Looks like the wait for IIM Sambalpur to have its own independent campus is finally over. The institute's director Mahadeo Jaiswal tells us that the institute is hopeful of shifting to a new campus by next year. "We are hoping that by 2022 we will have the campus ready for students and faculties," he says.
Set up in September 2015, this IIM is situated at the Sambalpur University campus in Odisha. The Director, however, adds that this isn't quite a difficult arrangement. "The only challenge we face is in terms of capacity. The amenities are adequate, as of now. However, if we want to increase the batch size, then we will also have to look at increasing the facilities," he tells us over an email interaction. He adds that the institute has also started a special recruitment process for SC/ST candidates as per the government reservation policy.
Now with COVID cases reducing across the country, Jaiswal says that 90 per cent of the student population is back on campus. "90% of our MBA second-year students have returned to campus, especially those who are facing internet and other infrastructure issues have been given priority, while others are joining online from their homes. We are only allowing double vaccinated students to return to campus," he says. However, there are special provisions for students who have received a single dose but are facing technical issues in attending classes from home.
"All students are being quarantined for five to seven days upon their return and they are not allowed to leave the campus. Classes are happening both online and offline and curriculum, notes and recordings of the classes are uploaded on our Learning Management System. This enables those who are not present physically or facing seamless data connectivity, to access the study materials and listen to the class recordings later," says the Director.
At the same time, he says that the institute had introduced the concept of flipped classrooms way back in 2018, which helped them more during COVID times. "To create leaders of the future who can create an impact in the next 10 years of the business ecosystem and flourish, we introduced the concept of Flipped Classrooms in 2018, long before COVID turned classroom education into a distant dream. Flipped Classrooms is a blended mode of teaching and it has yielded excellent results," said Jaiswal. "We are focusing on quality, innovation, research and international collaboration to make IIM Sambalpur among the top B-Schools in the country. We will create more innovation, more research and better experiential learning to ensure the institute reaches its true potential," he adds.
