Sydenham Institute of Management Studies, Research & Entrepreneurship Education Review By Akhilesh Maurya

Sydenham Institute of Management Studies started 4 decades back and is one of the most renowned placed to do PG. The institute doesn’t believe in making us bookish and live projects and assignment was the learning method. The course I selected was MMM (Master in Marketing Management) and that required a lot of learning. The professors were clear that books won’t help you understand the skill sets required and therefore mandatory internships were a part of the course. The placement I believe is a crucial area when you chose PG and that department was very well under the control of SIMSREE. Many people may not be aware of the fact that SIMSREE College requires more cutoff than most of the B-Schools in Mumbai. Also, the college is affiliated with Mumbai University and therefore one doesn’t have to worry about the University being called off and all. This has become quite normal and this is why I targeted the colleges that fell under the University of Mumbai. I was so overwhelmed by the overall prospect of the college as each department was well under the covers and had the same capable hands running it.

One of the top crowd of Mumbai comes to study here and so the institute has no loopholes in this regard. One can by their time as much as they want because learning never stopped at SIMSREE. Our course demanded a lot of skills and therefore we were thrown under the scanner of big corporate as our academic portions involved live projects for renowned corporate. The attendance was must and many times it happened that we went straight to the venue that was assigned to us because the classes were held on roads or at corporate buildings. This is true and this is why MMM is one hell of a course.

The core faculty were limited but guest faculty was innumerable. I can’t even give you the exact number of professors who were indulged in teaching us some of the sharpest skills. I would call all the professors clever because one has to be clever to sell a product. Digital is the way and we were taught the importance of digital marketing as everyone this is where the future lies. The faculty were quite strict if our projects are not completed on time or if the corporate work that we were assigned was not done properly. The faculty were helpful and were easily approachable. Hats off to the faculty of the institute as they were the prime reason for the institute having an alumni base of over 3000 students.

We were placed comfortably during the start of the 3rd semester itself. Our hard work was seen by many corporate as we did their odd jobs and our sincerity won us jobs even before the official placements started. Many big corporate houses like Aditya Birla Group, Reliance Industries, Asian Paints, and FMCG companies were the ones that needed team leaders for their sales team. Basically, that was the role assigned to all of us and the placement was 100%. Many students decided to start their own ventures and didn’t take the job by choice. The institute though has a clear-cut policy and urged all of us to appear at the campus placement sessions. They took the list and the notice board and I was happy to see my name in the list with an annual package of 9 lakhs which was a shade above the average as the average placement was around 7 lakhs per annum.

The Mumbai University’s government hostel is located behind the college and the college has its seats reserved. One has to approach the admin department and get a letter from them. The eligibility criteria are simple as the hostel facility was provided purely to the students who came from other states and local students had no option to stay at the hostel. I stayed with my parents in Kandivali and therefore during the second year, I along with some of my friends rented an apartment in Colaba so that we can cut the traveling time.

One of the most compact campuses that you will ever come across is SIMSREE’s. The institute is located in one of the most expensive areas of the town and there are many top colleges of Mumbai in the college vicinity. The college’s main building had 2 floors reserved for us and of course, a separate library for PG students was set up in the year I joined. The institute board may shine in pics but in reality, it needs renovation as the stones have started coming out of the SIIMSREE’s board. There is a canteen on the ground floor which was operational till late as our college hours were not defined. There’s not much to talk about the infra as it was one building and underneath it, a playing area that was occupied by the UG students and they were seen playing Volleyball the whole day.

More than the campus, we spent time at corporate houses and the learning was immense that we got. The course is only meant for the ones who can soak the pressure because marketing is not meant for all. Many students left the course after a year as there was too much asking. The senior students were helpful and used to come to us for the internships and the project discussion. Their advice helped but one thing for sure that in marketing one has to back their own instinct and do what they know the best. I did exactly the same and that is how I made my life at the campus happening.