Syllabus & Exam Pattern

Pattern of Examination: The evaluation scheme comprises of:

a) University Evaluation             b) Concurrent Evaluation
For each full credit course:
a) 70 marks shall be evaluated by the University and
b) 30 marks shall be evaluated by the respective Institute.

For each half credit course:
a) 50 marks shall be evaluated by the respective Institute. There shall not be any University evaluation for half credit courses. (Evaluation Scheme for Summer Internship Project is detailed separately.)

University evaluation

There shall be University evaluation for each full credit course as per the timetable announced by the University. The evaluation by the University for Full Credit Courses shall comprise of two parts:
a) Online Examination for 20 marks.
b) Written Examination (subjective – concept plus case study / application oriented type) for 50 marks.
The syllabus for each course is organized in 5 units. The end-semester University evaluation shall cover the entire syllabus prescribed for the course. For University evaluation (Written Examination – subjective type of 50 marks) of each full credit course, the question pattern shall be as follows:

Pattern of Question Paper:
1) There shall be five questions each of 10 marks.
2) All questions shall be compulsory with internal choice within the questions. i.e. There shall be 2 questions from each unit of the curriculum with an internal option.
3) A Question may be subdivided into sub-questions a, b, c… and the allocation of marks depend on the weightage of the topic.

ILLUSTRATIVE PATTERN OF QUESTION PAPER

Q. 1 (A)     based on Unit 1         OR         Q. 1 (B)     based on Unit 1
Q. 2 (A)     based on Unit 2         OR         Q. 2 (B)     based on Unit 2
Q. 3 (A)     based on Unit 3         OR         Q. 3 (B)     based on Unit 3
Q. 4 (A)     based on Unit 4         OR         Q. 4 (B)     based on Unit 4
Q. 5 (A)     based on Unit 5         OR         Q. 5 (B)     based on Unit 5

Questions shall assess knowledge, application of knowledge, and the ability to synthesize knowledge. The paper setter shall ensure that questions covering all skills and all units are set. She/he shall also mandatorily submit a detailed scheme of evaluation along with the question paper. Questions shall be of three categories of difficulty level – low difficulty, average difficulty and high difficulty.

The duration of written examination shall be 2 hours. Students shall be provided a single answer sheet of 16 pages. They must ensure that their responses fit within the provided answer sheet. Additional supplements shall NOT be provided.

Online examination

The University of Pune shall conduct an online examination for each full credit course. This examination shall be objective in nature and shall carry a weightage of 20 marks per full credit course. Students will appear for the online examinations in their respective institutes. Online examination shall constitute a separate head of passing for the full credit courses. Passing shall be at 40%, i.e. Grade E. The student does NOT have a facility of Grade Improvement, in online examination, if he/she has secured any grade other than F.

The Controller of Examinations of the University of Pune shall announce the online examination window of 3 days per semester i.e. a window of 3 days for Sem I and another window of 3 days for Sem III (in term I and likewise for term II) for the examination, in consultation with the Dean – Faculty of Management. The online test shall be conducted for all 4 semesters during each term. A similar window of 3 days for Sem II (backlog) and another window of 3 days for Sem IV backlog shall be announced in term I and vice-versa for Sem I backlog and Sem III backlog in term II for students who score Grade F in the online exam.

There shall NOT be any retest for those students who is absent for the online exam during the declared examination window period. Any student, who is absent for the online test during the regular term, can take the online test for the specific course in the next term and his grades evaluation shall be updated accordingly in the revised Grade Card.

Generally the schedule for online examination will be as follows:

a) Semester I: In the 8th/9thweek after the commencement of semester I.
b) Semester II, III and IV: In the7th/ 8thweek after the commencement of respective semester.

The date declared by DTE for commencement of classes as per CAP process shall be the reference date for Semester I. Only for Semester I, in case of unforeseen circumstances the Controller of Examinations (CoE), University of Pune, in consultation with the Dean of the Faculty of Management may postpone the examinations for Semester I. However the online examinations shall not be postponed beyond 10th week after commencement of the classes / course for Semester I.

For Sem II, III and IV the reference date shall be the term commencement date declared by the UoP.

The syllabus for the online examination shall be the first two units in each full credit course (2 out of total 5 units, i.e. 40% of the syllabus). The duration of online examination for each course shall be of 25 minutes.

There shall be one mark for each correct response and 0.25 negative marks for each incorrect response. There shall be 20 questions – each carrying one mark. ALL THE QUESTIONS SHALL BE COMPULSORY. The questions shall be of different variety within the objective format. In the extreme event of a student answering all the questions incorrectly, the final score of such a student for that course for the online examination shall be 0 (ZERO) and not -5 (MINUS FIVE).

The Faculty of Management shall devise objective question bank comprising questions of varying degree of difficulty, and of different types, in sufficiently large number for each course for the exclusive purpose of the online examination. The objective question paper shall be developed in real time, randomly using an ERP / Learning Management System.

The Institutes shall ensure the provision of necessary IT infrastructure and internet bandwidth, backup power supply, for the smooth conduct of such online examination.

The score of each candidate for each course shall be known immediately after the conclusion of the online test and the Institute shall display the scores of all students for the online test within 3 days of the completion of the test.


Concurrent evaluation

A continuous assessment system in semester system (also known as internal assessment/comprehensive assessment) is spread through the duration of course and is done by the teacher teaching the course.

The continuous assessment provides a feedback on teaching learning process. The feedback after being analyzed is passed on to the concerned student for implementation and subsequent improvement. As a part of concurrent evaluation, the learners shall be evaluated on a continuous basis by the Institute to ensure that student learning takes place in a graded manner.

Concurrent evaluation components should be designed in such a way that the faculty can monitor the student learning & development and intervene wherever required. The faculty must share the outcome of each concurrent evaluation component with the students, soon after the evaluation, and guide the students for betterment.

Individual faculty member shall have the flexibility to design the concurrent evaluation components in a manner so as to give a balanced assessment of student capabilities across Knowledge, Skills & Attitude (KSA) dimensions based on variety of assessment tools.

Suggested components for Concurrent Evaluation (CE) are:

1. Case Study / Caselet / Situation Analysis – (Group Activity or Individual Activity)
2. Class Test
3. Open Book Test
4. Field Visit / Study tour and report of the same
5. Small Group Project & Internal Viva-Voce
6. Learning Diary
7. Scrap Book
8. Group Discussion
9. Role Play / Story Telling
10. Individual Term Paper / Thematic Presentation
11. Written Home Assignment
12. Industry Analysis – (Group Activity or Individual Activity)
13. Literature Review / Book Review
14. Model Development / Simulation Exercises – (Group Activity or Individual Activity)
15. In-depth Viva
16. Quiz

There shall be a minimum of three concurrent evaluation components per full credit course and five concurrent evaluation components for each half credit course. The faculty shall announce in advance the units based on which each concurrent evaluation shall be conducted. Each component shall ordinarily be of 10 marks. The Institute shall however have the liberty to conduct additional components (beyond three/five). However the total outcome shall be scaled down to 30/50 marks for full credit and half credit courses respectively. Marks for the concurrent evaluation must be communicated by the Institute to the University as per the schedule declared by the University. Detailed record of the Concurrent Evaluation shall be maintained by the Institute. The same shall be made available to the University, on demand.

At the end of Concurrent Evaluation (out of 30/50 marks) the student does NOT have a facility of Grade Improvement, if he/she has secured any grade other than F.

Standard of passing

Every candidate must secure at least Grade E in Concurrent Evaluation , University Examination & Online Evaluation (as applicable) as separate heads of passing for each course.

Degree Requirements:

a) Earned Credits: A candidate who has successfully completed all the Core courses and accumulated, through elective courses, not less than minimum number of Credits prescribed shall be eligible to receive the Degree. The degree requirements for the MBA programme is completion of 100 earned credits.

b) Final Grade Point Requirement: A student must obtain the Final Grade Point of a minimum of 00.50 to be eligible for award of the MBA degree.

Conversion of marks in to grade point

The marks shall be converted to grade points and grades using Table I below.

Table I: Points Grading System

Sr. No.

Marks

Grade

Grade Point

1 100-75 O – Outstanding 06
2 74-65 A – Very Good 05
3 64-55 B – Good 04
4 54-50 C – Average 03
5 49-45 D – Satisfactory 02
6 44-40 E – Pass 01
7 39-0 F – Fail 00

The description of the final grades shall be as follows:

O: Outstanding (Excellent Analysis of the topic – 75% and above)
Accurate knowledge of the primary material, wide range of reading, logical development of ideas, originality in approaching the subject. Neat and systematic organization of content, elegant and lucid style.

A: Very Good (Excellent Analysis of the topic – 65 to 74 %)
Accurate knowledge of the primary material, acquaintance with seminal publications, logical development of ideas. Neat and systematic organization of content, effective and clear expression.

B : Good (Good Analysis and treatment of the topic – 55 to 64 %)
Basic knowledge of the primary material, logical development of ideas. Neat and systematic organization of content, effective and clear expression.

C : Average (Some important points covered – 50 to 54%)
Basic knowledge of the primary material, logical development of ideas. Neat and systematic organization of content, good language or clear expression.

D: Satisfactory (Some points discussed – 45 to 49%)
Basic knowledge of the primary material, some organization of content, acceptable language or expression.

E: Pass (Any two of the above – 40 to 44%)

F: Fail (None of the above – 0 to 39%)

The performance of a student will be evaluated in terms of two indices, viz.

a) Semester Grade Point Average (SGPA) which is the Grade Point Average for a semester
b) Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) which is the Grade Point Average for all the completed semesters at any point in time.

Semester Grade Point Average (SGPA): At the end of each semester, SGPA is calculated as the weighted average of GPI of all courses in the current semester in which the student has passed, the weights being the credit values of respective courses.

SGPA = Grade Points divided by the summation of Credits of all Courses.

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Where GPI is the Grade and C is credit for the respective Course.

Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA): Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) is the grade point average for all completed semesters. CGPA is calculated as the weighted average of all GPI of all courses in which the student has passed up to the current semester.

Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) for the Entire Course

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Where GPI is the Grade and C is credit for the respective Course.

Note: If a student secures F grade in either or both of Concurrent Evaluation or University Evaluation for a particular course his /her credits earned for that course shall be ZERO.

Scalling down

The marks obtained by the student for the Concurrent Evaluation components conducted by the Institute (i.e. out of 30 marks), in the Full Credit Courses, in Semester I to Semester IV, shall be scaled down, to the required extent, if percentage of the marks of Concurrent Evaluation exceeds the percentage of marks scored in the end semester University Examination by 25% for the respective course. Scores of Online Examination are not part of the scaling down formula. i.e. (percentage of marks scored out of 30 in concurrent evaluation) – (percentage of marks scored out of 50 in university evaluation) should not exceed 25%.

The marks obtained by the student in Half Credit Courses are not subject to scaling down. Likewise, the marks obtained by the student in Concurrent Evaluation for the Summer Internship Project (Course 304) shall not be subjected to scaling down.

Award of grade cards

The University of Pune under its seal shall issue to the student a grade card on completion of each semester. The final Grade Card issued at the end of the final semester shall contain the details of all courses taken during the entire programme for obtaining the degree.

Final Grades: After calculating the SGPA for an individual semester and the CGPA for entire programme, the value shall be matched with the grade in the Final Grade Points Table (as per Table II) and expressed as a single designated GRADE such as O, A, B, C, D, E, F.

Final Grade Points:

Sr. No.

Grade Points

Grade

1 05.00 to 6.00 O – Outstanding
2 04.50 to 04.99 A – Very Good
3 03.50 to 04.49 B – Good
4 02.50 to 03.49 C – Average
5 01.50 to 02.49 D – Satisfactory
6 00.50 to 01.49 E – Pass
7 00.00 to 00.49 F – Fail

A student who secures grade E or above in a course is said to have completed /earned the credits assigned to the course. A student who completed the minimum credits required for the MBA programme shall be declared to have completed the programme.

NOTE: The Grade Card for the final semester shall indicate the following, amongst other details:

a) Grades for concurrent evaluation (out of 30 for Full Credit Courses & out of 50 for Half Credit Courses) , Online evaluation (out of 20 for Full Credit Courses only) and University evaluation (out of 50 for Full Credit Courses only), separately, for all courses offered by the student during the entire programme along with the grade for the total score.
b) SGPA for each semester.
c) CGPA for final semester.
d) Total Marks Scored out of Maximum Marks for the entire programme, with break up of Marks Scored in Concurrent Evaluation and University Evaluation (Semester Wise).
e) Marks scored shall not be recorded on the Grade Card for intermediate semesters.
f) The grade card shall also show the 7 point scale and the formula to convert GPI, SGPA, and/or CGPA to percent marks.
g) The final GPA shall not be printed unless the student earns the minimum 100 credits required for earning the MBA Degree.
h) B Grade is equivalent to atleast 55% marks.
i) If the GPA is higher than the indicated upper limit in the three decimal digit, then the student may be awarded higher final grade e.g. a student getting a GPA of 4.492 may be awarded grade A. The grade card shall also provide, on the reverse, the 7-point scale and the formula to convert GPI, SGPA, and/or CGPA to percent marks.

Grade Improvement: A Candidate who has secured any grade other than F (i.e. passed the MBA programme) and desires to avail the Grade Improvement facility, may apply under Grade Improvement Scheme within five years from passing that Examination. He/she can avail not more than three attempts, according to the syllabus in existence, for grade improvement. He /she shall appear for University Evaluation of at least 1/3rd Generic / Subject Core Courses (except SIP) for the purpose of Grade Improvement. Generic or Subject Electives (Half Credit Courses) cannot be selected for Grade Improvement.

ATKT Rules

A student shall earn the credits for a given course in MAXIMUM FOUR ATTEMPTS. If a student drops a course (generic elective / subject elective) and opts for another course in lieu of the dropped course the attempts utilized for the dropped course shall be included in the maximum 4 attempts available to earn the credits for a course. The facility of dropping a course and opting for a new course in lieu of the dropped course shall be availed by the student only once during these four attempts available to him. A student may drop at the most 2 courses out of the 16 elective courses and select other courses in lieu of dropped courses. i.e. Dropping a course can be done only twice.

Maximum Duration for completion of the Programme

The candidates shall complete the MBA Programme WITHIN 4 YEARS from the date of admission, by earning the requisite credits. The student will be finally declared as failed if shehe does not pass in all credits within a total period of four years. After that, such students will have to seek fresh admission as per the admission rules prevailing at that time.

Verifications / Revaluation
Students can avail the verification / revaluation facility as per the prevailing policy, guidelines and norms of the University of Pune. There shall be Revaluation of the answer scripts of Semester-End examination for Full Credit Courses but not of online examination , half credit courses / SIP / Dissertation as per Ordinance no.134 A & B.

Additional Specialization

A student may enroll for additional specialization after passing out the regular MBA programme. Such students will get exemption from all the generic core and generic elective courses in First Year (Sem I and II) and generic core courses in Second Year (Sem III and IV). Such students shall have to appear for the subject core and subject elective courses i.e. 2 Full Credit Courses & 4 Half Credit Courses in Sem III and IV each. i.e. a total of 12 subject electives (specialization) courses of which 4 are full credits and 8 are half credits.

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