Indian Institute of Management Admission to Doctoral Program in Management (DPM), 2026

Indian Institute of Management

Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh

Admission to Doctoral Program in Management (DPM), 2026

Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Lucknow
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
Admission to Doctoral Program in Management (DPM), 2026

Program Structure

Mandatory Course Work
During first year of the programme the scholars acquire knowledge of the discipline and functional areas of management and general management. The DPM scholars, irrespective of their area of specialization, take a compulsory set of courses in the first year. At the end of the first year, the scholars undergo a summer placement/summer research assignment under the advice/guidance of their Academic Advisor.
The DPM scholars who already hold a one/two/three year full-time classroom based PGDM from any of the IIMs/WMP of IIM Lucknow with a minimum CGPA of 6 on a 10 point scale or an equivalent 3.0 in 4.0 point scale and corresponding letter grade `B' would be exempted from the first year course work including the summer work and would be admitted directly to II year (herby called 'exempt scholars').
However, sentient area may recommend additional first year courses for DPM candidates in the exempted category if area members feel that the candidate(s) requires additional inputs in a core discipline.
During second year of the programme the scholars acquire in-depth knowledge of the area of specialization and related fields. In addition, scholars take the DPM compulsory courses, which are specially designed to provide teaching and research skills, and to develop integrated learning. During the second year of the programme, the scholars have to choose a dissertation topic to work on which may subsequently lead them to formulate their thesis proposal.
Summers
After the completion of first year of coursework, scholars have to undergo a two month summer internship which consists of either a guided summer research at the campus under an academic advisor or an external internship relevant to the research domain if deemed necessary in consultation with the academic advisor.
Dissertation
Scholars will have to do a compulsory Dissertation (2 Credits). Dissertation Advisor of the scholar in consultation with the DPM Office will schedule the dissertation presentation. The course work will end with the common comprehensive exam as suggested earlier. The scholar will follow the thesis work model as suggested for regular scholars after the completion of the course work.
Comprehensive Exam
On completion of the second year course work which includes dissertation work, the scholars take the comprehensive examination. The comprehensive examination at the end of the 2nd year, tests whether the scholar has obtained a satisfactory level of knowledge in her/his field of specialization and whether s/he has satisfactorily integrated the various courses taken by her/him in the area.
Thesis Proposal
After passing the comprehensive examination, the candidate enters the thesis writing stage. The candidate first develops a thesis proposal, for which she/he identifies a research topic, identifies the members of the Thesis Advisory Committee (TAC), gives a seminar on the thesis proposal to the IIML academic community, and gets the thesis proposal approved by the TAC.
Thesis Submission and defence
On approval of the thesis proposal, the candidate works closely with the TAC on her/his thesis work. On completion of the thesis work, the candidate submits the thesis and defends the same. A defense presents evidence for a thesis.

The candidates for the programme must have one of the following qualifications obtained 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.

A Masters degree or its equivalent in any discipline with minimum 55% aggregate marks [50% for SC/ST candidates] OR A Bachelors Degree in Engineering with 75% marks [70% for SC/ST candidates] or equivalent grade point average, OR Any professional qualifications such as CA, ICWA and CS with a minimum 55% aggregate marks.

In addition, all the candidates must have secured a minimum of 55% marks in all their public examinations starting with the secondary level. Work experience in industry or academics, though not mandatory, will be given due credit in the selection process.

Eligibility

1. A Masters' Degree or its equivalent in any discipline with minimum 55% aggregate marks [50% for SC/ST candidates];
OR
2. A Bachelor's Degree in Engineering / four-year graduate degree with 75% marks [70% for SC/ST candidates] or equivalent grade point average;
OR
3. Any professional qualifications such as CA, ICWA and CS with a minimum 55% aggregate marks and B.Com. as undergraduate degree;
OR
4. Applicants already holding a two/ three year-full-time classroom based PGDM from any of the IIM with a minimum CGPA of 6 on 10 points scale or 60%.;
OR
5. PGP-WE (earlier WMP) of IIM Lucknow with a minimum CGPA of 6.
6. All applicants must have secured a minimum of 55% marks in all their public exam 10th onwards.

Areas of Specialisation

1. Agri-Business Management
2. Business Sustainability
3. Communication
4. Decision Sciences (OR/Stats)
5. Economics and Business Environment
6. Finance & Accounting
7. Human Resource Management
8. Information Technology & Systems
9. Marketing Management
10. Operations & Supply chain Management
11. Strategic Management

Admission Process

Applicants will be shortlisted for the selection interview on the basis of valid score of one of the following exams: Common Admission Test (CAT) conducted by IIMs, GATE, GRE, GMAT or JRF/SRF (UGC/CSIR/ICAR). Scores of any of these examinations including CAT taken during the last two years (i.e., on or after 01 January, 2024) will only be considered valid.

Applicants will be shortlisted for the selection interview on the basis of valid score of one of the following exams:

Common Admission Test (CAT) conducted by IIMs, OR GATE, GRE, GMAT or JRF/SRF (UGC/CSIR/ICAR).
Scores of any of the above examinations including CAT taken during the last two years (i.e., on or after 01 January, 2024) will only be considered as valid.

Applicants applying under two/three year-full-time classroom based PGDM from any of the IIM with a minimum CGPA of 6 on 10 points scale or 60% OR PGP-WE (earlier WMP) of IIM Lucknow with a minimum CGPA of 6 are required to produce the following documents :

A certificate from the degree/ diploma granting IIM certifying that the programme undertaken by the applicant was full time; and
The percentage-conversion formula from the degree/diploma granting IIM failing which the score will be considered as rational scale and will be converted by proportionally scaling to reflect a score out of 100 percent.

Admission to the programme is open to overseas applicants including NRIs and foreign nationals. Their admission will be based on GMAT/GRE scores obtained within the previous one year.

Age Limit:
Applicants must not be more than 55 years of age as on 30th June, 2026.

Admission Schedule

Activity	Date*
Announcement of the Program	October, 2025
Last date of submission of completed application #	16 February, 2026
Announcement of Shortlisted Candidates #	First week of March, 2026
Personal Interviews	First week of April, 2026
Announcement of Selected Candidates	Third week of April, 2026
Last Date of Acceptance and Submission of Acceptance Fee	First week of May, 2026
Commencement of Program	June, 2026

*tentative dates

Note: # Only those candidates who have been shortlisted/selected will be intimated by email, with all the relevant details.

Application Fee Payment

Application fees of Rs. 1,000/- (Rs. 500/- for SC/ST candidates) should be paid online as per following details.

The bank details of HDFC (IIM, Lucknow):

Bank Name	HDFC, Aminabad, Lucknow
Beneficiary Name	Indian Institute of Management Lucknow
Account No.	07231450000294
RTGS/NEFT/IFSC Code	HDFC0000723
MICR	226240007
Branch Code	723

*tentative dates

Note: # Only those candidates who have been shortlisted/selected will be intimated by email, with all the relevant details.

CONTACT
+91-522-2736762, +91-522-6696762
dpmoffice@iiml.ac.in
+91-522-2736762, +91-522-6696762
dpmoffice@iiml.ac.in
+91-522-6696444
dpmchair@iiml.ac.in

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Candidates are requested to submit the online application by using any computer/laptop device not in any Mobile devices.
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Edited By: Sahadeb

Edited On: 29 Nov 2025

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Indian Institute of Management [IIML]: Lucknow

Indian Institute of Management

Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh

Admission to Doctoral Program in Management (DPM), 2026