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Yes! This is true to a fair extent. Personally being a victim of the smothering and overpowering herd mentality in Indian society and having seen a lot of friends experiencing and suffering the same , I can vouch for the sanctity of the statement . But my rationality suggests that the same generalization cannot be extended for post graduate studies like MBA ; that’s why I chose to counter the article “papa-kehte-hain-mba-karega-the-great-indian-conundrum” by Mr Govind Agarwal .
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So here comes the big question – Why MBA ? let me suggest some popular “candid” answers where most people can categorize themselves in one of these domains
- You want to follow our interests and passions and a MBA is the means to enter into that field
- You want to take up entrepreneurship post MBA
- You want to earn a colossal amount of money
- You want to achieve higher status in society
- You are frustrated with your graduating subjects/ monotonous job and want to do something else in life.
- Your future partner wants you to do that, so as to avoid shifts in industries ( Yes! you read that right !!! )
What is the common thread that runs across all the aforementioned reasons? No Prize for Guessing, It’s YOU who is taking the calls rather than others, based on YOUR situation
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Picture Source : www.crackthemba.com[/caption]
In a country like India where paucity of resources and information becomes the pivotal factor in determining the future of a student , we can safely assume that majority of them become doctors or engineers or enroll in any other stream by parental or peer pressure rather than by choice , as at the age of 18 ,they have arguably less maturity and are mostly incapable of taking big decisions of life . The same cannot be assumed for MBA; where the average age group of aspirants is 22 plus .It is a widely accepted fact that when people come out of their abodes and interact with diverse people,they learn different nuances of the big bad world ; their horizons widen and they become better judges of what they want in life and try to decipher the means of acquiring that . Besides a large chunk of the aspirants have work experience which definitely aids in the aspect of knowing one’s goals better . Ofcourse there are exceptions where students are forced to take up this degree just because their parents or in-laws want them to be an IIT- IIM combo offer or because their parents want their “ beta/beti “ to take up a fancy degree so as to give credibility to their family business . These exceptions do exist but they hardly make any sizable fraction to be considered.
Besides, the career choice that you considered the best at some point of time cannot be negated just because you have less time for yourself or because you are in extreme stress, Yes I agree that you hardly get time to eat and sleep but that is not reason enough to shy away from the mission you once decided to embark upon. If you are ardent and intelligent enough you will get the means of beating the system and striking the right balance .Academics rarely make up more than half of your time ; the rest being clubs, committees , events and b-school competitions which are crucial for the development of your skills, though they are not forced upon you .We have countless examples like as Harsha Bhogle , Mallika Sarabhai etc who excelled in their passions even after getting a degree which was way too different from their fields. It is because , MBA is not just another degree , it’s a journey that will transform you and make you strive towards excellence.
Last but not the least as Baba Ranchoddas says in 3 Idiots “Sab jagah gyan bant raha hai, jahan se jitna man kare, le lo “ ; you will understand the true implications of this statement once you are in a b-school ; where every moment teaches you a thing or the other and where every lesson that you learn is an experience of lifetime . So discourage the thoughts of leaving in between ; be proud of being privileged to study in a b-school and make it count not only for a better future of you but also of all those who were not as privileged as you to get such opportunities in their lives.
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Formally an entry for the InsideIIM B-School Debate
College: MBA(IB), Department of Commerce,Delhi School of Economics
Team Mate: Ashish Verma
Team Name: “Sublime Magicians”
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