MBA Program - Rules & Policies

Semester Duration
The academic year is divided into two semesters of 16 (sixteen) weeks each. During a semester each course meets twice a week for 2.5 hours divided into two classes of 75 minutes each. The number of class hours for a course in a semester is approximately 40. Additional sessions for a course may be scheduled by the concerned faculty.

Course Load
A full-time student may enroll for courses between 4 to 6 per semester and is expected to complete the 20 courses in a maximum of 5 semester. A part-time student may enroll for courses between 2 to 3 in a semester. However, a student may take more than 3 courses by changing his/her status from part-time to full-time or vice-versa for which he/she has to obtain permission from the MBA program office. Students of both modes, full and part time, must undergo the internship program for 16 weeks.

Course Load for BBA Graduates
A  BBA graduate who has completed 40 courses equivalent to 120 credit hours from an institution having curriculum and grading system equivalent to that of this Institute may qualify for waiver of a maximum of 10 core MBA courses provided he/she has obtained at least `B' grade(s) in similar course(s). The situation will be examined by a review committee on a case by case basis.

Class Attendance
A student must attend all the classes of each course enrolled during a semester. Up to three absences, per course, in one semester may be excused. Unexcused absences may result either in reducing the course grade of the student or in dismissal of the student from the semester. The Director, IBA shall review the cases having more than three unexcused absences and inform the decision to the concerned instructors. However, any proposal for dismissal of students for unexcused absences shall be reviewed and considered by the Academic Committee of the IBA for a final decision.

Method of Instruction
Teaching is done through lectures, supplemented by project work, case presentation, group discussions, seminars, business games, audio-visual aids and plant visits. An emphasis is given on the project work, case method of instruction and other techniques that simulate business situations. Cases used in the courses relate to actual problems in international and Bangladeshi business and industry.

For each course taken in a semester a student is assigned text books and lecture materials for the semester. Supplementary texts/journals/reading material can either be read in or borrowed from the library. Students are required to prepare work assignments as per guide-line and schedule provided by the respective course teacher, participate in class discussion and sit for periodical quizzes and tests.

Arrangements are also made to hold lectures and research seminars by prominent business/governement executives on subjects of current interest. The medium of instruction is English.

Grading System
Letter grades are used to evaluate the course performance and other works of a student in a course of which A, B+, B, C+, C, D+ and D are considered passing grades. `F' is the failing grade. The numerical equivalence of the grades as used by the Institute in calculating CGPA are as follows: 

Bases of grading
The grade in a course will be based on an overall evaluation of a student's performance in assignments, examinations, quizzes, term papers, project work, class participation and class attendance. Grades will be determined by the teacher responsible for the course. Hence a student earns grade in each course enrolled. In each semester, CGPA will be computed to determine the academic standing of the student in the program.

Incomplete grades
For incomplete course work a student may be assigned the grades of ‘Incomplete’ which will be recorded as ‘I’ with an alternative grade based on the work completed at that point in time. The alternative grade will come into effect if the student fails to complete the course requirement. A student will be allowed to complete an incomplete course within four weeks from the date of publication of the results. A student who fails to complete the course work will automatically get the alternative grade earned by him.

Repeating Courses
A course may be taken only once for a grade, except when a student receives a failing grade which is recorded as ‘F’. Since passing of all courses individually is a degree requirement, the student must retake a failing course when offered, and must successfully complete the course. The grade earned on the retake will be shown in the transcript along with ‘F’ grade earned in the first time the course was taken. But the grade earned on the course(s) repeated will be substituted for ‘F’ in computing the CGPA. A course can be retaken only once.

Academic Standing of a Student
A student to remain in good standing must maintain a minimum CGPA of 2.50. A student who fails to maintain a CGPA of 2.50 at the end of a semester, but obtains 2.00 or more, will be placed on probation. A student obtaining a CGPA of less than 2.00 shall be dismissed from the program. Failure to raise the CGPA to 2.50 in the next semester by a student placed on probation will also result in dismissal from the program. A student failing to maintain a CGPA of 2.5 at the end of the final semester shall be allowed to repeat courses of the final semester in which he earned ‘C’ grades or below. This opportunity will be given only once. Such a student failing to raise CGPA to 2.5 after repeating the courses will be dismissed from the program.

Comprehensive Examination
The Comprehensive examination evaluates the academic competence of the students in the chosen area of concentration. A student must obtain at least a passing grade (‘C’) in this examination to become eligible for the MBA degree. The grade earned in comprehensive examination is recorded in the grade sheet of the student but not included in the CGPA.

The comprehensive examination is usually taken two week before the end of the semester in which the student is to complete the twentieth course. Failure in the comprehensive examination calls for a retake, which is allowed only once, unless otherwise decided by the Academic Committee. Such retake will be held in the semester following the graduation of the batch to which the student belongs.

Internship
The internship is part of the MBA degree requirement. A student must complete other degree requirements before placement in the internship program. The internship constitutes a practicum for a student and is a preparatory step towards a career. The primary goal of internship is to provide an on-the-job exposure to the student and an opportunity for translation of theoretical concepts to real life situation. Internships are held in public/private sectors, research institutions and developmental agencies. The program covers a semester equivalent of 16 weeks with 12 weeks of organizational attachment and 4 weeks of report finalization. The internship program is usually organized to match the area of concentration of a student and is supervised by a faculty.

In all cases a student is required to prepare an internship report within the time prescribed. The internship report of a student will be graded as per normal grading system of IBA. The passing grade in the internship is ‘C’. Failure to obtain a passing grade will call for redoing the internship program and is allowed only once. The grade earned on the internship report is recorded in the grade sheet of the student but excluded from the CGPA calculation.

Transfer of Credit Hours
Transfer of credit hours from under graduate curriculum, equivalent to that of IBA, may be allowed for a maximum of 30 credit hours provided none of these grades is lower than ‘B’. Such transfer of credits will be decided on individual basis by an Equivalence Committee constituted by the IBA Academic Committee. A student who has been granted transfer of credit will be required to complete the remaining credit hours and meet other requirements of the MBA Program for graduation. The credit transferred will not be a part of CGPA of the student but will be shown separately on the transcript.

Exemption
A student can be exempted from a course which the Equivalence Committee considers equivalent, and in such a case the student will be allowed to take an alternative course of the same level or higher as prescribed by the Committee.

Transfer between Sections
Application for a transfer from the full-time to the part-time mode and vice-versa, should a student so desire, will be granted on individual basis. Students seeking transfer shall carry the onus of matching courses offerings. Application for transfers must reach the program office within one week of the beginning of a semester.

Withdrawal 
Withdrawal from a course may be allowed to a student with good standing during a semester but within six weeks from the beginning of a semester.

Withdrawal from the program can be considered if permission is sought immediately after the completion of a semester. A student with good standing only will be allowed to apply for withdrawal from the program. Those who have incomplete grades will not be permitted withdrawal. Withdrawal on other occasions may be allowed by the academic committee but  a student  must complete the program within a period of 8 academic years from the date of initial registration. Upon re-entry, the student must complete the required courses of the program remaining in force. The student can only be accommodated within the course offered for the regular students.

Unfair Means
The following would be considered as unfair means adopted during examinations and other contexts: 

1. communicating with fellow students for obtaining help

2. copying from another student's script/report/paper

3. copying from desk, or palm of a hand, or from other incriminating          documents

4. possession of any incriminating document whether used or not

5. any approach in direct or indirect form to influence teacher for  grade and

6. unruly behavior which disrupts academic program.

If a student is found to be adopting unfair means by the course teacher he/she may be given an ‘F’ grade at the discretion of the teacher for part of the course or in its entirety.

Adoption of unfair means may result in the dismissal of a student from the program and expulsion of the student from the Institute and as such from the University . 

Grievances  regarding grades
If a student is aggrieved by the evaluation and grading of academic work by his/her teacher he/she may file a grievance application as per approved procedure of the IBA.