Kunj Sanghvi

Hi Ritesh. Apart from MICA, colleges like Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication (Pune), Xaviers Institute of Communication (Mumbai), and many universities like Manipal, Amity, etc also have good programmes in this field. You must check the mix of each of the programmes to see if all aspects of media and advertising are covered in them. They all offer a wide variety with interesting options.

02:15 PM

Kunj Sanghvi

2. Placements can vary wildly across campuses and functions. The highest paying would typically be brand and media mangement roles offered by corporates to MBA candidates with the communications specialisation. The average at MICA would be the highest for the flagship course, at par with general management MBAs from the likes of NMIMS and IMT Ghaziabad. and Symbiosis will be a close second. Placements in other courses are typically less lucrative and hence less competitive. They too however have proper campus placements. 3. Media buying and planning related roles are typically for agencies or strategy teams of corporate media brands. They dont require artistic skills, but a good understanding of business, measurement tools, financials and strategic approach are required. A managerial course more focussed on media business rather than the creative side, will be suited for you.

02:24 PM

Kunj Sanghvi

The XIC course is not as extensive as the MICA and SIMC courses. However since it has its legacy, it is fairly popular and will get you a good job in the metros. The MICA and SIMC flagship courses are management courses, whereas the XIC course is a more focussed diploma. A one year course also does not give you opportunities such as a rural stint and a summer internship. It does however shorten your gestation period and your costs.

02:27 PM

Kunj Sanghvi

Big private universities like Manipal and Amity will ensure a basic quality of placements. They all have a few anchor recruiters who hire from across their schools. They also have pretty robust businesses themselves and are looking to hire talent for themselves. Apart from this, their proximity to Bangalore and Delhi respectively also make them attractive destinations for recruiters. Having said that, their placements will not be as robust as the reputed, standalone schools like MICA and SIMC, because a school of communications will never be a top priority for a University looking to place close to 10000 students every year.

02:32 PM

Kunj Sanghvi

MICA sees a very eclectic mix of people coming to it. Most people dont have experience in media. People with media experience would typically form a maximum of 5% of the batch. In today's world where media is fast coming to mean digital media, an engineer might infact have an edge during placements if he can show that he understands online products better and hence can do a better job working with them. What will get you the job is how quickly you show your ability to learn and apply, because several MICAns work with colleagues with Generic MBAs in the media companies. So the companies expect you to have a bit of a learning curve irrespective of your graduation degree. Also, MICA has a strong proportion of freshers, so all start pretty much equal.

02:39 PM

Kunj Sanghvi

You should consider XIC and IIMC as well. You could explore focussing on digital media even if you do a course on generic media management.

02:42 PM

Kunj Sanghvi

Yes a digital marketing course will definitely help you in your summer placements. This is assuming you can show your knowledge and understanding around it during the interview. In the final placements, it might not be that important as your entire batch would have gone through a pretty robust digital marketing curriculum. My advice is to build a profile as a digital marketing specialist by participating in every competition, seminar and event around it, proactively taking up projects and research work around it. That is more likely to help you during your final placement PI.

02:45 PM

Kunj Sanghvi

Happy to help :) All the best

02:49 PM