Placements & Beyond: From First Jobs to Lifelong Careers

Beyond placements, management education equips graduates with adaptability, networks and innovation skills to thrive across shifting career landscapes

- By Varun Nagaraj

IN CONVERSATIONS TODAY, FROM LIVING rooms to boardrooms, 'placements' dominate the narrative around business education. Families weighing the MBA option often view it through a narrow lens: tuition fees, loan repayments and lost earnings that must be offset by the salary package secured at the end of the placement season. For a handful of institutions, this equation works neatly. For most others, it is far less certain.

At SPJIMR, we recognise that many students enter with the expectation that their salaries will justify their investment. At the very top tier, the top 10 per cent of students can almost count on such outcomes. But beyond this rarefied circle, the promise of guaranteed ROI quickly weakens. That reality does not diminish the relevance of management education. Instead, it challenges us to define its value in broader terms than immediate salaries. Our own results show both achievement and perspective. Take, for example, our recently concluded summer internship cycle for the PGDM Class of 2027, which recorded the highest-ever stipends, alongside robust industry participation and strong sectoral growth. This level of corporate engagement underlines the confidence industry places in our students.

What B-schools Must Do

Reframe placements as professional development: When Business schools treat placements only as a first-job outcome, they encourage a transactional mindset. What students need instead are professional development pathways that prepare them for careers spanning decades. I often describe this as building lambi race ke ghode— graduates capable of navigating change again and again.