Dr. Rachana Patil is an accomplished academician, currently serving as Associate Professor and Program In charge for the PGDM in Rural Management at Weschool. With a rich and diverse background spanning corporate roles, teaching, research, mentoring, and consultancy, she brings a holistic perspective to rural management education.

She holds a doctorate in Agricultural Economics and has enhanced her academic portfolio through MDPs, and summer schools conducted by IRMA and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences.

Dr. Patil has made significant scholarly contributions, having published over 35 research papers in reputed national and international journals. Her research has been presented at leading academic forums, including IIMs, IITs, and the University of Oxford, UK. She was awarded “Best Paper of the Conference” at Oxford and received the Best Paper Presentation Award at an international conference on the circular economy.

She has played a pivotal role in setting up the Agri Lab at her institution. She contributed to crafting Bulgaria’s educational policy under a European Union project and recently concluded a notable research study with NABARD. Currently, she is mentoring a research project under the Consul General of Israel and serves as Project Director for an ICSSR-funded project themed Viksit Bharat 2047. She is a mentor for the funded research project of Consulate general of Israel. 

Dr. Patil’s academic influence includes her role on the Expert Committee for Syllabus Review at DMIMS, Nagpur. She has been a sought-after resource person for Faculty Development Programs, including a notable FDP at KCES's Institute of Management & Research, attended by over 400 faculty members across India, as well as workshops at SNDT University, Pune, and She has been appointed as an expert for the Board of Studies for special courses- MBA at KBT, Nashik.

In recognition of her exemplary work, Dr. Patil has received multiple accolades, including the Young Scientist Award in Agricultural Economics, the Bharat Ratna Mother Teresa Gold Medal Award for outstanding achievements in education and research, and most recently, the Smt. Kamal Sharma Academic Excellence Award for innovative teaching practices.