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The Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, (IIFT) was established by the Ministry of Commerce, Government of India in 1963. Since then, the institute, which focuses on foreign trade, has acted as a think-tank for the ministry. Blending training and research, IIFT is the country's premier institute on international business.

IIFT offers several courses but the two-year full-time master's programme in international business (MPIB) is its flagship. It lays emphasis on the quantitative as well as analytical approaches to the study of international business management. Special attention is paid to the importance of communication in international business. Every student must learn a foreign language: French, German, Spanish, Chinese, Arabic or Japanese. As in most management institutes, summer placement for in-company training is an integral part of the curriculum.

A visit to a port town is arranged so that students acquire first hand knowledge of the working of port administration, customs collectorate, shipping and other trade facilitating agencies.

Other offers include a there-year evening masters programme in international business (MPIB), a one-year course in executive masters in international trade (EMIT) and evening certificate courses on export marketing, international business languages and international trade logistics.

For the 90 students of the full-time MPIB course, there is an all-India written admission test held in January. It is a two-hour multiple-choice objective test in English. Those selected are called for a group discussion and interview. The ratio of students who appear in the examination to those selected is 0.008, one of the lowest for any business school in India.

The tuition fee alone costs Rs.65,000 in the first year and Rs.70,000 in the second year. The amount is half for SC/ST students. Other charges such as computer facility, library fee, alumni fee, international management forum etc., set you back by another Rs.12, 500 every year. The hostel offers limited accommodation. For double seaters, the charge is Rs.18, 000 per annum while for triple seaters the charge is about Rs.12, 000. On an average, you need around Rs.10, 000-12,000 per month.