Sayyed Manzer, from Ambikapur, Chhattisgarh, had never dreamt of pursuing an MSc degree at S the University of Oxford. He credits the "social capital" he gained at a prominent educational institution in India for his winning the Chevening scholarship that made it possible.
"Coming to Oxford was never a part of the plan. I always believed that foreign universities are meant only for gold medalists, award recipients and extremely well-to-do people. Even to dream you need privileges I did not have," he said.
Manzer earned a master's degree in social work at Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) Mumbai. "That's where information came to me," he said. "There are well-placed teachers and students who are applying and you get your hands on critical information.
I came across very few from my community who are studying abroad." According to the British High Commission, 1.18 lakh Indian students were granted study visas till June in 2022, an 89% increase from the previous year. This was the highest number since 2005. However, not many from communihistorically-disadvantaged ties make it.
Manzer, with others from marginalised and minority communities, studying in or graduated from UK universities are on a mission to "democratise access to education" through Project EduAccess. A non-profit, it is run by volunteers who are helping more students from disadvantaged sections access information and resources on studying abroad, especially in the UK.
When both domestic and international opportunities are shrinking, the initiative aims to prepare students to compete for international scholarships, grants, and fellowships and guide them through the application process. The initiative runs a mentorship programme especially for students who are Dalit, Adivasi, Indian Muslims, differently-abled, from northeastern states, women and from gender minorities, LGBTQIA+.
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Denne historien er fra December 2022-utgaven av Careers 360.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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100 Best Business Schools In The Country
For Careers360's 2025 B-school ranking, we ranked 100 public and private management institutions and rated over 500, dividing them into zones and city clusters
'We have a completion rate of 80-90%'
During an interaction, Mayank Kumar, co-founder and managing director of upGrad, spoke to Sheena Sachdeva about new courses in accounting and management, the profile of learners, trends in online MBA courses, and more. Edited excerpts from the conversation below
New roles and spaces
Online MBA has helped many working professionals climb up the office hierarchy or even pivot to an entirely new career. But there are challenges.
'Committed to industry-relevant learning'
International Management Institute (IMI), New Delhi, is India's first corporate-sponsored B-school. It offers three PG diplomas in management - the flagship PGDM with 300 seats, as well as human resource management and business and financial studies with 60 each. Himadri Das, director general, IMI, discussed the challenges posed by competition among private business schools, the importance of diversity, and IMI's NIRF rankings with Sanjay. Edited excerpts from the interview.
National Insurance Academy plans expansion to meet rising demand
The National Insurance Academy (NIA), now situated in Pune, was established jointly by the ministry of finance and all the major public sector undertakings (PSUs) in insurance. Originally a training institute for insurance industry professionals, it has been offering a postgraduate diploma in management (PGDM) since 2004 and has placed 100% of its students all through.
The era of MBA in sustainability
As companies are increasingly pushed to meet environmental compliances, management institutes are revamping their curricula with specialised MBA programmes in sustainability or launching new programmes
Despite good record, SRCC's PGDM faces degree hurdle
Delhi University's Shri Ram College of Commerce started its postgraduate diploma in Global Business Operations (GBO) 25 years ago. Principal Simrit Kaur spoke to Shradha Chettri on their effort to convert the diploma into a degree programme, changes required in the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) and more. Edited excerpts
Managing produce, from farm to plate
Agribusiness managers are in great demand, both on the 'input' side of agriculture - seeds, fertilizer, machinery businesses - as well as in the processing of the 'output'
Creating 'innovators with conscience'
The SP Jain Institute of Management and Research (SPJIMR), Mumbai, has been the top Indian institution in the Financial Times' (FT) Masters in Management rankings for two years in a row. Varun Nagaraj, dean of SPJIMR, spoke to Atul Krishna about what the institute does differently, its plans, the future of business education, and the FT and National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) lists. Edited excerpts below
'Quality management education that is equitable': FMS Dean
The Faculty of Management Studies (FMS) at the University of Delhi (DU) is one of India's premier business schools offering MBA courses at a relatively low cost, compared to most leading business schools in India. Celebrating its 70th year, it is also one of the first university-based business schools. In an interview with Sanjay, head and dean of FMS A Venkat Raman spoke about the functioning of a business school under a central university, challenges, courses and future plans. He also spoke on the Common Admission Test (CAT) and its impact on diversity in student cohorts. Edited excerpts
