IIMA organizes International Student Exchange Fair 2013

Ahmedabad, 26 November 2013

The Indian Institute of Management (IIMA) collaborates with more than 60 Foreign B-schools, offering more than 120 seats to about 424 students of Post Graduate Programme in Management (PGP) and Agri-Business Management (ABM), to take up international student exchange. With the seats expected to increase to about 150, the Institute introduced a novel way this year to promote international student exchange opportunities to its students. Working together with nearly 75 exchange students, currently on the IIMA campus from various foreign B-schools, a one-stop International Student Exchange Fair 2013 was organized, by the Student Exchange Council with the support of the Student Exchange Office and the direction of Prof Arvind Sahay, Dean, Alumni and External Relations.

The event provided an opportunity to inform and educate students about the existing and new partner business schools across continents and scholarships options. Exhibits by various business schools from countries such as Germany, Spain, Belgium, France, Denmark etc. were put up at the Institute’s iconic Louis Kahn Plaza. Each stall was manned by respective B-school students on an exchange programme from their home university. Ready with presentations and promotional material of their own institutions, the students were enthusiastic in their pitch to the current first year students eligible for exchange programmes in the upcoming year. Volkmar Noeske from European Business School in Germany pointed out, “This was a great platform to present our school and attract the best talent from IIM Ahmedabad.”

Institutions like DAAD and the French Embassy extend Scholarships to the students going to Germany and France respectively based on merit. The Exchange Council had set up information kiosk to dispense key information regarding existing opportunities, new schools and scholarships available.

John Joy a PGP, first year student visiting the fair remarked, “This event helped me understand what the various B-schools across the globe have to offer, thus facilitating a more informed and thought-out choice.”

The Director Prof. Ashish Nanda interacted with the Exchange Students from abroad on campus, to discuss their experience while at IIMA and India. The exchange students were continuously involved in the activities of the Institute through the various clubs and events. They also got to experience Indian Culture through events like Garba celebration at a local club arranged by the Exchange Council in coordination with an NGO. They also traveled widely across India to places like Leh, Rajasthan, Goa, Banaras, Kerala etc.

Adriana Collini, a student from Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration, Austria said, “From meeting new people to experiencing new cultures to tasting new cuisines – It was three months of complete excitement!”