After close to two years of working in an IT MNC, I was all pumped up about my MBA journey. On 1st May 2019, MDI announced its final shortlisted candidates and I had made the final cut. With high hopes, I started packing my bags, saying final goodbyes and preparing for the uphill task ahead – MBA. It was surely going to be a roller coaster ride, one where I did not want to get caught off guard.
10th June 2019, I came to college with the induction starting in two days’ time. I started meeting people around the campus – batch mates and seniors, both having their own expectations from the college and sharing their viewpoints on different ideologies around this MBA bubble. Intrigued by every story, I knew I was in the right place.
On the very first night in college, I remember taking a long walk in the campus. The silence amidst the lush green campus almost spoke to the anxious me, as if telling me I can find a safe home in this place. Few months into the college and I can say with affirmation that this place has accepted us and made us feel home. The people here have become a part of one big family – going that one extra mile just to help each other out. MDI has truly helped me value these relations and highlight a very important aspect of collaboration, within teams and people.
Juggling between classes, preparation for placements, pre-reads for next day classes, clubs and committee commitments, case study competitions, academic assignments and project work – MBA, in its initial days, has pushed me to my limits. There have been times when I survived on an hour’s sleep, yet I was still excited about the day ahead of me. I believe I have learned to prioritize things in hand and more importantly, learned to manage myself.
Placement season was a time when I realized that being sure about what you want to do in life is very important. I always had an inclination towards IT, and also recognized my interest in strategic management due to class pre-reads and case discussions. Making a career at the junction of these two domains was a right choice for me, and hence I chose Everest Group as the organization I wanted to be associated with for my summer internship program. This is what an MBA program will help you achieve; you introspect and understand yourself.
Competitions are another indispensable part of an MBA program. Cases in the competitions are usually the real-life problems which the company is facing. Wrapping your head around the problem to find a feasible solution gives you a heads-up to the kind of work we will be doing in future. As intimidating it may sound, when you work in teams, fight with each other over solutions, present it in front of the jury and ultimately when they like the idea, it’s all worth with efforts.
Similar was my experience when I had participated and won the National Case Study Competition by Everest Group. When we were presented with a case in the campus round, I remember, me and my teammate going through hours of discussion about the case, thinking from a consultant’s perspective, which the competition demanded. We argued over possible direction, strategy, financials and almost everything under the roof (even the color theme of the presentation was fought upon!), to finally being able to come to consensus and making the submission in the last hour. Presenting our idea in front of the panelist was a nerve-wrecking experience and the question-answer session was even more grueling. However, emerging as winners gave a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. The National Round was even more intimidating, with teams from top B-Schools gave an even more fierce competition. There was learning from every one of those teams, as they helped us realize that there are so many ways of looking at a problem. Being the best amongst the best was a proud moment, not only for the two of us, but for our college, professors, families and friends. We were able to purely justify our learnings from the classrooms and case books.
MBA, as a program overall, is a rigorous one. Situations with high stress follow even higher stressful situations – the willingness to see the light at the end of the tunnel is what is driving me today. When you are caught up in these pressure situations, you learn about yourself – your strengths and weaknesses. I was often confused as to what path I should take in life ahead. I got this clarity here. It is a bittersweet journey. You learn soft skills more than the hard skills and build relations along the way - relations you know you are going to cherish for life. Right from walking up for an 8 am lecture in the morning, to feeding you good food when you’re sick, from proudly boasting about your achievements to talking quietly when you are feeling low, from pushing you harder when your morale is down to letting you tightly hugging you just because you needed it, your friends here are more than just your peer group or your network circle. You are surrounded by so many ambitious people who motivates you in every step of life. I think this is why people strive to do MBA from a premier institute – it helps you become a better version of yourself!
Write-up Credits: Samartha Agrawal
About the author: Samartha is a first year student pursuing PGPM at MDI Gurgaon. He is the National Winner of Everest Group Case Study Competition, and is a College Champion nominated by Dare2Compete. He is also a part of Corporate and Marketing Communication Committee here at MDI.