Interview with Dr. Anupama Dullo Raina, Director and Campus Head at IBS Gurgaon

ICFAI Business School, Gurgaon, is a private institute established in 1995 and a constituent college of ICFAI University, Dehradun. IBS Gurgaon courses include a 2-year PGPM programme. This article shares a conversation that Careers360 had with Dr. Anupama Dullo Raina, who is the Director and Campus Head at IBS Gurgaon. Read the article to understand what she has to say about mission, admission, and placements at IBS Gurgaon.

Careers360: Tell us something about the institute; when it was set up, its vision and mission

Dr. Raina: ICFAI Business School, Gurgaon, is ranked among the top B-Schools in India. ICFAI is a reputed Group of institutions, which has enabled quality education for more than three decades with 11 Universities, 7 Tech Schools, 8 Law Schools and 9 Business Schools. was established in 1985 with our CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) program. ICFAI Business School Gurgaon was established in 1995 to promote quality education, research, training and consultancy in Management.

Situated in the corporate hub, IBS Gurgaon follows a holistic approach to business education. We are dedicated to the vision of creating a new cadre of management professionals, with a high sense of ethics and social responsibility who can make a mark in present day complex and uncertain business environment.

IBS Gurgaon takes pride in its dedicated team of faculty members, boasting of an exceptionally rich experience in both industry and academia. The campus follows a rigorous routine to give students in-depth understanding of subjects. The case study method of teaching and open classroom discussions on contemporary topics, enrich the students with deeper understanding of the domain while keeping the classrooms lively,

IBS focuses on Action Learning. Taking this forward, more than twenty student clubs at IBS Gurgaon are throughout buzzing with events and activities, both co-curricular and extra-curricular. Besides the classroom learning, the students are continuously involved and engaged in organizing or participating in various activities, be it entrepreneurial activities, Indoor/outdoor sports events, cultural events, quizzes, guest lectures, virtual trading, photography, summer internship, placement support, publishing the quarterly in-house journal, digital marketing or contributing towards the society.

All students actively contribute by way of not only organizing numerous such events but also covering and promoting all these events on all the social media platforms. All these activities promote leadership qualities, team playing abilities, problem solving techniques, critical thinking, goal setting, decision making, adaptability, learning, zeal and feeling of ownership in the students. These are also some of the qualities that the recruiters look for in a prospective recruit.

These activities give the students a real platform to put the learnings from the classroom to practice. This rich exposure stays with the students for many years and serves them as beacon light in their long careers.

IBS Gurgaon leaves no stone unturned to prepare the students for the industry and make them placement ready. We believe that it is very important to understand the recruiters’ perspective to be able to prepare the management aspirants to fulfil the organizational needs.

The campus has a dedicated placement team which stays in touch with the corporates all the year round, not only for placements but for various activities that help to meet the recruiter’s expectations. We try to understand the requirements of the recruiters, as well as their challenges to make the new recruits ready to deliver.

Students specialize in Finance, Marketing and HR as a major specialization with contemporary electives like Analytics, Marketing Research, Data Mining, Big Data Analytics, AI in Marketing, Business Intelligence, Financial Modelling & Valuation Excellence etc among others. We work closely with the industry, taking their inputs to build a curriculum as required, to make students job ready. We look for specific requirements of the organizations and groom students on campus to reduce on- job training period. Students are trained in Aptitude Tests, Advanced Excel and Psychometric tests for that extra edge.

Placement- Academic Counselling and Training sessions are conducted from semester one onwards. In these sessions, a team comprising of a domain faculty, a soft skills faculty and placement managers, train the students for placements.

Our recruiters have shown great trust and appreciation over the past years and have recruited from us year after year. Organizations like EY, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Bain & Company, Deloitte, Blackrock, CBRE, Cians Analytics, Crisil, TCS, Grant Thornton, RSM US LLP, HDFC bank, ICICI bank, Shriram Finance, Amazon, Evalueserve, Kotak bank, IL&FS, Marks and Spencer, Amul, Pantaloons, Development Bank of Singapore, American Express, Citicorp, HCL, Vodafone, ITC, WNS etc to name a few, are regular recruiters at our campus for domestic hiring. Also, every year a number of companies from UAE & Africa hire students from our institute.

The campus also has a team of dedicated counsellors who identify students that need an extra push in the areas of communication, business etiquettes, attitude or confidence. These students are mentored one on one to help them overcome their respective areas of concern.

IBS has huge network of more than 75000 alumni. They have achieved great heights in their careers. Year after year, Corporates have recognised their worth. Continuous feedback from industry suggests that pass outs from IBS are a class apart. They are a part of top-notch organizations in various sectors across the globe. They are continuously making their way up the ladder and making us proud.

Vision: The vision of the University is to 'emerge as an institution of excellence known for research, teaching and practice.

Mission: The mission of the University is 'Learning for Leadership'. It aims at developing a cadre of professionals possessing specialized skills having a sense of social and moral responsibility and the ability to address problems from a broader perspective.

Careers360: Tell us something about the admission process?

Dr. Raina: The admission process at IBS is centralized. The eligibility to apply for the two-year program is graduation (in any discipline) with 50% and above marks with medium of instruction as English. Applicants in their final year bachelor’s degree course are also eligible to apply, The TOEFL/ NELT/IELTS scores are also considered.

Eligible candidates appear for IBSAT (ICFAI Business School Admission Test). This is an online entrance aptitude test conducted by The ICFAI Foundation For Higher Education. Candidates with GMAT, NMAT, CAT and XAT scores are exempted from IBSAT.

Students who qualify are called for the selection process during February. The selection process comprises of Micro Presentation and Personal Interview.

The final selection is based on past academic record and performance of the candidates in Micro Presentation and Personal Interview.

Careers360: What kind of infrastructure can students expect at the institute? Please elaborate?

Dr. Raina: IBS Gurgaon is housed at a very prominent location in Gurgaon on the Golf Course Extension Road and is ranked among the top private B-Schools of India. The campus has state of the art infrastructure. All classrooms are well equipped with latest technology and smart screens to facilitate the teaching learning process. A Wi-Fi campus enables access to the information inside and outside the classrooms, making learning process an enjoyable exercise.

The two computer Labs are fully equipped with latest hardware and software to assist students in various kinds of IT trainings. Special emphasis is laid on making students industry ready by using analytical software like SAP, SPSS, Power BI etc. Computer Labs also facilitate the conduct of various online tests by different organizations which come to the campus for hiring.

The fully automated Library is the powerhouse of knowledge and prides itself in housing more than 36,000 volumes reflecting the research and teaching interests of the faculty and the students. It provides highly useful support to the learning process by sharing company wise updates on business news, company profiles and relevant research material etc. on a continuous basis, particularly during the placement period. It also posts important articles on current domestic and global developments which serve well in enhancing the intellectual discourse at the campus.

The campus has a Language Lab which aims to enhance communication skills and overall confidence of students, making them industry ready and promoting their employability. The students are provided relevant resource material, functional guidance through mentoring sessions by accomplished faculty and Soft Skills Trainers.

The campus facilitates Bloomberg Certifications for its students exposing them to real-time financial data and offers courses in analytics like Advance Business Analytics, Financial Business Analytics, Marketing Business Analytics, Human Resource Analytics etc. Also, the SAP Lab emphasizes practical learning and skill development, complementing the academic curriculum.

Reading rooms are available for students to study individually or in groups. The campus has a cafeteria offering variety of food choices. Snack dispensers are installed at various floors and a mini snack counter is also available on a floor apart from the canteen, to make it easy for students to grab a quick bite in between their power packed schedules.

The gymnasium has latest machines to promote health consciousness amongst students. It is managed by a dedicated trainer to provide right guidance to students not only on the use of equipment but also on the right kind of exercise suitable to their specific needs. The Yoga room is also buzzing with students.

In addition, the indoor sports facilities such as Table-Tennis, Chess, Carom Board and other fun games are also available. Outdoor sports ground hosts cricket matches, badminton, tennis, volleyball and plethora of other outdoor games and activities.

The music lovers have a Music room, well equipped with latest electric guitars, keyboards, drums and other musical instruments along with mikes and recording facility. IBS Gurgaon has an in- house health care facility with a team led by a renowned doctor.

The campus also has an Auditorium, Seminar room, Committee room and a dedicated floor for Placement activities. The campus offers a lively environment reflecting the needs of the corporate world and individual aspirations.

Careers360: There is a lot of stress that is being made with regard to interaction with the industry as well as companies that recruit. What are the steps being taken by the institute in this direction?

Dr. Raina: IBS Gurgaon collaborates closely with corporate partners to give students great exposure. This helps them understand the application of theory in practice.

To strengthen industry-academic integration, experienced working professionals holding senior positions in reputed organizations are invited to conduct four practicing sessions as a part of the classroom program delivery as the Professors of Practice. These sessions are syllabus driven and focus on demonstrating the practical applicability of the concepts taught in the class, in the industry.

The practicing sessions conducted in semester IV, are focused to reinforce student learning. These sessions are thoughtfully designed to challenge students’ understanding of the syllabus covered with intervention from corporate leaders.

Guest lectures are organized for each course in each section, as a part of classroom delivery in semester II and IV. These sessions focus on interaction with smaller section-wise groups for better exposure and understanding.

IBS Gurgaon has a dedicated faculty driven Institution Building Initiatives Club, which organizes larger interactions with industry leaders under the leadership Series where CEOs, CFO and MDs are invited for lectures and interaction with the larger batch.

Industry driven certifications and workshops are initiated at campus in collaboration with companies like PwC, Indxx Capital, Niva Bupa, Protiviti, Schneider Global, Oxane Partners etc. This gives the students hands on exposure on specific areas of business that the organizations are engaged in and/or tools that are used by the industry.

Summer Internship at IBS is a unique exposure for students. Students take up internship projects after the second semester. The SIP duration is 14 weeks, where the student is allocated a faculty mentor from the campus and an industry mentor from the organization. The mentors collaborate closely to guide the student throughout the project, so that real time checks and betterment is possible. The feedback from the industry mentor is a very important part of the overall SIP evaluation. SIP at IBS carries the credits of a whole semester.

IBS is very proud of a pool of more than 75000 alumni. The campus engages with them on a regular basis through various initiatives. Under the Alumni Buddy Program, alumni mentor a group of current students allocated to them to help them prepare better and learn from the alumni’s journey. Students connect with their Alumni Buddy for all concerns regarding placement and preparation. Alumni serving as leaders in the industry are also a part of IBS Gurgaon Advisory Board which helps us to design curriculum based on the need of the industry and implement feedback for improvement. This intervention helps us to stay at pace with the industry requirements. Alumni Round Tables are organized with very senior alumni professionals to engage with them and also to connect with the industry better. Regular Alumni Meets are organized to ensure that the alumni batches stay connected with their Alma Marter and to nurture their belongingness towards the institute.

IBS also organizes company-specific preparatory sessions where professionals working in the industry at middle and senior level, help the students to understand the roles and industry. They also make the students aware of the expectations and help them prepare well for the opportunity.

Careers360: Internships are now mandatory as per AICTE guidelines. Does the institute help students with this? If yes, how?

Dr. Raina: At IBS Gurgaon, students take up internship projects after their second semester for a duration of 14 weeks. The internship carries the credits equivalent to that of a semester.

SIP at IBS Gurgaon is campus-driven. The campus has an SIP desk comprising of a team of faculty members and led by the Dean Summer Internship Program. IBS Gurgaon placement team also collaborates with the SIP team to facilitate internships for students in best of organizations. More than 200 companies recruit interns from the campus each year for various projects in various domains.

SIP is an academic requirement and all students are helped to take up a project of their interest. The SIP is a closely guided and monitored project where the company mentor and faculty mentor help the student throughout the project for best outcomes. As a result, many students secure pre-placement offers (PPO) from the internship organizations.

For the Batch of 2026 which interned in 2025, the average stipend was 12000 per month, with a highest stipend of 35000 INR per month. Organizations like Oxane Partners, Indxx Capital, Shriram Finance, TATA Steel, Dabur, Hero Fincorp, Evalueserve, TATA Capital, Sharekhan etc. participated in the internship hiring for the batch.

Careers360: Please share placement statistics with information on the average package, highest and lowest package, number of students placed and details of companies that have recruited.

Dr. Raina: IBS Gurgaon placed more than 95% of students from the passing out batch of 2025 in their domain area of Finance, Marketing and HR. The batch had 452 students who were placed in organizations like Blackrock, Oxane Partners, PwC, CBRE, RSM US LLP, Bank of America, RA Consulting, KPMG etc. The detailed list is mentioned hereunder.

The average Salary for the batch was 7.66 LPA, the highest being 22 LPA. 8 students secured international placement at Mauritius, Dubai, Madagascar, Botswana and Zambia.

Partial list of our corporate partners

Disclaimer: The article has been published as part of the marketing activity between IBS Gurgaon and Careers360.