Gearing up for a journey to IIMs

Students who have already converted calls from Indian Institutes of Management shares their to-do list before joining the b-schools

Every year, millions of students turn to B-schools as the next step in life. From preparing for entrance tests to getting an offer letter from the institute and accepting an offer, we all know that a lot happens to management students. However, once they have accepted the admission offer, they get about a month’s break before they start classes.

As many as 218,664 students appeared for Common Admission Test (CAT) this year, the common gateway to 19 Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs).(HT Photo)

Here’s a sneak peek into the life of some of these students, on what they are doing during this break!

Preparations, mock tests, entrance exams - there was a lot going on in life before I got the offer letter from the finance campus of India. After securing admission at Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Calcutta, I have been doing a bit of everything – reading a bunch of comic books, actively interacting with my seniors and batchmates, and making short trips to Coorg and Bengaluru. Since I have never visited Kolkata before, I am reading up a lot about it. By now, a list of must eat foods and must see places in Kolkata are neatly organised as a checklist in my phone. My seniors say that Joka (the exact location of IIM Calcutta) is not a place, it is an experience. I just cannot wait for this experience to begin! (Siddharth Raikar, IIM Calcutta)

After I made my choice last month to go to IIM Udaipur, I have tried using the last few weeks to the fullest before I embark on a new journey and making sure I make the most of it. I have tried to keep myself occupied by going to my family office to gather whatever practical knowledge I can before I go .This would be my first time that I would be going out of my city to study, so the shopping list gets longer day by day. Since I know I would not be getting much time in the next two years; I have tried meeting my friends before I go. Also, I am fond of cooking so I have tried a few dishes before I go and get used to the mess food. In the meantime, I have been keeping myself informed about the systems in place at IIMU and have been in constant touch with others who are joining along with me as well as my seniors using our WhatsApp and Facebook groups. Quora has been particularly helpful for me to understand what difficulties students face early on in the course. We also had our city meet in Kolkata with our seniors which I believe is a unique IIM Udaipur initiative to meet our seniors before we join the institute to clear whatever queries we have and even meet others from my city. Since IIMs are known for their challenging schedule and curriculum I have tried taking things a bit lightly and not let myself be exhausted even before I go. And now it’s time to start a new journey! (Aman Sonthalia, IIM Udaipur)

Since April, I have been busy collecting the proofs of my achievements at work and academics, something I need for creating my CV at IIM Ahmedabad, when I join them. Apart from that, I have been busy getting all my medical reports in place. I am also busy shopping a lot - shopping formal clothes, footwear, winter wear and more. Networking with my would-be batchmates on whatsapp and social media and IIM A alumni. On a range of things – culture at the institute, what to do and what not to do etc – is an important part of my daily life nowadays, as I wait to join the institute. (Adithya R, IIM Ahmedabad)