Frequently Asked Questions
Degree
Who awards the undergraduate degree for the programmes at ISBF?
The degree for the undergraduate programmes at ISBF is awarded by University of London (UOL) since all programmes at ISBF are offered under UOL’s aegis. All ISBF students are full UOL students, and are therefore invited, upon graduating, to receive their degrees at the UOL Graduation Ceremony in London. Since these programmes receive all academic direction from The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), LSE’s name is also mentioned on an ISBF student’s UOL degree, further enhancing its prestige and value around the world.
Is there a difference between the degree that ISBF students receive and the degree received by students at UOL or LSE in London?
There is no difference between the degree that an ISBF student receives and that obtained by a student pursuing the same programme in London with UOL. On the other hand, an ISBF student’s degree does look different from the one received by an LSE student; however, since an ISBF student follows the same curriculum and assessments as LSE students in London, and since their UOL degree bears LSE’s name as the examining body, this makes their education and their degree equivalent in standard to that of an LSE student in London.
Why do ISBF students receive a BSc degree rather than a BA degree which is more common in India for subjects like Economics? Is one better than the other?
ISBF students receive a BSc degree award for their undergraduate programmes because LSE, the academic director of the programmes at ISBF, recognises Economics and related subjects like Finance and Management as ‘Sciences’ and awards a Bachelor of Science (Honours) degree for them.
Recognition & Ranking
Is the University of London (UOL) degree awarded to ISBF students recognised by University Grants Commission (UGC)?
The UOL degree is not recognised by UGC because the degree awarding body - UOL - is situated outside India and therefore does not fall under the regulatory purview of UGC. If a student wishes to obtain a UGC recognised qualification, say in order to pursue a career in government services, it is advisable to simultaneously pursue the BA / BCom programme from Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) or some other open university. This can be done via the distance learning mode at very little additional cost or effort, with complete operational and teaching support from ISBF.
What sort of international recognition does the UOL degree received by ISBF students enjoy?
University of London, the degree awarding body for ISBF students, is one of the most prestigious higher education institutions in the world. Besides, the UOL degree carries the name of the London School of Economics (LSE), which is among the top 10 institutions in the world for the disciplines offered at ISBF. All this makes this degree, and an ISBF student’s education, widely recognised and hugely valued all over the world. This is the reason that ISBF students hold a significant edge over their peers when it comes to any kind of international opportunity - right from a 2nd year transfer to a top foreign college, to a Master’s at a prestigious university abroad and an overseas job after graduating.
Does the UOL degree enjoy equivalence in India and abroad? How does this impact students’ careers?
ISBF students receive an LSE education and a UOL degree, which are very well understood all over the world by recruiters as well as other higher education institutions. In fact, since they represent the gold standard in higher education, they provide a peerless platform for students who wish to work or study abroad at any stage after graduation.
In India, the programmes at ISBF currently do not enjoy equivalence from the Association of Indian Universities (AIU); however, many of its prestigious constituent members - such as University of Delhi, University of Calcutta, University of Punjab and many others, have granted equivalence individually to the UOL-LSE programmes at ISBF, on account of their high quality and pedigree.
This is why ISBF students have been able to go on to the best postgraduate institutions in the country, such as Indian Institutes of Management (IIM), Indian School of Business (ISB), Xavier Labour Research Institute (XLRI), Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) and Delhi School of Economics (DSE).
With regard to corporate sector jobs too, students have been recruited on the basis of their degree as well as their skillset.
What is ISBF’s ranking?
In reputed and credible international higher education ranking systems like those of Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) or Times Higher Education (THE), ranks are typically assigned to universities, and not to the colleges affiliated to such universities. For example, University of Oxford is ranked, not St. John’s or Magdalen College, and University of Delhi is ranked, not St. Stephen’s College or Lady Shri Ram College for Women, yet because the university concerned is the umbrella body and the programmes offered by its affiliated colleges are typically the same, the colleges enjoy the university’s rankings in effect.
Similarly, since ISBF is affiliated to University of London, and through it with the London School of Economics (LSE), it is the rankings of these institutions, and LSE in particular (being the academic director for the programmes), that apply to the education offered at ISBF. Based on the QS 2023 Rankings by Subject, LSE is ranked 7th in the world for Accounting and Finance, 7th for Economics and Econometrics and 11th for Business and Management. As ISBF offers programmes only in these subjects, all ISBF students pursue a global top 10 undergraduate education.
This, of course, leaves the question of ISBF’s ranking as a college within the LSE-UOL ecosystem. Of more than 70 such colleges from Uruguay to Japan, ISBF is recognised by LSE as one of its five featured teaching Institutions, or colleges, in the world, on account of the excellent outcomes achieved by its students on these programmes year after year.
Besides this, ISBF has also won a number of awards for its excellence - the Dewang Mehta National Education Award for Best Academic Input (Syllabus) in Finance, in both 2015 and 2016, and the ASSOCHAM India Award for Best Institute for Providing Global Exposure in 2018.
About ISBF
What is the relationship between ISBF and University of London (UOL)?
To put it simply, ISBF is a college in the University of London Programmes ecosystem, which also includes the London School of Economics (LSE). ISBF has been affiliated to UOL ever since its inception in 2006. It rose to the erstwhile highest level of recognition - Affiliate Centre - as early as 2009, signifying the higher quality standards in terms of infrastructure, teaching support, faculty quality and several other processes and systems, and has maintained this status through more than a decade of stringent quality checks and audits.
As a result of this relationship, all ISBF students are full students of UOL - they pay a fee directly to UOL, receive UOL student ID cards, have access to all virtual and physical UOL learning resources, are invited to participate in the UOL Graduation Ceremony in London and enjoy UOL alumni status and benefits for life. Perhaps most importantly, this is why all ISBF graduates receive the globally recognised and valued UOL degree, which also carries LSE’s name on it.
What is the relationship between ISBF and The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)?
As a Member College of UOL, LSE provides all academic direction for the Economics, Management, Finance and Social Sciences (EMFSS) programmes offered under the aegis of University of London. These are the only programmes offered and taught by ISBF, so the collaboration with LSE runs very deep.
LSE faculty members design the programmes, write and update the curriculum based on the latest research and, very importantly, set and grade the final, or summative, assessments for all courses/subjects taught on the UOL Programmes. This makes the curriculum and assessments followed by ISBF students identical to those followed by LSE in London.
ISBF also enjoys several visits from LSE faculty members every year, including Visiting Lectureship by the Associate Academic Director for the UOL Programmes at LSE. All this ensures that ISBF students obtain one of the world’s leading undergraduate educations in these subject areas.
Are the programmes offered at ISBF distance learning programmes?
No, ISBF offers all its programmes through the full-time, classroom-based mode of learning. None of our programmes are distance learning programmes. All programmes at ISBF are taught by ISBF’s esteemed faculty members, in classes conducted on the ISBF campus, with a formal year-long teaching plan, formative assessments and several co-curricular, extra-curricular and other learning opportunities, none of which happens on a distance learning programme.
Does the ISBF curriculum, being an international curriculum, help one when appearing for professional qualifications like Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) or Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)?
The curriculum for the BSc (Hons) Economics & Finance programme at ISBF overlaps quite significantly with that of CFA, while students of the BSc (Hons) Accounting & Finance receive exemptions from 8 out of 13 examinations required to qualify as an ACCA, making it possible for them to become fully qualified before they graduate and at less than half the cost. These students also enjoy exemptions for several other professional accounting qualifications, such as CIMA, ICAEW, ISCA and CPA Australia.
Faculty
What are the types of profiles of the faculty members involved with the UOL-LSE programmes at ISBF?
It is important to note that the UOL-LSE programmes at ISBF draw contributions from two sets of faculty members - those of LSE, who provide all academic direction except the teaching, and those of ISBF, who teach the programmes. ISBF’s esteemed faculty members come from institutions such as the London School of Economics (LSE), University of Cambridge, Yale University, Johns Hopkins University, University College London (UCL), Barcelona Graduate School of Economics (BGSE), University of Delhi (colleges like St Stephen's College and Shri Ram College of Commerce), Jawaharlal Nehru University, IIM and IIT. Along with this high academic pedigree and a wealth of teaching experience, they bring to the table extensive industry exposure across the globe, and a unique commitment to the profession of teaching.
What exposure do ISBF students have to LSE faculty members? Do they teach ISBF students at any point?
There are several ways in which ISBF students are exposed to LSE faculty members. The first, and the most important, is via curriculum design and the setting and grading of final assessments, which are done entirely by LSE faculty members. Second, in addition to the classroom teaching at ISBF, students also utilise LSE's Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), a rich content repository curated and maintained by their faculty members. Aside from videos, digitised study material and learning activities, this also houses course-wise Discussion Forums which are moderated by LSE faculty members, and enables students to access the UOL Online Library, one of the richest in the world. Third, ISBF also enjoys several visits from LSE faculty members.
Fees and Funding
Why is ISBF’s fee higher than that of many Indian colleges?
The total fee charged by ISBF is higher than that of many Indian colleges because ISBF offers international programmes in collaboration with institutions like University of London (UOL) and the London School of Economics (LSE). As a result, the tuition fee paid by an ISBF student comprises the tuition fees of both ISBF - the college and UOL - the university. Yet, the total programme cost is only one-fourth of what one would spend to obtain the same education and degree abroad, so it represents, in fact, a huge cost saving for students and their families.
What are the various sources of funding available to study at ISBF?
Scholarships up to 25% of the ISBF Tuition Fee are offered by ISBF, and these continue for all three years of study if the scholar maintains the stipulated academic standards. Students may also obtain funding via education loans. To facilitate this, ISBF has a tie-up with Credenc, a non-banking financial company (NBFC), though students may, of course, equally approach other banks and NBFCs.
Campus and Student Life
What infrastructure and facilities does the ISBF campus offer?
ISBF boasts of a campus located in the heart of the historic capital city of Delhi. The campus is fully Wi-Fi enabled and guarded 24x7, and is equipped with classrooms having audio-visual equipment, a well-stocked library, games and recreation areas, a rooftop cafeteria and terrace, and several breakaway spaces to give students an environment conducive to learning and all-round development. Students have easy access to nearby sports, medical and other facilities, and the hostel is a stone’s throw away.
How is the location of the ISBF campus? Is it safe?
The ISBF campus is located in a very central, safe and student-friendly part of New Delhi in Lajpat Nagar. It is well-connected by several modes of public transport, with three metro stations at walking distance, the nearest one being less than 5 minutes away. The ISBF hostel, is also only a short walk away from campus, and is also located in a very safe, residential area. Both the campus and the hostel are guarded 24x7 and equipped with CCTV surveillance.
Are there societies, fests and extra-curricular activities at ISBF?
ISBF currently has twelve student societies, covering interests such as dance, music, quizzing, debating, Model United Nations, sports, events, media, fine arts, entrepreneurship, investing, women empowerment and social work. All of these are run entirely by students, and led by the popularly elected Core Council. They collectively organise at least two annual inter-college events - the Model United Nations Conference and the annual inter-college cultural festival, Xenia.