Curriculum Overview

The curriculum for the Business Administration program at Plaksha University Mohali is meticulously designed to provide a holistic and forward-looking educational experience. The program spans eight semesters, offering a progressive blend of foundational knowledge, specialized expertise, and practical application.

Semester-wise Course Breakdown

Detailed Course Descriptions

Below are detailed descriptions of advanced departmental elective courses offered in the Business Administration program:

• Business Analytics and Data Mining: This course explores techniques for extracting meaningful patterns from large datasets using statistical modeling, machine learning algorithms, and visualization tools. Students learn to apply these methods to solve real business problems.
• Strategic Brand Management: Focuses on building and maintaining strong brand identities in competitive markets. Topics include brand positioning, brand equity, brand extension strategies, and integrated marketing communications.
• Corporate Governance and Risk Management: Examines the structure of corporate governance, board responsibilities, risk assessment frameworks, and regulatory compliance issues affecting modern corporations.
• Global Supply Chain Optimization: Students learn to design efficient supply chains that balance cost, speed, and quality across multiple geographies. The course covers logistics networks, inventory management, and supplier relationship strategies.
• Entrepreneurship in Emerging Markets: Analyzes challenges and opportunities for startups operating in developing economies. It includes case studies of successful ventures in India, Africa, and Southeast Asia.
• Sustainable Business Strategy: Integrates environmental sustainability with business strategy development. Students explore carbon footprint reduction, green product design, circular economy principles, and ESG investing.
• Financial Risk Analysis: Covers financial instruments, derivatives markets, portfolio theory, credit risk modeling, and stress testing methodologies used by financial institutions.
• Digital Transformation and Innovation: Explores how digital technologies reshape business models, customer experiences, and operational processes. The course includes hands-on sessions with AI platforms, blockchain applications, and IoT integration.
• Consumer Behavior Analysis: Studies the psychological, social, cultural, and economic factors influencing consumer decision-making. Students analyze data from surveys, focus groups, and behavioral experiments to inform marketing strategies.
• International Trade Policy and Negotiations: Reviews global trade agreements, tariffs, non-tariff barriers, dispute resolution mechanisms, and negotiation tactics in international business contexts.
• Human Capital Development and Performance Management: Focuses on designing effective HR systems that attract, develop, and retain top talent. Topics include performance appraisals, compensation structures, career planning, and organizational culture.
• Public Sector Management and Policy Implementation: Analyzes the role of government in economic development, policy formulation, public service delivery, and regulatory oversight in various countries.
• Healthcare Economics and Management: Explores cost-benefit analysis, healthcare financing systems, quality improvement initiatives, and patient safety protocols in hospital and clinic settings.
• Business Ethics and Social Responsibility: Investigates ethical dilemmas faced by organizations, corporate accountability frameworks, stakeholder engagement strategies, and CSR reporting standards.
• Innovation Management and Design Thinking: Introduces design thinking methodologies, ideation techniques, prototyping processes, and innovation metrics used in product development and service enhancement.

Project-Based Learning Philosophy

The department's philosophy on project-based learning emphasizes the integration of theory with practice. Mini-projects are assigned throughout each semester to reinforce core concepts and encourage collaborative work. The final-year thesis/capstone project is a comprehensive research endeavor that requires students to identify a business challenge, propose solutions, conduct primary or secondary research, and present findings to faculty and industry experts.

Students select their projects based on personal interests, career aspirations, and faculty availability. They are matched with mentors who provide guidance on methodology, data collection, analysis, and presentation skills. The evaluation criteria include the relevance of the topic, depth of research, clarity of communication, innovation in approach, and contribution to existing knowledge.