Indian Institute of Foreign Trade

The Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) is an autonomous public business school established in 1963 by the Government of India (Ministry of Commerce and Industry).

Indian Institute of Foreign Trade
TypePublic business school
Established2nd May 1963 (2nd May 1963)
DirectorManoj Pant[1]
Location
New Delhi and Kolkata
,
India

28°53′42″N 77°18′31″E
CampusUrban, 6 acres (24,000 m2)
AffiliationsUGC, NAAC[2]
Websitewww.iift.ac.in

IIFT was conferred the status of Deemed University in 2002. It conducts an autonomous entrance examination, named the IIFT Exam, across various centers in India.[3][4]

Courses
  • Two-Year Residential MBA (International Business) - New Delhi, Kolkata, and Dar-es-Salaam (Tanzania). This is the flagship course, offering core subjects and electives in Marketing, Finance, Systems, Operations, and Trade.
  • Ph.D. Course (full-time and part-time)- at the New Delhi and Kolkata Campus.
  • Three-Year Part Time MBA (International Business) - New Delhi & Kolkata
  • Executive Master's in International Business - New Delhi, Dubai and Dar-es-Salaam
  • Certificate Course in Export Management, New Delhi, Kolkata, Guwahati (Assam)
  • Post Graduate Diploma in International Business Strategy through NIIT Imperia
  • M.A. Economics (Specialization in Trade and Finance)-at the New Delhi and Kolkata Campus.

IIFT has, over the years, undertaken research studies with organisations like World Trade Organization, World Bank, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the Ministry of Commerce & Industry. IIFT has also trained more than 40,000 business professionals across 30 countries via its management development programmes.[5]

Selection Process

Selection in IIFT is a four-pronged process:

  1. The entrance test is a paper-based test which takes place in November, whereas, for admission in MBA (IB)[6] a computer-based test is conducted by National Testing Agency from academic year 2020-2022 onwards.
  2. A short-list based on the test scores is used to invite students for the Group Discussion round. Topics of national and international importance across social, political, economic and corporate domains are common as individuals are tested on their group discussion skills.
  3. A Writing Ability Test is conducted to test the candidate's writing skills, along with knowledge of the subject and structure of representation.
  4. The Personal Interview has a distinct focus on goals, achievements, knowledge and awareness.

All of the three ability tests are normally held on a single day. A cumulative weighted score depending on the rules of that particular year of examination is taken to identify the final short-list of candidates separately for IIFT Delhi & IIFT Kolkata.

Centres at IIFT

Centre for International Trade in Technology

With the primary objective of actualising India's potential in technology trade and addressing some of the institutional complexities, IIFT has set up the Centre for International Trade in Technology with financial and technical support from the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Government of India.

It is an institution in which roles of active players in international technology trade especially those of Ministry of Commerce & Industry and Ministry of Science and Technology are proposed to be synthesised.[7]

Centre for WTO Studies

The Centre for WTO Studies was set up in the year 1999 to be a permanent repository of WTO negotiations-related knowledge and documentation. It was also envisaged that the Centre would evolve into a research unit with interest in TRADE in general and WTO in particular to finally develop into an independent think tank in the area. The Centre was later situated in the Indian Institute of Foreign TRADE in November 2002.

The major objective of the Centre has been to provide research and analytical support on a continuous basis to the Department of Commerce on identified issues pertaining to the World Trade Organization. In addition, it is also tasked to carry out research activities, bring out Publications on WTO related subjects, carry out Outreach & Capacity Building programmes by organising seminars, workshops, subject specific meetings etc., and to be a repository of important WTO documents in its Trade Resource Centres[8]

Centre for MSME Studies

The growing importance of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in the economy as a whole and External Trade, in particular, has prompted IIFT to establish a separate Centre for MSME studies which can act as a catalyst to the internationalization of MSME activities. The center has become operational from May 2005. The Centre for MSME Studies at IIFT provides continuous support to the MSME sector by carrying out activities which can be broadly classified into conducting Training Programmes, provision of Business Intelligence services through a Databank and acting as a catalyst for Interfacing with other concerned and associated institutions.[9]

Centre for North Eastern Studies (CeNEST)

North Eastern Council (NEC) has entered into an agreement with Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) for the setting up of Centre for North Eastern Studies (CeNEST) at IIFT Kolkata Campus. The Centre would facilitate the North Eastern states in policy making, strategic planning and effective implementation of various trade promotion schemes and undertake research and analysis on issues relating to international trade and business, capacity building and serve as a knowledge partner.It will help the states in exploiting the potentials of exports of the products from the region and promote innovations in business.[10]

IIFT Delhi Campus

IIFT Delhi is located in Hauz Khas, South Delhi. The campus is close to a section of the Delhi Ridge Forest, and monuments such as the Qutub Minar and Lotus Temple. The campus is also close to other premier educational institutions such as the Jawaharlal Nehru University, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, National Institute of Fashion Technology, and the Indian Statistical Institute.

The facilities available on campus include lecture halls with audio-visual aids, conference halls for round-table conferences, an auditorium of 500 seating capacity, MDP Centre, three Computer Centres, indoor games, and residential facilities for students.

Facilities

Library

The IIFT library has 84,000 volumes and subscriptions to 800 journals with online cataloguing.[11] The library has a collection of publications of FAO, IMF, OECD, UNCTAD, UNCTC, World Bank, and other international agencies.

The students also have access to database such as the NIC, CMIE, India Trades, World Bank Indicators and other audio-visual aids on management. IIFT has set up the WTO Resource Centre in the Library to focus exclusively on WTO issues.

The library in Delhi as well in Kolkata campus have online resources. The Institute subscribes EBSCO, Proquest, JSTOR, Emerald, Blackwell Synergy databases which mainly cover journal articles. For statistical data there are World Trade On-line, IMF databases, IndiaStat, ISI Emerging Markets, Woline, WITS, CMIE databases, World Trade Atlas, OECD online and many more to list.

Library has also installed 12 Bloomberg terminals.[12] The specific features of Bloomberg Database is that it provides a range of Global Economic data and live changes for stocks Markets, Company Reports, Sector analysis, and future trends. Bloomberg Database is very useful for Research Analysis.

IIFT Kolkata Campus
Admin Building of IIFT Kolkata Campus

IIFT, Kolkata Campus became operational from the year 2006. The institute has a full-fledged residential campus which is situated near Ruby Hospital on the EM-Bypass.[13] The sprawling campus of 7 acres provides state of the art facility to the faculty and management students of IIFT.

Moreover, the IIFT campus at Kolkata houses a WTO cell to cater to the policy requirement for international business. This helps to enhance the capacities of bureaucrats and industries alike on policy and advocacy issues involving international business like WTO, FTA, and PTAs etc. This cell also caters to the specific policy research areas of both the state and central governments. It has a state-of-the art library with centrally air-conditioned equipped with three Bloomberg terminals, e-library, WTO cell and computer facilities.

Campus Life
Student Hostel of IIFT Kolkata

It has 7 acres of campus with three large water bodies to add style and beauty for the campus. It also has 24*7 food canteen and Nescafe outlet. The campus houses one admin block, one academic block and two residential blocks for students and faculties. The entire campus is artistically designed with well-maintained plush gardens and three water bodies. Other facilities available in the campus include centrally air-conditioned lecture halls with modern audio and video facilities, conference rooms, an air-conditioned auditorium with a seating capacity of 500, MDP centre, indoor games and many more. . Students take active part in Volleyball, Cricket, Badminton, Football and Table tennis competitions in the campus. Students also publish two magazines named Markmantra- IIFT's Marketing Magazine and InFINeeti - IIFT's Business and Finance Magazine.

The student body and various clubs and cells organise a number of events throughout the year, some of which are: Vivaan - The Annual International Business Summit, Leadership Conclave, Garage Sale, and TEDxIIFTKolkata. The students also take part in various corporate competitions to exhibit their knowledge and innovative ideas.

IIFT Kakinada Campus

In 2018, then Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Suresh Prabhu, In the presence of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu laid the foundation stone for 3rd campus of Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) in Kakinada of East Godavari district at Andhra Pradesh.[14] The State Government has allotted 25 acres land to build the Campus.[15]

International Collaborations & Student Exchange Programmes

IIFT Exchange Programme[16] is an outcome of the institute's academic collaboration with institutions across the world. These collaborations are mainly for student, faculty exchange programmes, joint collaborations on research and various other capacity building exercises. IIFT has developed relations with many international organizations[17] by signing MoUs and participating in their activities or taking collaborative initiatives. The Institute is a member of the following International organizations:

  • Academy of International Business (AIB)
  • Association of Management Development Institutes in South Asia (AMDISA)
  • International Association of Trade Training Organization (IATTO)
  • The Association of Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB)
  • The European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD)

Rankings
Institute rankings
Business/Management – India
NIRF (2020)[18]26
Business Today (2019)[19]10

IIFT was ranked 6th overall by Chronicle B School Survey 2020. It was ranked 10 by Business Today's "India's best B-schools 2019".[19] It was ranked 11 by MBAUniverse.com rankings 2020. It was ranked 26 among management schools by the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) 2020.[18]

Port Visit and Social Awareness Program

IIFT also offers its students the opportunity to visit various national and international ports. Students can choose their port of choice and are accompanied by faculty members during the visit. This is in line with the goal of providing practical exposure to what is being taught in class.[20]

The institute also has a month-long social awareness program, in which several NGOs such as Muskaan Foundation are invited to the campus to pitch their projects to the students. The students are then allowed to choose any NGO of choice and have to work closely with the NGO for the next month. The SAP is a part of the course curriculum, and IIFT is one of the few institutions who have undertaken similar social programs.[21]

Campus life

The institute has a student body called International Management Forum (IMF). IMF is the official[22] representative student body at IIFT which acts as a coordinator for, and provides administrative support to, various student activities and events at IIFT besides taking policy decisions regarding student affairs in consultation with the Director/Chairperson/Programme Director. Among the key roles of IMF is co-ordination and supervision of the activities of various domain-specific clubs and cells. 6 clubs[23] and 7 cells[24] work to ensure collaborative and comprehensive learning round the year. The clubs impart domain and industry-specific knowledge via Knowledge Transfer Sessions throughout the year. Also the practical learning experience is enhanced through the regularly scheduled competitions-case studies, Group discussions, quizzes, etc. Live projects from various corporates in all domains are also brought by clubs, which ensures significant industry exposure. The activities of the clubs and cells are supervised by the General Secretary, a member of the IMF.

Papers and publications

The research carried out by the institute is widely disseminated in the form of study reports, monographs and occasional papers. The major beneficiaries of these research findings are academicians, policy makers, trade and industry, multilateral organizations, researchers and NGOs. In addition, the Institute publishes a quarterly journal Foreign Trade Review[25] published by Sage Publications. The journal focuses on key relevant areas such as international trade, finance, econometrics, IT, WTO, Trade blocs and marketing. Focus WTO,[26] another quarterly journal published by the Institute focuses exclusively on WTO related issues. Each issue of the journal is thematic. An electronic magazine E-Zine is also published by the Centre for International Trade in Technology of IIFT.

Notable alumni
  • Rashesh Shah, founder of Edelweiss Capital[27]
  • Mohit Malhotra, CEO Dabur International
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See also

References
  1. "Manoj Pant is new director of Indian inst of foreign trade". India Today.
  2. "NAAC Accreditation". September 2018.
  3. "IIFT exam results declared; 1,411 candidates shortlisted for final round : News". Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  4. http://www.mbauniverse.com/article/id/7252/IIFT-2013
  5. "Welcome to Indian Institute of Foreign Trade". Archived from the original on 19 March 2012. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  6. "IIFT 2020 - Exam Date (1 Dec), Registration, Syllabus, Exam Pattern, iift.nta.nic.in". AglaSem Admission. 9 September 2019. Retrieved 9 September 2019.
  7. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 18 May 2011. Retrieved 3 May 2014.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. "Research Division @ Indian Institute of Foreign Trade". Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  9. "Centre for SME Studies". Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  10. "NEC Inks MoU For Study Centre At IIFT Kolkata". The Shillong Times. 22 May 2019. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
  11. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2 August 2015. Retrieved 16 August 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  12. "Foreign Trade Library @ Indian Institute of Foreign Trade". Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  13. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 27 August 2015. Retrieved 16 August 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  14. "Stone laid for IIFT". The Hindu. 26 February 2018. Retrieved 22 October 2018.
  15. Manish M (15 April 2017). "IIFT campus get land in Kakinada". The Times of India. Retrieved 22 October 2018.
  16. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 8 August 2015. Retrieved 16 August 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  17. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 22 August 2015. Retrieved 16 August 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  18. "National Institutional Ranking Framework 2020 (Management)". National Institutional Ranking Framework. Ministry of Education. 11 June 2020.
  19. "India's best B-schools 2019: Overall Ranking 2019". Business Today. 3 November 2019.
  20. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 29 July 2015. Retrieved 17 July 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  21. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 21 July 2015. Retrieved 17 July 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  22. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 5 August 2015. Retrieved 16 August 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  23. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 5 August 2015. Retrieved 16 August 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  24. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 16 October 2015. Retrieved 16 August 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  25. "Foreign Trade Review - SAGE Journals". Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  26. "Research Division : Focus WTO". Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  27. "Rashesh Shah's journey from a small office in Nariman Point to Edelweiss House". The Economic Times. 6 June 2014. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
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