A picture is worth thousand words....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yza7BwErgAI

I wont say more!

My Alma Mater

Finally, after long time I managed to click a great pic of my alma mater!

Collective Responsibility - An Utopia? Not quite!

When people are cribbing about their groups not working efficiently and spending hours on worthless meeting and suffering from improper work allocation and say more than 4 is a crowd, I proudly stand up and say my economics group should be ideal group!

Group members: Ram, Rahul, Saurabh, Suhas, Abhishek, Pavithra and Me.
Number of Assignments Done: 6
Number of Presentations: 2
Number of group meetings: 2
Strategy: Believe in each other to complete the work much before deadline.

Volunteering or Free Riding? I would I say was almost free rider and that was a guilt factor. But I would go ahead and say that we never allocated work to anyone. No one was leader. No one was responsible. Everything was voluntary. To put it in three simple emails which used to come to prior to every submission.
"Done. Please Check"
"Checked and corrected."
"Uploaded"

We collectively knew that someone will do it and we had full faith in ourselves.

Today, when we sit in class after receiving standing ovation from Prof after presentation, I am really really proud to be part of this group. Rarely, in future I will be working in this kind of group - hard working, intelligent, smart, work-horses, and most important who believe in collective responsibility!

Just to end with a quote which we have proved otherwise - "Everyones Responsibility Is No Ones Responsibility" - Not quite True!

Blog Update!

For the certain predicted circumstances* in MBA, the blogger has decided to take a small break from the blogging!

Shall see the loyal readers of the blog sometime in early December! Till then pray for me that I survive!

* Includes following things
a) Projects
b) Presentations
c) Reading for Projects
d) Meetings
e) Elections (btw, the horizontals are over and I am eagerly awaiting for verticals and the MBA Club President tomorrow)
f) Working on Projects (Sometimes, I have to)
g) More Meetings
h) Lectures
i) Reading for final terms
j) Chutku (Small) submissions
k) Swinging on the indifference curve (Copyrights belong to KC)
l) Checking and keeping tab of emails for meetings
m) Applying for internships
n) De-stressing (read a Can of Beer)
o) Downloading new bollywood songs
p) Working for Fin Club and Cerebration
q) Apartment Hunting (how could I forget this - this had to come in top 10 things)
r) Travelling from the border of Malaysia to school and back
s) Finding deadlines for internships
t) Chatting at 2 AM about nothing in general
u) Thinking about Mumbai (everything including pollution and trains)
v) Thinking about good food (read ghar ka khana, AMar Juice Centre pav bhaji, mithibai ka dosa and vada pav, Filter kaafi and Kanchipuram idli at RK, pani puri at sahkari bhandar)
w) Thinking about what all I have to do when I am in Mumbai
x) Resolving not to repeat same mistakes in 2nd Semester
y) Thinking about grades (yes I cannot afford two subjects beyond B- level)
z) Blogging when I am supposed to 25 things mentioned above!

Cerebration 2009

The most happening event at NUS Business School is launched!!! Check it out @ http://www.nus.edu.sg/cerebration/

NUS MBA - The Student View!

Well, I have been putting up a lot of nonsense stuff I have been doing which apparently is not what B-school is about... Get a real view of NUS MBA from the horse's mouth... Shipra, my batchmate, is avid blogger and here is her blog http://mynusmba.blogspot.com/ which talks about student life at NUS!

MBA - 1 month 1 week later

Extremely bad time to post but I just need to spend some time here blanking out..... I have Eco project to be submitted tomorrow, marketing mid term on monday and statistic presentation on thursday - but still I find its pretty manageable! Tough - yes but not quite impossible!

Well, before you put me in the race of super humans - I am not! Here at NUS - you have set your priorities straight from the day one - what you want to do! There are so many opetions that you have problem of plenty..... Studies is just one aspect in MBA here... If a cap score of 4.5+ (out of maximum 5) is a priority - then you concentrate on your acads from day one because class participation forms a quite a bit of .... Not on my list though!

Now what else - extra currics - but yes this too has huge meaning here - you got your usual organising and business cases and stuff... but what stands apart here is the enormity of the "university" - At uni level, there is so much happening - randomly speaking - you have all sorts of sports (archery) and all sorts of art (operas) and all sort of cult following (how about toast masters club)... Falls somewhere in my list! But yes majorly on usual stuff - havent been able to pick up a sport yet....

And there are companies which come to cmapus day in and day out... so if you wann "network"... you got all the opportunity to do so... and believe me if one clicks - nothing like it!! Coz your job depends upon on you effort - unlike Indian schools where companies come shopping with gunny bags of cash to lure yet-to-enter-corporate-world students... Here, its all about meeting the right people at the right place at the right time!

And ya - party!!! Man, Singapore is big happening place!! The government does not want people to go out in the night coz it stops MRT and bus services and the cabbies charge 35% extra but still the party places are open all night!!! Clarke Quay is a major spot - though I found it too be too hyped up and steep! Just been to Ministry of Sound - and yes it lives up to the name!! If you are a trance fan - this place is must must visit!!

Yea - this is what I have been doing in MBA!!! Coz I see that this is the last time in my life I am really gonna enjoy life! These days wont come back again... your last visit to campus and last bit of freedom before you go back to professional grind.... and sober down a bit when you settle down socially... so for me - MBA is all about having to study very optimally and enjoy my time as much as I can!!

What Lies Ahead!

As I had mentioned a few weeks earlier, I met some seniors. They were very helpful bunch of people. Today, I stumbled upon Suraj's blog - http://nus-mba-life.blogspot.com/

And I must admit that it has gotten me more excited to go and reach NUS and Singapore as soon as possible...

Great work Suraj!!! Its an excellent blog and needs to attract a wider audience. Especially prospective NUS MBA applicants...

Historic Moment!

How can I not post today???

I am a free bird... mentally so much at peace... relaxed.. calm... like 100 kg weight taken off my shoulders... its not that I did not like my work but to quit is a different feeling... as I entered home, I realized I will not have to go back to work for quite sometime now...

Obviously, with CFA around the corner, I will not realise that kind of feeling I come back from Singapore! But by that time, I would be all pumped up again to go back again!

Although the main reason was to celebrate my last day at work today - its been a extremely eventful week for me! Like
o Earlier in week, I met seniors - decided on staying in hostel as compared to pvt accomodation
o Got the hostel results - made the payment (definitely saved a bomb here)
o Decided on what day to leave - which flight to leave
o Constantly exchanged mails with my newly found NUS friends (yes too many of them now)
o Got the forex for the CFA trip (did you know Singapore has plastic notes with transparent hologram??)

It has been a great week!!! And the end of the week was the best - Last day at work!!!!!

Goodbye Saki Naka! Singapore calling me!

Success Rate!

Well what a season for me!

In between this period got a "call" from Nanyang to discuss my application without any prior intimation! Well, it was more of a chat and lasted for not more than 10 mins! In less than a week I was offered admit! Wonder what the adcom guys were testing!

Anyways, I had told my friend in January that the reason I feel more confident this season is that I have already got two calls (HKUST and XLRI) vis-a-vis single calls in 2004 and 2005. And what a success rate! Got calls from all the three schools I applied and converted two of them!

Not bad season at all :)

The Elusive Indian MBA Dream comes to an End

Finally after 4 years the chase ends.... XLRI gives me ding for the final time!

The end of an era called "Jaimin and The Entrance Exams"!!

But in fact it has made my life easier now - no comparisons - One Admit and NUS it is now!!! No dejection, No sadness - the life goes on as usual! Not even a single moment of unhappiness!! Singapore - here I come!!!

Alas, one regret will remain in my life - I cannot tell me children that I had ever got an admit from any Indian B-School!! But then, they might just tell me back - Dad, what colleges were you trying to get in - IIMs, XLRI and SPJain - we have never seen them on world rankings leave alone Asia ;-)

SING for the Moment!!!!

Its Official now!!! Its NUS for me!!!!

After 3 unsuccessful attempts at CAT, I had to look beyond realm of IIMs.. with learning curve increasing at a lower rate, I was sure I could not continue the job for long... I had to explore my options.. With good 3 years work ex and a 710 in GMAT, I was confident of able to atleast secure admission somewhere.. 3 years work ex was nagging me all the while but I was happy that I could stand out with my unconventional work ex (Read Non IT related)

Bullish about the Asian growth story in next decade, I was focused only on Asian B-Schools... Plus who can afford to take risks for West....
- H1B Visa cap and sub prime crisis American economy
- Visa restricted and anti east U.K.
- Language and culture driven Western Europe

So it had to be farther east for me... (Now, One may be very tempted to ask "Why not ISB???" - lets save this for later blog)

It all started when my colleague Ravi (Thanks Mate) pointed NUS in FT rankings.. a school in top 100.. not bad.. research started... the school was giving VFM (very important factor)... not at all bad... more research... came to know its century old university... very respected... the conviction grew stronger...

Along the process, I came to know about HKUST.. Another great school... HongKong - the place where action is for finance... somewhere my mind was diverted to join this school.. did all research... got information from current students through Pagalguy... read up various surveys... somewhere I found the school more appealing.... plus at the back of my mind the "FAT" Investment Banking Salaries were dancing... the school has a sea facing bar... what more do you want???

There was also a 3rd college - Nanyang - Ranking wise it was good... but the website and application process is horrifying.. so was not really keen to go but a good backup in the process....

Applied to all three early on to make sure I don't miss any opportunity...

December 31, 2007 - THE INTERVAL!!!!

With every passing day of the new year, I anticipated the call.... so much so that I checked gmail from my phone very 45 mins....

January 8, 2008 - Mixed Emotions
2.30 PM - e-mail from HKUST with invitation for interview... ELATED!!!!!!
3.30 PM - CAT results... for the last time, I look at the dreaded score card... once again I miss Verbal... big time... felt upset... very upset....

The latter affected me more than former and it took me two days to get off that shock...

Shocker #1 in journey: Financial Times release their 2008 rankings.. HKUST ranks 17th!!!! Top of the world!!! Need to convert HKUST badly now... but here comes the twister... ISB also ranked 20th!!! A big hoopla about ISB being ranked 20th... the whole story blown out of proportion in blogosphere!!!! and no one seems to be looking at another debutant at 17th!!! Good for me... but then you know you have to take them with pinch of salt (and in this case pepper too)

The journey .... take my HKUST interview.. NUS still is not seen...

The wait seems longer..... was not sure of HKUST interview... and hence needed a back up badly...

Finally after long wait, get a call from NUS... Done with my interview in three days... Short and sweet interview.. cant make out how it was.. so the wait seemed eternal...

Shocker #2: Two weeks later, NUS starts giving out results... couple of admits.. a few rejects... anticipation makes me check gmail every 15 mins... no use... God wants me to wait.... After 3 sleepless nights, get another call from NUS for Second interview.. Huh??? Whats this now??

Relief that its not outright reject... would have been very difficult for me if I had not got in... Speak to a few ppl.. they assure its a positive signal... take the interview again...

In meanwhile, the stipulated deadline from hearing from HKUST is over... and I accept the defeat... no more dreams... they vanish away... NUS again takes over...

The wait was getting longer and worse... every day I would relentlessly check my phone to hear something....

Feb 27th... the e-mail from NUS arrives... excitement takes over... barely able to read anything after reading "Offer"... believe me, its a great feeling... its a big relief... big big sigh of relief....

One offer in hand... to make sure I dont take a hasty decision, I confirm with HKUST of my application status... they communicate an unofficial ding... So now NUS it is for me!!!


SINGAPORE here I come!!!!