India Business School Helpline - Run in collaboration with students of IIMs (Kozhikode,Lucknow,Indore, Ahmedabad & Calcutta)

@InsideIIM

Our experience says that when there are two candidates who are applying with the same level of credentials, the one who knows what he/she wants to do in the future is bound to score more points. Having said that, we don't believe anyone expects you to know your specialization at the time of your interview. IIMs weren't designed to push people into specializations. However, a SPJIMR requires you to. So be clear/have an answer about your career in the medium term and not necessarily the specialization. Wait for the current students to respond just in case life has changed a lot due to increased batch sizes!

4 Jan 2013, 03.02 PM |

@AfzalHu98096045

With respect to the GDPI, you are not expected to know the specialization that you want to pursue. You can always say that you are yet to decide; the answer will not be a setback. It is another matter that if you do decide and say so in the interview, the AdCom will expect you to justify your choice convincingly. That said, it will be helpful if you are able to make that choice, as you will have a clear state of mind that will help you make tough choices easily when you have started your program. Students who come in undecided eventually make up their minds during their course, however, thanks to the plethora of academic and co-curricular activities that happen in an IIM. Afzal Hussain, External Relations Cell, IIM Calcutta

13 Jan 2013, 01.58 AM |

insideiima

Dear Sudanshu M, The Post Graduate Programme in Agribusiness Management (PGP-ABM) at IIM Ahmedabad is a two-year residential programme that is intended to develop a platform for future managers with an interest in fields such as agribusiness, retail, microfinance, global supply chain and other allied sectors. In preparing the admission list for the ABM programme, the candidate&#039;s suitability for the programme in terms of his/her interest and background is taken into consideration (considering that this is a sector-specific programme) along with other parameters. Academically, the curriculum for the first year is common to both PGP and PGP-ABM, and is compulsory. The second year for PGP-ABM includes compulsory courses in agri-business management &amp; elective courses from general management programme as well as from this sector. IIM Ahmedabad&#039;s PGP-ABM programme is rated as one of the best in the world, and has been Ranked No.1 for the second consecutive year by Eduniversal, Paris ( <a href="http://www.best-masters.com/ranking-master-agribusiness-food-industry-management.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.best-masters.com/ranking-master-agribu...</a> ). While the placement opportunities and offers vary from year to year, you can get an indicative idea about this year&#039;s summers&#039; placements here ( <a href="http://www.indianexpress.com/news/all-iima-agribusiness-students-get-summer-internships/1030636" rel="nofollow">http://www.indianexpress.com/news/all-iima-agribu...</a> ). We would not be in a position to comment on the relative standing of the PGP programmes at the other IIMs, but we suggest you talk to existing students at these institutes to get an idea about the difference between the two programmes. For more details about the PGP-ABM programme, please visit: <a href="http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/programmes/pgp-abm.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/programmes/pgp-abm.htm...</a> Media Cell, IIM Ahmedabad

4 Jan 2013, 07.20 PM |

@IIM_I

You can find the placement details for ABM at IIM-A and PGP at IIM-I below. Please go through the reports and make an informed choice, whichever you may choose to join. <a href="http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/iprs/gallery/IIMA_IPRS_PGP_ABM_Finals_2012.pdf" rel="nofollow">http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/iprs/gallery/IIMA_IPRS...</a> <a href="http://www.iimidr.ac.in/iimi/media/pdf/placements/Final%20placements%202012.pdf" rel="nofollow">http://www.iimidr.ac.in/iimi/media/pdf/placements...</a>

4 Jan 2013, 09.26 PM |

@IIMKozhikode

It does depend on what exactly you want to do. Whether you want to get into the world of agri business or not should be the driving factor and not placement reports. Try and find out more about the curriculum both in ABM as well as the PGP courses and see whether you as a candidate would be interested in those

4 Jan 2013, 10.46 PM |

@AfzalHu98096045

It is necessary that you be acquainted with Current Affairs, with news on economics and politics being particularly important. Apart from that, some familiarity with math topics, like calculus and functions is also needed. We have a Mentorship program to allocate mentors, who are current students, to the call-getters to provide guidance to aspirants on these issues. If you get a call (and we hope you do), you can have these queries resolved by your mentor. Afzal Hussain External Relations Cell, IIM Calcutta

8 Jan 2013, 04.56 PM |

@IIM_I

We do not have such a stat. Not sure other IIMs have either, though I might be wrong. The CTC of the outgoing batch can be found from placement reports. (Kiran, IIM-I)

7 Jan 2013, 09.18 PM |

@InsideIIM

Focusing purely on money, Our data and experience says that if you are not confident of finishing with one of the top 50-55% of the offers made on any of the campuses present here it may not be fruitful to pursue a MBA right now. On the other hand, if you get one of the top 20% of the offers at IIM ABC in particular it will give a very big boost to your career. Eventually, your decision to pursue MBA from one of the IIMs should be based on your long term goals and you need to be clear about your reasons. A lack of a MBA in the Indian context becomes a limiting factor to advance in most companies in India. Also, if you want a domain change the IIMs are a great bet to switch domains. A MBA after a lot of work ex abroad may be more enriching given the quality of pedagogy and the global exposure but it comes with its own cost. Its not a very easy answer which can be answered based on placement reports alone.

8 Jan 2013, 10.03 AM |

@AfzalHu98096045

IIM Calcutta as a policy does not quote salary statistics. The major aim of the pedagogy at IIMC is to groom personality and character while laying emphasis on learning the best business practices along with thinking on your feet. Stating the &#039;value&#039; you derive out of your PGDM course at IIMC in terms of money would not be appropriate. That having said, salaries offered to students at IIM Calcutta are in the topmost brackets for each firms. The firms which visit campus can be found in the comprehensive placement reports. The fee structure is 13.5 lakhs for 2 years, for the current batch, which is easily repaid by students at the outset of their careers. Please visit <a href="http://www.jokatimes.com/2012/12/28/batch-of-2012-14-summer-placements-report/" rel="nofollow">http://www.jokatimes.com/2012/12/28/batch-of-2012...</a> for the placement statistics.

8 Jan 2013, 04.53 PM |

@AfzalHu98096045

We believe that one ought to decide whether one must go for a PGDM course or not based on whether it is needed in one&#039;s career or not. An IIMC education would help your career in two broad ways: Growth and Diversification. If you feel your choices are getting limited as you continue with your job or you feel your career growth is stagnating, go for it. The course would not restrict you in terms of salary. Afzal Hussain External Relations Cell, IIM Calcutta

8 Jan 2013, 04.59 PM |

@IIM_I

Apart from gaining knowledge about the core functions of management, which come very handy in your pursuit of entrepreneurship, you will also get to derive a lot of support from the incubation and entrepreneur cells of the respective B-Schools. There is also an added advantage of getting an opportunity to grow your network of contacts through your peers.

8 Jan 2013, 02.11 PM |

@IIM_I

If anything, it would act as an advantage later on because of your knowledge in one of the core functions of management, i.e., Finance. As long as the quality of work that you pursue is good, it will not pose any problem during MBA admissions later on.

8 Jan 2013, 02.10 PM |

@IIMKozhikode

Stock broking and Risk management would be considered as experience in the finance domain and it should not create any problem. Moreover even during placements many company look for relevant work ex which you will be having !!

8 Jan 2013, 06.30 PM |

@AfzalHu98096045

It will not be an issue at all. Many students switch streams before and during their MBA. During the admissions process, it is the quality of work that you did in college and in your job that will matter. Good Luck. Afzal Hussain, External Relations Cell, IIM Calcutta

13 Jan 2013, 02.07 AM |

Mayank Lodha

Rahul, It might be difficult for you to get into IIM-A,B and K even with work experience,as per their current admission criteria.There are no absolute cutoffs for percentiles as such but scoring 99.5 and above might give you a decent chance of receiving a GDPI call from C,L,I.

15 Jan 2013, 04.30 PM |

Mayank Lodha

Rahul, It might be difficult for you to get into IIM-A,B and K even with work experience,as per their current admission criteria.There are no absolute cutoffs for percentiles as such but scoring 99.5 and above might give you a decent chance of receiving a GDPI call from C,L,I. Mayank Lodha Media and Communication Cell IIM Lucknow

15 Jan 2013, 04.32 PM |

@JayPuranik_IIMC

Hi Rahul, To answer both your queries, please be informed that past academics only affect your chances of getting an interview call. Also, the weights for the same are lower than the weight assigned to your CAT score. For final admission, you need to perform well in PI and WAT (please refer table 4 in the admission&#039;s process link shared above in my previous reply). Hence, if you secure a call, converting it will not be affected by your past academics. Regarding work experience, anything that you work in and which adds value to you as a future manager is going to be appreciated. Be it writing a book or pursuing social causes, anything which will add value to you will be beneficial, Regards, External Relations Cell, IIM Calcutta

9 Jan 2013, 12.39 PM |

@Harsh_IIML

Hi Rahul Since you are planning to pursue MBA two years later, you also need to keep in mind the fact that the admission criteria of good B-Schools are quite dynamic. Hence, any speculation at this point of time may not stand valid two years later. Academic score and background play a limited role in admissions (extent may vary across institutions). Looking at older IIMs&rsquo; criteria during past few years, you may observe that there has been notable juggling of weightages amongst different criteria like CAT score, work exp., background, academic score, etc. So do not give up your hopes on all the older IIMs solely on the basis of average academic profile. A high CAT score and a relevant and substantial work-exp may help to make up for average academics. And besides work-exp, any notable recognition in your interest areas (like literature/sports/music etc.) that you gather during the following two years may come handy during interviews. Since you have interest in Finance area, you can also explore the possibility of appearing for certification exams like CFA which may further strengthen your candidature. (I recommend take advice from a student/alum with Finance specialization for more information on this front). Harsh Vora Media Cell, IIM Lucknow

9 Jan 2013, 10.06 PM |

@InsideIIM

This question is frivolous. Nobody on this forum can predict your chances at SPJIMR. It depends purely on your performance at the Interview stage. Please refrain from asking such questions.

13 Jan 2013, 10.47 AM |

Mayank Lodha

Dev Consulting firms do look for IT work experience while hiring candidates but most of the profiles are in the technology consulting domain.If you have led teams and worked on multiple projects on different platforms,it is generally a big positive.However,if you do want to switch jobs,I would suggest you go for either a Sales and Marketing Profile or that of a data analyst/researcher in a process consulting firm Mayank Lodha Media and Communication Cell IIM Lucknow

15 Jan 2013, 04.41 PM |

@Harsh_IIML

Hi You can find out general information about the Part-Time Post-Graduate Programme at the following link: <a href="http://www.iiml.ac.in/post_graduate_program_wmp.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.iiml.ac.in/post_graduate_program_wmp.h...</a> All information regarding admission, eligibility, etc. is available there. Harsh Vora Media Cell, IIM Lucknow

10 Jan 2013, 03.35 PM |

@AfzalHu98096045

Generally, it is highly likely that you will be asked questions about concepts that you studied during in your undergraduate program. If you do get a call from IIMC, you will be assigned a mentor, a current student who will have a background similar to yours. You can ask questions in greater detail from your mentor. Good Luck, Afzal Hussain, External Relations Cell, IIM Calcutta

13 Jan 2013, 02.21 AM |

@InsideIIM

The CAT is extremely unpredictable after it has gone online. You never know how normalization across different slots may affect you. Also, selection criteria keeps changing every year. We believe with your background you should definitely take up any of the institutions featured on this portal. Unless, you decide to take up GMAT and go abroad or go to ISB. And you never know, you may just get a call from IIM K or IIM L (IIM I seems difficult due to grad score)

13 Jan 2013, 10.29 AM |

@AfzalHu98096045

Sorry Abhimanyu, that is not possible. It is too late to apply for the PGDCM program. Afzal Hussain, External Relations Cell, IIM Calcutta

13 Jan 2013, 02.26 AM |

insideiima

Hi Paras, You need to get in touch with Admissions Offices of each of the IIM&#039;s you have been called for- to clarify and they shall guide you regarding your updated status for interviewing. Treat it as an immediate concern as failure to inform would bar you from further attempts at CAT when the discrepancy is discovered at a later stage. For IIM Ahmedabad, contact details are: Admissions Office, Telephone: +91-79-6632 4632/33 Fax: +91-79-6632 4631/2630 6896 Email: admission@iimahd.ernet.in

15 Jan 2013, 07.11 PM |

insideiima

Hi Aalekh, There is no hard and fast pattern of dates followed by different IIMs- the time gap may vary widely. Change of interview is allowed in rare cases judging the validity of the concerns .You may stand a better chance requesting change of interview dates so as to have all your interviews within a shorter period. For both options, you must contact the Admissions office. For IIM Ahmedabad, contact details are: Admissions Office, Telephone: +91-79-6632 4632/33 Fax: +91-79-6632 4631/2630 6896 Email: admission@iimahd.ernet.in

15 Jan 2013, 07.20 PM |

@InsideIIM

We don&#039;t remember making any such claim. All the above stated points could be a plus point but are not limiting to get a Consulting shortlist. And it is virtually impossible for anyone on this forum to predict what will happen after you get an admit. Shortlists depend on economic scenarios at that time, pool of applicants along with you in your business school and most importantly your achievements at a business school. Getting entry into a business school does not guarantee a great job even to the best. Everyone needs to put in some effort. Some need to put more, some a little less.

13 Jan 2013, 10.35 AM |

insideiima

Hi Rohit , Answer to your question is Yes. Refer to the last section at : <a href="http://www.catiim.in/cat_eligibility.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.catiim.in/cat_eligibility.html</a> Relevant information for you : If you belong to the Non-Creamy Other Backward Classes (NC-OBC), you must produce the NC-OBC certificate duly signed by competent authority and enclose its photocopy at the time of interviews. Moreover, the certificate must be submitted at the time of joining programmes of any of the IIMs. Failure to do so during the post CAT selection process will result in you not being considered under the reserved category.

15 Jan 2013, 06.58 PM |

insideiima

Hi Ankur, IIM Ahmedabad allots individual mentors to applicants only after they have been selected for the programme and not during the PI stage. Meanwhile, you are free to post any queries that you may have on this and other prep forums. Media Cell, IIM Ahmedabad

10 Feb 2013, 03.38 PM |

wecantogether

Do we have separate interviews for PGP and ABM??

15 Jan 2013, 07.43 AM |

Anshul Malik

My personal take, if you get FMS or XL take it. Else go for the job, gain some experience and try again. I am also a CAT applicant and I am currently working

15 Jan 2013, 12.17 PM |

@Harsh_IIML

I believe list of documents required must be clearly specified. In case of confusion, you can call up Admissions Office, IIM Lucknow. Harsh Vora Media Cell IIM Lucknow

16 Jan 2013, 05.44 PM |

Aakhri Jang

Graduation major: Electrical Engg.

15 Jan 2013, 01.48 PM |

@Harsh_IIML

Hi Here are replies to your questions. 1. Please clearly specify what you mean by &quot;kind of job&quot;. 2. No. Jobs related to general stream are also offered to ABM students. 3. Yes, ABM students do get finance roles. The roles vary and depend upon company&#039;s requirements. 4. Yes. 5. No. There are a handful of companies which do not allow ABM for placement. 6. That depends on the sector in which the person is seeking a career in finance. 7. IIM Lucknow doesn&#039;t disclose the average/median salary for ABM or PGPM. Sharing my personal opinion, I believe there is hardly any difference between the average salary offered to ABM and PGPM students. Though I can&#039;t back it with numbers. Harsh Vora Media Cell IIM Lucknow

16 Jan 2013, 05.40 PM |

Insideiim Admin

.

All roles offered by Goldman Sachs at IIM L,I,K,XLRI , MDI are middle office roles. If thats what you are aiming at you may have a chance. CFA always helps. But does not guarantee any shortlists or converts. What do you mean by get into a top International retail bank ? There are various jobs ranging from 5 lacs per annum to 25 lacs in a retail bank. Depends what you are aiming for. International retail bank roles are offered in over 20 campuses in India at least

18 Jan 2013, 02.59 PM |

Animesh

Thanks for the reply...I was talking about banks like Standard Chartered and Citibank

27 Jan 2013, 09.36 PM |

@JayPuranik_IIMC

Please refer the individual colleges&#039; websites for detailed understanding of the methodology to give out calls for WAT/PI. For IIM Calcutta, there is a composite score depending on your CAT percentile, past academics and other criteria. Calls are given subject to securing a composite score that makes you eligible for the next round.

22 Jan 2013, 09.54 PM |

@IIMKozhikode

If you are keen on pursuing HR as your career; placements prospects should not dent your hopes. There will be ample opportunities in both A and B to build a career in HR. The best HR campus will definitely be XLRI followed by TISS and MDI-HR

22 Jan 2013, 11.23 PM |

Charles Abraham C

thanks for ur reply!

22 Jan 2013, 11.33 PM |

Insideiim Admin

.

You have only cleared the CAT filter . Whether you get a call depends entirely on your acads. A composite score will be calculated after normalizing acads and the top 1220 NC-OBC candidates will be called . This is as per selection procedure given here - <a href="http://www.iimidr.ac.in/iimi/media/pdf/admissions/PGP2013-15-SelectionProcedure.pdf" rel="nofollow">http://www.iimidr.ac.in/iimi/media/pdf/admissions...</a>

18 Jan 2013, 11.13 PM |

Gowtham

Thanks for your response Sir. I am fine even if i am not picked for admission. I wanted to have atleast interview exposure once. Again thanks..

19 Jan 2013, 09.35 AM |

@IIMKozhikode

You have been shortlisted only by IIM Kashipur. You will receive all further communication. In the meantime please join the facebook aspirants group for IIM Kashipur <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/149760545174016/" rel="nofollow">https://www.facebook.com/groups/149760545174016/</a> it is tarted by students of IIM kashipur and will help

22 Jan 2013, 11.20 PM |

Gowtham

Thanks for the reply.

23 Jan 2013, 10.04 AM |

@IIMKozhikode

If you have received a call; then you do have a chance. Take a look at the weightage given to WAT and PI in these institutes and you can understand the level of preparation needed for such. For PI you should be confident and must have a justification to the questions asked. Prepare basic HR questions. Questions on work ex are almost certain and in many cases questions from engg may also pop up. If you have to fill certain forms which are almost like your cv; then you should be thorough with each and every word mentioned The WAT topics can range from abstract to current affairs. Its not a test of ones creativity rather the structure and the thought process involved will play a key!!

22 Jan 2013, 11.15 PM |

@JayPuranik_IIMC

Hi, Kindly refer the various colleges&#039; admission criteria (for all those colleges who have shortlisted you for the next round of admissions). You would see that once shortlisted, the final admission gives heavy weightage to performance in the interview and WAT/GD as opposed to past academics (in general for many colleges). Since there is not much you can do about past academics, your focus should be realistic and all efforts directed towards scoring a good percentile in CAT. If you secure a call, direct your energies towards performing well in the WAT/PI/GD stage.

22 Jan 2013, 09.51 PM |

@IIMKozhikode

Its like speculating on things which you really cant predict... Considering IIMK&#039;s case with a change in the admissions criteria a bit and the mean for the boards changing per year; its almost impossible to predict. However it is seen that a high 10, 12 marks has a better chance of securing a call......but then again the BOARD factor plays in At 98.89 according to last year you will get a call from FMS and have a fairly good chance of converting MDI (people above 98.5 have converted for the last 2 years)

22 Jan 2013, 11.07 PM |

IIMI_Mum

Go for JBIMS man hands down. Its too gud for finance. Being a CA, I assume you&#039;d want to specialise in finance. You won&#039;t regret being in JB. Trust me.

27 Feb 2013, 01.00 AM |

Shyam

Hi, By older IIMs I presume you mean IIM ABCLIK and perhaps S. If you are keen on enrolling for MBA this year, (if you feel another year of work would not really add much value), you should go for SPJIMR. The new IIMs will take time to establish themselves. - (IIM Indore 2011)

16 Apr 2013, 03.06 PM |

@InsideIIM

You can read InsideIIM&#039;s reports on alumni from leading B schools, which features IIM Lucknow. <a href="http://insideiim.com/the-6-iims-alumni-report-banking-finance-part-3/" rel="nofollow">http://insideiim.com/the-6-iims-alumni-report-ban...</a> <a href="http://insideiim.com/the-6-iims-alumni-report-fmcg-consulting-part-2/" rel="nofollow">http://insideiim.com/the-6-iims-alumni-report-fmc...</a> <a href="http://insideiim.com/the-6-iims-alumni-report-locations-companies-part-1/" rel="nofollow">http://insideiim.com/the-6-iims-alumni-report-loc...</a> All our articles on IIM Lucknow (including placements etc) have been archived here: <a href="http://insideiim.com/tag/iim-lucknow/" rel="nofollow">http://insideiim.com/tag/iim-lucknow/</a>

16 Apr 2013, 02.39 PM |

@InsideIIM

Hi, One year of IT work-ex (assuming that your company is doing pretty standard stuff like the Indian IT cos) is not going to add much value. Nor is two years of work-ex going be a game-changer for your changes. So what this means is that if you are serious about MBA, just go for it. It might take more than a year to break into a B school of your choice. This is something that happens to a lot of people. For getting interview calls, i.e. during shortlisting, the evaluation is objective - you get xx marks depending on the yy number of months of work ex., as entered in the CAT form in July-August. No weightage for quality of work ex. The admission interview is a subjective evaluation of your entire profile, including work-ex. This will take into consideration the quality of work-ex, and give some importance to the additional months that you have worked prior to the interview, provided you have done good work.

16 Apr 2013, 02.58 PM |

Manoj

Hi there, Thanks for the prompt response. Just to add to the query, I also have 4 months exp in a BPO sector. Can I add this exp. as well to my would-be IT exp. ? All this exp. talk is that I just want to ask whether IIM A, B, C are well with in my reach owing to my grad % that is &lt; 80% even if I hit the maximum %ile possible in CAT. It may sound silly, but I just wanted to be sure whether I could target IIM A, B, C, L (getting a call) keeping my academics (graduation % especially coz, for eg: IIM A used some multiplication AR score that wud definitely not give me a call even if I get a 99.5 %ile I guess) in view. Thanks.

17 Apr 2013, 02.39 PM |

Insideiim Admin

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If you have an admit from SPJIMR Mumbai then you should take it up over Nanyang only because you said you wanted to work in India. Nanyang is a very respectable name in the Asia-Pacific region but you may struggle to find enough opportunities in India post Nanyang. The route through SPJIMR Mumbai is easier. If you have an admit from SPJ Center of Global Management, then Nanyang is a better option.

15 May 2013, 01.00 PM |

Shreya

Thanks a lot for the prompt reply :) I have an admit from SPJIMR, Mumbai. So adding to my query, if i work in Singapore for 3-4 years and then return, would that give me enough opportunities here in India?

15 May 2013, 01.12 PM |

Insideiim Admin

.

That&#039;s a completely different question on a career path. When looking at candidates laterally, companies will hire anyone who can bring a required set of skills or clients or experience of working in a particular region or in a sector. You business school starts mattering less and less as you grow in an industry. Quality of your work experience will be given more weight.

15 May 2013, 01.44 PM |

Insideiim Admin

.

You may be right. This is not the right forum to ask this. You could try sending this question to &#039;Eklavya&#039; - our helpline.

15 May 2013, 04.58 PM |

Prashant

Thanks for replying. I posted here because I saw similar queries answered by insideiim.

15 May 2013, 05.23 PM |