Why is IIM Ahmedabad not as good as Harvard, Stanford or Wharton?

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Banani Ghose Posted On - Jul 1, 2022

M.B.A. from Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad

Harvard, Stanford, and Wharton are way older than IIM Ahmedabad. These B-Schools offers better academic structure, faculty, alumni base, and infrastructure. Also, students need at least 3 years or more of work experience to attend Harvard, Stanford, or Wharton. IIM Ahmedabad doesn’t have any such prerequisites.

These B-Schools offer more practical-oriented management education. An entrepreneurship class at HBS requires students to form a group, create a start-up model, pitch their ideas to guest investors, get funding and get it running before the semester ends. It helps students prepare better for the professional journey ahead.
HBS and Stanford have Nobel laureates, heads of international institutes, authors of international bestsellers, and directors of top consulting firms as a part of their faculty pool.
A typical bath profile of HBS will have people from every walks of life. You will share your lectures with investment bankers, military veterans, and professors. The peer learning scope is huge.
Stanford and Harvard have huge alumni bases. As a student of these institutes, you will get to network with them and find good career opportunities.

These are a few of the many reasons that put Harvard, Stanford, and Wharton well ahead of IIM Ahmedabad.

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Disha Banerjee Posted On - Mar 9, 2022

MSc Physics, Mahatma Gandhi University (2018)

Before we compare IIMs to Harvard and Standford alike, let's discuss a few things first.

Harvard brand is 3 centuries older than IIM A. Harvard Business School (Est - 1908), itself is twice as old as IIM A (Est - 1961). A comparison between a 400-year-old institute and a 60-year-old institute will not be fair.
Harvard MBA cost (fees - $112,764 ~ INR 8,656,892.28) is almost four times that of IIM A MBA (fees INR 23 lakhs).
IIM Ahmedabad endowment fund has INR 100 crore. While HBS has $41.9 Billion as an endowment fund.

IIM Ahmedabad certainly needs time. But in the span of these short 60 years, it has already made tremendous strides. You can become a partner at McKinsey after passing from Harvard and IIMs. IIMs will give you opportunities at BCG, P&G, Bain, JP Morgan just like Harvard.

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Varnika Gupta Posted On - Apr 1, 2021

M.B.A. from Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (2016)

This question is the same as asking why India is not as good as the USA. This is because India is still growing, and will continue to grow despite everything. On the other hand, the USA is already a developed nation with a lesser population and regional politics.

Coming to your question, you need to check the pros and cons of IIM Ahmedabad before coming to any conclusion.

Pros:

Faculty: IIM Ahmedabad has a fantastic faculty. Although they are not at par with HBS or Stanford, they are steadily growing as they are very keen on the Indian business context. You will get top-notch IIM quality education there.
Placement: You will feel proud to know that IIM ranks number 4 on salaries in the world. Here, IIM beats Harvard, as the salary out of an IIM is 30x the average Indian income while out of the US it is 3x the average US income. Once you get placed, you’ll feel that it's a fantastic return on your investment.
Alumni network: Once you get in IIM Ahmedabad you will find a very strong and well-entrenched alumni network. You will find an IIM A guy heading/at a senior position in many large companies in India.
Brand: IIM A may not have a strong global brand but it definitely can open any door to you in India. However, brands like HBS and Stanford have huge legacies that will be hard to beat.

Cons:

Research: Unfortunately in IIM Ahmedabad there’s not much research going on. There is a requirement for research to build a pool of researchers. So, if you have future plans regarding research, then do not go for it.
Global Diversity: Despite being such a prestigious institute, IIMA still lacks foreign students. But due to its increasing value and alumni network, it might attract students globally in the future.
Gender Diversity: The male to female ratio here is quite bad but it is getting better with more women coming upfront. My friend is currently a student at IIM Ahmedabad and his batch has a ratio of 2:1, a never seen before ratio.

At last, it is unjust to say that IIM Ahmedabad is not as good as Harvard and Stanford. You clearly know the difference between both the nations and their education system. Despite all the hardships, IIM Ahmedabad stands to be a pioneer institute in India.