The moment you enter the gates of IIT Bombay, you know your life is going to ameliorate. The Bombay away from the hassle and pace of Mumbai, running at its own swiftness.
Despite it being 8:30 am on a Sunday morning, you have the zeal and you have that feeling that "This is it". You know that, this is where you want to be, this is all you have wanted. But trust me for now, "You know nothing". The induction starts with a quick intro of you and your classmates, the people you are going to sleep-eat-work-repeat with, for the next two years.
The first day is action packed with all the fun filled team activity, like Mad-Ads, Movie Making, etc. You work in so many teams, that at the end of the day, you have almost worked with 3/4th of your mates and may recollect the names of 1/4th of them. It has been a great day till now, but when the induction team tells you to break for dinner at 8:30 and tells you to return at 10:00 pm you want to re-think about the "This is it" feeling you had in the morning. You leave at 11:30 pm, but little do you know, that the earliest you are going to leave is this.
The second and the third day, is full of personal development, confidence building, and presentations-presentations-presentations. At the end of the day when you are done with the day although tired (as you leave at 3 in the morning), you know there is some improvement in you and you feel it.
On the morning of the third day, you get to meet the people who are going to actually teach you management. When you have to introduce yourself in front of them, you know you need all that confidence the induction team helped you to build the previous two days. Not only a session with the professors, the induction team also arranged an alum session, so that you know the know-how of the industry is and what to and what not to do at SOM.
"All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" even this aspect has been taken care of by the induction team. The treasure hunt has to be the highlight of the induction. To know the 550 acres of land under the campus and to get to know, what lies where, nothing would have been better than this.
Then the sports day, all the energy that you think, has drained out of you after a long week, the energy resurfaces from nowhere, and nothing stops you from playing dodge ball, volley ball, basket ball, etc. Some of the games you haven't even played all throughout your life, but you still want to be a part of the gig (even though you are caring the niggle in your ankle).
When you end, you do that with a bang. The induction week ends with the best events organized by the team, THE IPL AUCTION AND THE BEER GAME. The best of the lot. Being a cricket fan and with the advent of IPL in the game, every fan wants to have his/her team. Well, the induction team also gives you the opportunity to have that, but little do you know, how much brains go into it.
From the excitement on the first day to the feeling, why am I even here, to the feeling, I don't want this to end, the induction finally comes to the end and work begins. One thing is for sure, even in a week's time you know you have learnt a lot and you feel the same.
--------
About the Author:
Ronak Karia is a first year Master of Management student at SJMSOM, IIT Bombay.