About the Program:

The Fellow Programme in Management (FPM) is a doctoral-level programme with the objective to transform the candidates into high-quality academicians, researchers, and management thinkers by providing an opportunity for interdisciplinary education and research in management. The candidates who complete the programme successfully are conferred the designation of “Fellow, Rajagiri Business School, Kochi”. Our Fellows are expected to be specialists in their respective fields of research and capable of generating new knowledge that contributes to the development of management thinking and practice. The programme structure includes a significant component of training in research and teaching, facilitated by both in-house and visiting researchers. At the same time, their skills are enhanced by involving them in various professional and academic activities. RBS supports participation in national and international academic conferences and publication of one’s work in scholarly media. The candidate is expected to complete the programme in 5 years. RBS supports Research Fellowship to the candidates on monthly basis for 5 years. Besides RBS also provides research grants to attend conferences and purchase office stationery. Last but not least, RBS offers Visiting Scholar Program (VSP) for 10 months wherein candidates visit any reputed institute/university abroad for the specified period to strengthen their research work. 

The Institute provides facilities for research leading to the Fellow Programme in Management (FPM). The award of the FPM degree is made based on the satisfactory performance of a registered candidate in

1. Prescribed course work, comprehensive examination & seminar
2. Two publications of original research work in Scopus/ABDC/Web of Science journals.
3. The thesis was submitted by the candidate and a final viva voce. The thesis shall be the report of research work characterized by either discovery of new facts or a new interpretation of known facts and theory, or an independent design and development.

Eligibility Criteria for Admission: All candidates seeking admission to the FPM program shall:

• have completed master’s degree or equivalent in Engineering and Technology/ Management/ Economics/ Social Science/ Biological Science/ Pure Science/ Commerce/ Humanities from any of the universities incorporated by an act of the central or state legislature in India or other educational institutions established by an act of parliament or declared to be deemed as a University under section 3 of UGC Act, 1956, or possess an equivalent qualification recognized by the Ministry of HRD, Government of India, or an equivalent qualification from an institution approved by AICTE.
• have a minimum of 60% marks or a CGPA of 6.5 in a 10-point scale.
• not be more than 55 years as on 1^st December 2024

The Institute Research Fellowship shall be awarded for a maximum period of 5 years. At present the amounts are as follows:

1. Rs. 40,000/- pm for the period till registration
2. Rs. 50,000/- pm after successful registration till thesis submission
3. When the students go abroad under the visiting scholar program (VSP) an amount of US$ 1000 - 1500 per month is paid as a stipend depending on the country in which the University/Institute is located. In addition, a one-time payment of US$ 750 is given as a contingency grant.
4. If a person is in employment and selected for admission in the FPM programme under self/industry sponsorship, he/she must resign and produce the acceptance of resignation by the employer at the time of joining. Such candidates are supposed to report at the campus as directed by the institute after the registration to the FPM programme. All sponsored candidates have to pay admission fees, tuition and course fees (₹50,000) and annual registration fees (₹40,000) till the submission of the thesis.