try to provide insights about the PGDBA course structure, curriculum and the complete two-year journey.
The reason I am writing this post is that people have asked me this question numerous times and since I have been through this entire journey myself, I am adequately qualified to write this post.
I must say that the entire PGDBA course curriculum has been designed in a very thoughtful and meticulous manner. The entire transition of courses from pre-semester to the final semester is very smooth and structured.
The overall curriculum, which includes classroom courses, diverse projects, tools, competitions, guest lectures and of course end semester exams, offered in the program is very application based and very relevant to the current industry needs. A lot of emphases is given on projects, case studies, interaction with industry people, along with theoretical concepts that are an inevitable part of the journey.
Below are the details about the course structure, curriculum and details on how the entire course unfolds in the two years.
The program session usually starts in the third week of June with a pre-semester module at IIM Calcutta. This pre-semester module is like a crash course (4-5 weeks) wherein the focus is on building the foundation for the next 4 semesters. Subjects taught in this semester gives you a sense of analytics and other basic areas of management such as marketing, financial statements and organizational behaviour. The subjects offered throughout the course have a strong focus on case studies and/or projects, and the same is true for the pre-semester module. A lot of case studies in the area of analytics, marketing and organizational behaviour are covered in the pre-semester.
| “ISI Kolkata – as the institute is famous for its strong foundations in statistics – focuses on building statistical knowledge which is used in the subsequent semesters.” |
After the pre-semester, the first semester starts at ISI Kolkata. ISI Kolkata – as the institute is famous for its strong foundations in statistics – focuses on building statistical knowledge which is used in the subsequent semesters. A few of the topics that you study in the first semester are linear algebra, database management, hypothesis testing, probability, Markov chains, distribution curves, inferential analysis, regression models, random forest, missing value imputation, graphical representation of data and few aspects of computing. Courses are laden with projects, theoretical as well as coding assignments, tutorial classes, etc.
At the end of the semester, you develop a good understanding of statistical techniques, a fair bit of computing and machine learning knowledge. Students usually work on SQL, R and Python in this semester. By the time you finish the first semester, you will start appreciating the applications of analytics and data science in real-world. You will develop an understanding of the level wherein you will be able to identify (at least at a high level) how a particular data science model must have been developed.
| “The campus has altogether a different vibe at that time – full of activities and chirping of people coming from different campuses all over India.” |
The second semester starts at IIT Kharagpur in the month of January when preparations for Spring Fest (IIT Kgp’s Cultural Fest) are at peak. The campus has altogether a different vibe at that time – full of activities and chirping of people coming from different campuses all over India. Now, let’s get back to our main topic of discussion – PGDBA structure and curriculum. This semester offers you a plethora of electives to choose from. A few of the electives are offered by Computer Science department, a few other electives by management school of IIT Kharagpur (Vinod Gupta School of Management) and other electives by other schools and departments such Rajendra Mishra School of Engineering Entrepreneurship, Mathematics department, etc. at IIT Kharagpur.
Algorithms, Machine Learning, Regression and Time series analysis, Operations modelling are some of the mandatory courses. The electives offered in this semester are supply chain analytics, optimization theory, marketing analytics, healthcare analytics, product analytics, banking and financial analytics, information retrieval, network theory, among others. Depending on how many students opt for a particular elective, professors take a call whether to float the course. Here again, students usually work on R, Python and some start with Hadoop and other things if required. Some of the students also use SPSS, Minitab (in case they are able to get the license, else learn from the trial version).
| “Almost all the courses taught in this semester are either case-based or project-based or both.” |
The third semester at IIM Calcutta starts in June and focuses mainly on the application part of whatever you study in the first two semesters. Though the number of courses that you cover in this semester is higher, the duration of each course is less. Major analytics courses offered in this semester are categorical data analysis, business data mining, high-frequency trading, financial risk management, customer analytics, predictive modelling, forecasting, among others. Some of the management courses offered are strategy management, business communication, project management, among others. Almost all the courses taught in this semester are either case-based or project-based or both.
Please note that the electives offered every year depending on the availability of faculty and preference of students. All electives may not be offered all the time.
During the third semester (around August-September), placements for internships take place. Companies start coming in for pre-placement talks from June last-week or July first week.
From October-November, starts the final semester. This semester is the internship period where you go to a company and intern for 5–6 months. You can also opt to go for an academic intern as per your choice. The semester ends with a presentation to a panel of 3–4 faculty members telling them about your internship projects. This usually happens in the month of May after you complete your internship. Students not offered PPO (pre-placement offer) by their interning company come back to campus for their final placements. The final placements take place in the month of February-March. These students then go back and resume their internship.
That’s how the entire journey unfolds in two years for PGDBA students.
Hope this was helpful and gave you insights about the program and the entire journey. Please post your questions or comments in the comments section below.
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