Abstract
PurposeKerala is one of India's most advanced states in human development and other social indices. This study aims to look at the management education scenario in Kerala from a macro-perspective and examines the existing trends, major issues and present challenges facing the sector.Design/methodology/approachThe study is driven by previously unexplored secondary data published by India's apex technical education regulator–All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). Qualitative and quantitative assessments are assimilated from the organization, dissection and categorization of unit-level data.FindingsBusiness schools (B-schools) in the state are facing acute distress in enrolments. There are intra-regional variations in institution count and occupancy rates. The vast majority of the institutions have no accreditation at all. The entire sector is facing a protracted decline.Research limitations/implicationsThe study has relied primarily on descriptive statistics considering a single discipline within the higher education sector in Kerala. Future studies should look at other disciplines (engineering, medicine) simultaneously. Use of statistical methods like panel data regression would be beneficial to find hidden trends in cross-sectional and longitudinal time-series data.Practical implicationsManagement education in Kerala is facing an existential crisis. This has implications for the state's economic development. The paper creates strong imperatives for government policymaking to forestall the complete decline of the sector.Social implicationsA highly literate state with advanced human development indices need not be a suitable location for building a knowledge-based economy. Government policy has strong implications for the development and sustenance of higher education. The relationship between government and business schools are symbiotic.Originality/valueThe paper maps the progression of B-schools from local to global. A typology of privately funded B-schools is proposed. The conceptual framework advanced in this study can contribute to further literature development. The suggested policy initiatives are applicable not only to Kerala but also to other tightly regulated markets.
Highlights
At the present time, India boasts a network of the world’s second largest higher education system by numbers behind China (Express News Service, 2020)
The intervention of the Admission Supervisory Committee (ASC) under Justice Rajendra Babu in Kerala who issued an immediate directive following All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE)’s relaxation of admission norms for B-schools, asking that enrolments on the basis of graduating performance be reduced to only 20% of the approved intake from the proposed 100%, with the remaining 80% of the seats available only to entrance test takers is highly indicative (ASC, 2020a)
The self-financing management institutions in the state jointly filed an appeal with the Kerala High Court challenging this order, as a result of which a stay order was issued (ASC, 2020b)
Summary
India boasts a network of the world’s second largest higher education system by numbers behind China (Express News Service, 2020). In the field of management education, India stands first globally in terms of number of institutions, surpassing the tally of the USA in the second decade of the millennium (C.S-W, 2016). Management graduates can contribute to human capital, namely, scholastic capital, social capital, cultural capital and market value capital (Baruch, 2009). It supplies a competent and enterprising workforce for managerial and leadership positions in government and industry (Baruch, 2009)
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