XLRI School of Business & Human Resources is joining hands with the Weatherhead School of Management of the Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, to start for the first time in the country two unique one-year regular programmes in the fields of finance and organization development (OD).
XLRI and Weatherhead had signed an MoU in 2009 to collaborate in different areas which included jointly developing management programmes, exchange of students and faculty, research, etc.
As a first step, the two B-Schools will be focusing on launching two regular international programmes, planned as of now to be of one-year duration, split equally between the two campuses.
While Masters Programme in Organization Development (MPOD) will be for middle/senior level executives with at least five years? experience, the second one called Master of Science in Finance (MSF) which will be for younger people having exposure in accountancy/finance related studies.
Though nothing has yet been agreed upon, the two programmes intend to target around 40 Asian students each who could be either from India or from the eight Saarc (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) countries.
Speaking to FE here, Weatherhead School of Management dean Mohan Reddy, who is here on a two-day visit to XLRI for discussing the programmes to be launched as well as to interact with the B-School?s faculty said, ?We haven?t worked out the details as yet; as per the discussions, we are hoping to start at least one of them next year.”
Weatherhead, however, currently offers both the programmes at its US campus. According to Reddy, Organization Development (OD) was very well developed in India as there was a long tradition of organizations in the country.
?The basic agreement has been reached, we have now to work out all the details?, said Prof Jitu Singh, chairperson, international relations, XLRI, adding the two B-Schools have fixed academic year 2011 forlaunching at least one of the programmes ?as we need some time to do our homework and market it?.
Talking about the duration of the courses, Reddy said that ?market conditions? would decide whether the courses offered would be for one year or two years.
Though the two B-Schools are yet to decide on the fee structure too, candidates joining the courses will be spending half the course?s duration in India while the other half at the Weatherhead School of Management at Cleveland, Ohio in US.
Asked why the two fields of finance and organization development (OD) had been chosen from so many areas, XLRI director Father E Abraham said the two B-Schools happened to be the common strengths for both, with good faculty support.
The Weatherhead dean added the two B-Schools would expand cooperation in future by way of engaging in exchange of faculty as well as by taking up joint research.