Industry demands groomed professionals & the onus to train them lies with us, says GIMT Co-Founder Avishek Mitra

In a conversation with Shiksha.com, Co-Founder of GIMT - Gandhi Institute of Management and Technology Avishek Mitra talks in detail about the importance of practical exposure for students. He elaborates on blended curriculum pedagogy at the Institute that focuses equally on learning theoretically and hands-on training for everlasting impact. Gandhi Institute has a dedicated placements cell that focuses on strengthening institute-industry relationships round the year.

Read the excerpts of the interview below:

Q: What are the three things that your institute is doing that will enable it to differentiate itself from the competition?

A: Placement is the final step of any graduate or postgraduate course and this is how one should measure the ROI.  But the way to a successful placement is more and more practical exposure. What differentiates us from the institutes offering similar courses are:

• Our 100 per cent job guarantee with a bond letter. We provide jobs in all sectors such as 5-star hotels, cruise liners, multispecialty and super-speciality Hospitals, MNC’s, Banks, and many more.
• Our industry-institute relationships that bring opportunities to students such as hotel visits, hospitals, Industries in day to day life to interact with the industry personnel and corporate leaders. Also, because of this relation, CEOs, Chefs and other top management people from renowned companies frequently visit our campus to share their expertise, journey and lessons for future
• Faculty, is considered to be the pillar of any educational institute. Hence, we do not compromise on the quality of people we have on our campus. All have expertise in their area of

Q: What are the top three initiatives are undertaken by you that are helping your students become more industry ready?

A: The industry demands groomed professionals these days so they have to spend less time training them. And, this why we have taken the onus to train them. To make sure that our students are familiar with the corporate environment and also industry-ready, we aim at providing

• Practical exposure: when we see the gap between the institutes and students, we reduce it to zero. We prepare students according to the industry needs and also anticipate the need of the students. We give them hands on hand training so that they can deliver the same when they go to the industry.
• Personality development  & interview skills: we prepare each and every student with the utmost importance. We nurture their qualities and bring the best out of them. Developing communication skills, interview skills, body posture and positive attitude are few of our key points we focus on.
• Passion for career: We encourage every student to develop a passion for their career. Getting a job is easy, doing a job is also not a big-time issue, but to excel in a career you have to have passion, which a student needs to inculcate within themselves.

Q: What are the key attributes that a student should have in order to Qualify for your Institution and perform better in the curriculum?

A: Students aspiring admission at Gandhi Institute of Management and Technology must fulfil the eligibility criteria. For UG courses, students must have cleared Class 12 exams with English as a core subject. They must also have a valid score of MAKAUT CET.

For PG courses, they must have cleared graduation in the relevant domain with a valid score of JEE or MAT exam basis the course they are looking for.

To perform better in the curriculum, students must be

• Discipline and regular: A student needs to attain a minimum of 80 per cent of classes to understand the course better and also in a welcoming manner on time
• Properly groomed and have a positive attitude: Students should be in proper attire and have a positive attitude towards the organisation

• Communication and right skills: Both are very important in the way of expression towards work and colleagues. The right skill is required to deliver work faster and the right communication helps in getting the job done by others.

Q: Which programme/s would you say is/are your best? What is it that helps your institution differentiate itself for this programme?

A: All the programmes, whether its Hotel management, Hospital management, MBA or BBA or to say Cruiseline management, we do a lot of case studies which is more in comparison to others.

We have highly experienced faculty and well-equipped lab, smart classrooms and many more. 

Q: What are you doing to improve/drive better campus placements for your current students and alumni? What kind of jobs routinely come to campus? What would you say are the key recruitment trends for your college (observed over the past five years)?

A: We have a dedicated placements cell that is responsible for strengthening institute-industry relationships and also bringing higher ROI jobs to students.

Organisations are becoming choosy day by day as jobs are less and candidates are more so we need to develop a candidate from all aspects so that they are ready to face all the challenges coming their way.