This new programme at the King’s College will help the students to understand and implement ideas of investment in better ways.   

With the country embracing the federal system of governance, the importance of investment has become even more important. Each of the seven provinces and the 753 local units into which the country has been divided as per the new federal set-up now need investment. Investment in hydropower, transport, agriculture, tourism, information communication technology, mining, health, education, manufacturing, financial institutions and so on. The country has a very stable government with a two-thirds majority in parliament. The armed conflict has been resolved and the country now has what it didn’t have for a long time – political stability. So, it can be said that Nepal has a much better environment for investment now than in the past. 

 

Along with an investment-friendly environment, the country now also needs human resource which understands the country’s economy as well as its investment needs and priorities - people who have a thorough understanding of investment and its various aspects as well as the country’s economy. Teaching our management students investment by linking it with the economy would surely be one practical way to create such human resource. Realising this need, King’s College which has been a pioneer in introducing new courses for students has introduced BBA in Investment and Economy (BBA-IE), a course from the internationally-reputed Westcliff University of the USA, from August 2018. 

 

The college claims BBA-IE is different from other bachelor’s degree programmes for it enables the students to gain knowledge about capital investment, returns on investment and business. “In the past, students could study Economics as a major subject in Bachelor of Arts in Nepal, but there was not any programme with a sharp focus on investment economics. The country today highly needs skilled human resources who can evaluate the monetary value for investment and running a business,” says Admission Manager of King’s College, Gokul Chhetri. 

 

Chhetri says BBA-IE is a completely new bachelor’s degree programme for management/business students in Nepal that focuses on imparting knowledge about the functional aspects of the economy, economic policy, investment and its various aspects, practical managerial communication and so on. 

 

Course Initiation

According to Chhetri, King’s started designing the programme in 2015 and succeeded in launching it in mid-2018. Before introducing the course, Chhetri says, the college organised many roundtable discussions and meetings with the stakeholders concerned so as to tweak the original courses in the programme to make them more relevant in Nepal’s context as Nepal’s economy and foreign economies are not the same. “Through roundtable discussions and meetings, we were able to form a committee of experts to design the programme. Then, the programme designed by that committee went through a series of processes at Tribhuvan University and the Ministry of Education, before it was introduced in August this year. 

 

Objectives 

The main objective of BBA-IE is to create professionals who thoroughly understand investment and its various aspects and have business skills as well by imparting the relevant knowledge to students. “Only the well-trained can take rational decisions regarding any investment. This programme aims to create such human resource which is needed in almost all sectors,” shares Chhetri. He further adds, “The programme will develop competency in students to move ahead relating business and economics effectively even in the global market.” 

 

Scope 

Chhetri says apart from a good demand in the banking sector, BBA-IE graduates can work as investment consultants, share consultants and hold other different posts in different sectors of the economy. According to Chhetri, BBA-IE graduates will have wider job options not only in the nation but also in the international job market. He adds that those students who wish to start a career in banking or economic investment or any kind of monetary job can opt for this programme.

 

The Course

According to the college, the course has been designed so as to provide detailed and specific knowledge of investment that enables students to use their knowledge to make wise decisions regarding investment, using the complex economic and econometric models. BBA-IE students are also required to study general courses such as Psychology, Sociology, Human Geography in the first two years. In the remaining two years of the four-year programme, they study specific courses including Regional Integration and Economic Development, Behaviour Finance, Mathematics, Investment for Sustainable Growth, Economics of Welfare, Labor Economics, International Economics, Financial Econometrics and Monetary Economics. 

 

The college follows the system of Westcliff University for teaching BBA-IE. There is not any formal exam.  The performance of the students is evaluated on the basis of theoretical and practical assignments. For this, King’s College carries out various activities including discussions on questions, professional assignments, comprehensive learning assessments (CLAs) I and II where students are required to actively participate in interactive learning, case studies, course learning for the respective evaluation session. Likewise, Online Quiz is an additional activity in this regard.

 

King’s Collaboration 

To make its students competitive globally, the college has tied up with different international universities including University at Albany, State University New York, City University of New York, Westcliff University and so on. “We collaborated with another international university - Fresno Campus of University of California on November 13,”shares Chhetri. He further says, “Because of our collaboration with foreign universities, our students can obtain international degrees. In case of BBA-IE, the students can get a transfer to the foreign university to complete the programme after finishing the first two-year course here”. 

 

Facilities

The college has well-facilitated computer labs and libraries. Students who are interested in research can join the Centre for Research and Development. They can also join the Mentorship Pathway, Empowerment Academy, Yunus Social Business Centre, Career Development Cell etc at the college if they are interested in academic activities beyond their regular studies.

 

Admission Criteria

King’s College announces admissions twice a year. Students passing the intermediate level in any stream and the A-level graduates with minimum 2.5 GPA can join the programme in October and February. The college admits 30 students in each intake. The selection of students is based on interviews, a written test, and academic performance. Chhetri said the college’s first batch of BBA-IE has 25 students. 

 

Fee Structure and Scholarships

The total cost of the programme is Rs 780,000. The college offers various scholarships as well - Merit or Performance Based Scholarship, Community Leadership Scholarship, Public Service Scholarship and Inclusiveness Scholarship.

 

Class Hours

The college runs BBA-IE classes from 7am to 11 am, Monday to Friday.