Pandemic is a difficult time for everyone, even B-Schools. Most of the B-Schools have had to push their admission dates; the rest are waiting for their seats to be filled. For students, it's the time for placements and internships, and the others have just started working. Salaried employees from other sectors had to face pay cuts, and these employees are somewhere parents of aspiring MBA graduates. Thus, the fight is long and wouldn’t get over so soon. 

Renowned academics from across the country have realized this factor. They are hence revising this year’s curriculum to incorporate learnings from the pandemic into almost all subjects taught in the MBA program. A simple example would be that of economics. Delhi High Court asked to cap the price of Covid-19 test kits. Here, the government had to understand the demand and supply as well as the economic condition of the people. Similarly, from business strategy to human resource to supply management, everything has a lesson to teach during this time. 

A total lockdown did affect the economy. However, we also have to ensure that we do not go into recession. This involves a lot of factors which the government, societies, along with all the administrative institutions must ensure. The two primary skill sets of an MBA graduate are practical thinking and knowledge. Hence, how do MBA programs promise to evolve continuously and still remain relevant to the needs of the students, society and administration at large?  

The dynamic environment ensures that everything evolves at a rapid scale, and hence MBA programs need to live up to the expectations of not only recruiters but all the stakeholders. 

Let's look at the possible ways to ensure continuous up-gradation of the MBA programs: 

A shift towards online learning

Given the current scenario, there is an apparent thrust for online learning. Teachers in different parts of India are doing their best to ensure that the students' learning is not getting hampered. Some 1.3-1.5 billion students and youth across the planet are affected by school and university closures. According to a report of Economic Times, these nationwide closures are impacting over 72 per cent of the world’s student population. Thus, now all institutions are moving towards online teaching. This is something that might also remain in the future, once Covid-19 is over, i.e. a mix of online education and face to face.   

Personalized learning 

This means students can learn at their own pace and time according to their learning pattern. In the long run, with AI-enabled personalized learning experience, every student would benefit from the same, as the pedagogy will be tailor-made for every student. People are collectively trying to collaborate with different apps where they would be able to give online classes to increase students’ motivation in continuing their education and reduce the rates of students dropping out before completing a course.  

Strategies to teach life post-pandemic: Students are the brightest of the lot and should hence be given an impetus to understand and find solutions to the pandemic situation. Given the economy, the employment scenario, the manufacturing industry, students can invest their time in learning not only new skills but also designing methods/equipment that help India at a global level and, in turn, the humanity. Thus, in the time of crisis, a well rounded and holistic educational practice will help brighten the capacity building of the young minds.   

To conclude, a multi-pronged strategy is necessary to manage the crisis and build a resilient Indian education system in the long term.