Life @ the Indian School of Business - My first 6 Months

ISB is a place where you get to learn everyday not just inside the classroom but also outside. I learn something new every day - sometimes it’s about how a doctor handled multiple emergencies in a single night, how a soldier had to go to war at a days notice, an investment banker who made it big and a big shot who gave up a glorious job to teach and learn art. I am an electrical engineer and was always sure that I would never be interested in finance and investments. ISB changed the way I thought. I have had the privilege of being taught by excellent faculty from Ivy League B-schools all over the world. I turned from someone who hated finance and then in term 4 absolutely fell in love it.

A friend of mine at the Indian School of Business (ISB) once told me and I quote “Whether we like it or not, we all have become a part of each other’s story”. As term four – the so called last core term ended, I finally got the time to think about what my friend was talking about and then as I thought further I began to think about my experience at ISB. I had a sudden flashback-about six months ago- it was my first day at ISB. It was a weird feeling- a mixture of both excitement and fear…the fear and excitement about the unknown. Like a typical ISB PGP candidate would do, I had done my homework - spoken to tons of alums, read a lot of articles, blogs etc. Students were talking about how difficult it was to get in and the graduating class was talking about how wonderful their experience had been.

I asked an alumnus how things were like at the ISB and I got a very interesting answer. He said that each class makes its own experience. And yes each of my classmates has a part to play in this story. The ISB experience kick started with the Orientation week completely organized by the alums. A week they totally dedicated to us and made us feel at home, made us feel responsible for holding high the name of the ISB. Then gradually the feeling sunk in - we had indeed become a part of the ISB legacy. As an applicant who got in with just 2.8 years of work experience and was one of the youngest on campus, I was really scared and dint know how the year was going to be. I was surrounded by a pool of talented individuals with so many accomplishments and years of work experience.

Terms 1 and 2 were all about finding your ground & comfort zone and then settling in. It was about learning new subjects that you had never heard about and but at the end of the day you have that one person who understands everything and takes a peer to peer learning session (it’s called a P2P here) and then things start looking bright.

Terms three and four, the club activities kicked in and you want to be a part of everything until you realize that you are human and there is only so much you can do. The ISB provides you with various opportunities like design workshops, guest lectures, sports etc and this is how the ISB teaches you to prioritize and chose. My most memorable club experience was the flagship event of the net impact club-Bandhan. A day we dedicate to less privileged children and plan various activities for them like kite flying, dance workshops etc and it was one of the best days I had at ISB. Another thing I learnt at ISB was the value of time. Never before in my life had I wished that my day be a little longer so that I could do so much more. To sum it up, it has been an amazing life changing six months and I can’t wait for the other half to unravel itself and awe and amaze me.

- Akanksha Tyagi

Akanksha Tyagi is a student of PGP Class of 2014 at ISB. She has about three years of work experience as a Design Engineer in Mumbai. She is a wildlife enthusiast and loves visiting national parks and wildlife sanctuaries. Akanksha likes to dance and choreograph specially the Salsa and Bollywood hip hop.

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