IIMK - Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode

Both IIMs are roughly comparable. And IIMK cannot be compared to IIMI solely on the basis of one or two major corporations. The benefits of being in K include being exposed to a different culture (Kerala as well as the campus culture in K, which includes things like open-door culture, etc.), which makes you a better person outside of the classroom. Academically, almost all subjects and streams have faculty similar to IIMI, a very good library, and a business museum that no other IIM has. IIMK and IIMI are both exposed to all business competitions, so there is no difference there either.

Although Indore is larger in terms of land area, the natural beauty of IIMK is breathtaking. The smaller batch size also helps K to get better quality placements for all, whereas IIMI lags behind due to their larger batch size for Indore Campus and combined placements for their Mumbai campus as well. IIMK is more than just a business management school; it has attempted to instill a sense of responsibility in its students through social projects and subjects such as Social Transformation and Globalization taught by renowned faculty. These may not be extra benefits for those who have passed both colleges, but they do provide IIMK alumni with a sense of pride.

Both IIM Calcutta and IIM Kozhikode are top-notch management institutes in India. The majority of people claim that IIMC is better than IIMK just because it has a strong alumni connection and extremely experienced faculty.

But don’t make your decision solely based on this. Keep your aim in mind before deciding.

Choose IIM Calcutta if-

• You want your personality to be developed to the maximum extent

• You have a knack for Maths and Analytical Skills Development 

Choose IIM Kozhikode if-

• You want to be in the top 1% of the class

• You prefer an institute with less dynamism 

• If you are average at Maths and Analytical Skills Development 

The final decision is yours to make.

I will never suggest you go for IIM Kozhikode over XLRI. Because of the establishment of new IIMs, the impact of its brand has deteriorated. IIM Indore and IIM Kozhikode aren’t at the same level. Apart from IIM ABC, the only good IIM is Lucknow. If your academic records are average then only you can consider XLRI, that too is a great choice. If you are financially weak, then FMS is the one for you.

However, the harsh reality is many companies still prefer IIM students over other B-schools. This partiality results in MBA aspirants flocking to IIMs. IIM's. If you look carefully, XLRI too is an excellent institute and is second only to IIM ABC and FMS. Additionally, those seeking specialization in HR, should not loot beyond XLRI.

So, don’t reject XLRI BM (Jamshedpur) except for IIM A, B, C, and L. One may prefer L over XL because of the IIM tag, else both are similar.

In my opinion, the preference order should be

IIM A=B=C>>L>XLRI>FMS>>IIM I>IIM K

IIM Ahmedabad is indeed different from IIM B, C, K, and I in many aspects. Some of these aspects are it’s:

• Discipline: when it comes to discipline, IIMA tops the list. The first year is a real-life challenge for students with hundreds of cases to study, group assignments and projects.

• Case pedagogy: This is the highlight of the IIM Ahmedabad curriculum. IIMAs curriculum aligns with that of Harvard Business School. So it focuses more on problem-solving classes.

• Architecture: IIMs pride lies in its heritage architecture. The red bricks surrounding the semicircular arches enhance the campus’ appearance tenfold.

• Crowd: Without any doubt, the cream of students get into IIMA. This is because it has the highest cutoff.

• Faculty: IIMA has top-notch faculty while some of them are IIM Ahmedabad alumni themselves.

IIM Ahmedabad is different from other IIMs in all these aspects. But what really sets it apart is its director Ravi Matthai and his systems cultivating accountability and autonomy.