--By Upashana Neupane

 

Management is one among the most sought after courses in Nepal. Rapid expansion of the corporate and service sector in the country has triggered higher demand for management students and a corresponding growth in the number of institutions providing such courses. 

 

Management education has grown rapidly over the last decade. With the exception of a few, almost all the B-Schools were established during this period. Master in Business Administration (MBA) and Bachelor in Business Administration (BBA) has carved its own niche within this time frame. It has been popular among students aspiring to become managers or join banking sector, corporate entities and among those aspiring to become entrepreneurs. Because of a thriving market for MBA graduates, this degree has attracted many students to pursue it. 

 

MBA courses across the globe aim at producing job creators rather than jobs seekers. This trend has not been visible in Nepali MBAs. The country produces around 1,300 to 1,400 MBA graduates every year and most of them work in managerial posts instead of starting as an entrepreneur. 

 

Out of the total 602 MBA graduates of Ace Institute of Management, 52 work as senior managers, 134 as managers, 158 as front line managers and officers, and 106 junior officers and management trainees and 90 entrepreneurs while 62 are working abroad, data on the college’s website informed.

 

Apex College, another renowned Nepali B-school has provided degrees to 802 students. Out of this, the college claims, 7.93 percent are entrepreneurs while 9.25 percent are abroad. Most of the students are working in the Banking sector (which is 34 percent). Education is another sector students seem to incline for. Media and advertising, consultancy, NGO\INGO, government services are other alternatives of the students. 

 

Similarly, MBA and BBA graduates of King's College are working as managers, sales executive, marketing executive, research and development officer, trainee assistant and supervisor, Biplove Singh, senior programme manager at the college informed adding that 19 of their graduates are entrepreneurs. 

 

Even cursory analysis of these data from our leading B-Schools points out that basically our MBA graduates are doing jobs rather than creating one.

 

Dr Bhoj Raj Aryal, deputy director at School of Management Tribuvan University (SOMTU), says that the pedagogy of Nepali business education has been job-oriented for a long time, which has always encouraged Nepali students wanting to do a job. “The scenario is slowly changing these days. The current student oriented pedagogy will help in producing job creators rather than job seekers.” 

 

Though some students want to become entrepreneurs, lack of finance and insufficient knowledge about the real life business is obstructing their way. One factor behind the unwillingness of the students of not starting out their own ventures might be lack of confidence to risk their capital in their very first endeavour. Graduates claim that working under someone provides real time experiences to start out own venture. “Unwillingness to start a small business and insufficient budget for larger one is also causing this problem,” Aryal shares.

 

“Students already with family background in business find it easier to start a new business,” he says. “But as most of the students in context of Nepal are from agriculture background or from service sector, it’s difficult for them to start a business in the first place,” he adds.

 

Singh also shares Aryal’s view saying that the scenario is changing gradually and expresses hope that the country will soon get host of entrepreneurs. “Many students nowadays aspire to become entrepreneurs. As an institution we are doing our best to create an environment that will foster their entrepreneurship skills,” he said. The college has its own interventional centre and have been even providing seed money to students for starting business ventures even while they are pursuing their MBA degree.

 

Entrepreneurship culture needs to expand slowly and for that to happen, considerable changes are essential in both the content and process of learning. And it is a challenge for B-Schools to educate students in such a way that they aspire to become entrepreneurs instead of job seekers.