Internships are an integral part of an MBA course. Hands on experience is as important as learning about new developments and theoretical knowledge. When I joined B-school, what I often heard was that internships are the best part of MBA curriculum. For once, when the interviews for summer placements started, stress came as a companion. When you see your friends getting placed and it is already December, situation became worse. But soon there was a sigh of relief. Everyone in the batch was placed.
To grab good summer placements, the best tactic according to me is not to get disheartened, handle every situation calmly and,the hard work pays off one day. Opportunities knock the door only once- so keep your eyes wide open to grab it when it comes. Being thorough with the resume is all that the recruiter needs. One of the important aspects is how we present ourselves during the interview. Be confident enough and highlight your uniqueness over others.
And the best part was that I got placed in Mumbai- my city of dreams.
Then approached the most awaited time. It was April 1, 2019, the first day at office- ICAP IL Pvt. Ltd. We were allocated to our respective departments. The internship experience was a new chapter in my life. Everything so formal. I worked with the fixed income securities desk during my internship. Those two months of my internship made me familiar to an all new domain of finance. The work culture on a live trading desk is much different from other MNC’s. I had seen it only in movies until I worked here. The brokers screaming at each other, exchanging quotes, phones ringing continuously, so many deals at a time- I wondered what I should focus on.
I was assigned a project titled- “Factors affecting interest rates of debt market”. During my internship, I got to handle the firm’s messenger system, work with brokers, work with clients and give live quotes to traders. Working on designated project made me realize how small things have such a huge impact. I began to follow news so closely that I never had before. I began to observe things minutely. Here is when I understood “ knowledge never goes waste”. During my internship I applied the concepts I learnt during graduation and they proved to be of immense help in carrying out my project successfully.
Internships provide a great opportunity to build networks. The more you interact, the more you learn. While I was doing my internship, my company mentor was the one who introduced me to the corporate life. Discipline and punctuality are the two essential things one should have inculcated when stepping in the world of corporates. Once, I entered office late by just a minute. And that became the day I can never forget. I was scolded so badly by my mentor that I thought what good would a minute do. The I realized the value of that one minute when a deal of crores was lost just because of a second. One needs to be prompt, witty and receptive to reach heights. My mentor also guided me through the various career opportunities that were now open to me of which I could never have thought of. Despite having a busy schedule, he left no stone unturned to check what we have learnt during our internship, going through every word of my internship report and keeping me motivated to learn new things.
Being placed in the city I have never stayed before for such long; my internship also gave me a chance to explore Mumbai. Being a wanderlust, I spent most of my time exploring cafes and new places after my internship hours. I consider myself lucky enough to have benefitted in two ways: learning and exploring.
Internships are a great learning platform if utilized appropriately. I never imagined that those two months would be one of the best memories of my MBA tenure. I literally had tears in my eyes when bidding goodbye to everyone on the last day. Mumbai- you were kind enough tome.