IIM Calcutta receives AACSB accreditation

TA Pai Management Institute and ISB are two other Indian B-schools that have received the accreditation

Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Calcutta, country's oldest IIM has become the third Indian B-school to receive the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accreditation.

TA Pai Management Institute and the Indian School of Business (ISB) are the two other Indian B-schools which have received the AACSB accreditation.

AACSB, in a press statement said, "AACSB Accreditation represents the highest achievement for an educational institution that awards business degrees.

Director Chattopadhyay and the faculty, directors, and staff of IIM Calcutta are to be commended for their role in earning accreditation," said Robert D. Reid, executive vice president and chief accreditation officer of AACSB International.

"An international accreditation gives us recognition that we are doing fundamentally well. It allows you to know your strengths and weaknesses and assess where you stand vis-à-vis your peer institutes. It puts you in the international league of B-schools," said Saibal Chattopadhyay, director, IIM-Calcutta had earlier told Business Standard.

IIM-Calcutta, received its Association of MBAs (AMBA) accreditation this March. IIM Bangalore and IIM-Ahmedabad have an EQUIS or European Quality Improvement System accreditation.

AACSB Accreditation, one of the most coveted by B-schools, has been earned by less than five percent of the world's business programs.

Today, there are 716 business schools in 48 countries and territories that maintain AACSB Accreditation. Similarly, 181 institutions maintain an additional specialized AACSB Accreditation for their accounting programs.

All accredited schools must go through a peer review process every five years in order to retain their accreditation.

"It takes a great deal of self-evaluation and determination to earn AACSB Accreditation, and I commend Indian Institute of Management Calcutta for its dedication to management education, as well as its leadership in the community," said Reid.

"Through accreditation, IIM Calcutta has not only met specific standards of excellence, but has also made a commitment to ongoing improvement to ensure that the institution will continue to deliver high quality education to its students.”

AACSB International also announced that ESPAE-Graduate School of Management (Ecuador), National Central University (Chinese Taipei), Newcastle University (United Kingdom) and the University of Canterbury (New Zealand) have earned accreditation in business, and Northumbria University (United Kingdom) has earned accreditation in accounting.