Last year I was going through these very pages to get a glimpse of the world that’s called MBA. And now here I am writing my own experiences of last two moths spent here. These have been the most hectic and time crunched days of my life. After the sylvan days spent during engineering, staying at home eating my mother’s food, living in the hostel eating in the mess has brought about a hell lot of change. But if you ask me do I love it?
More than anything. This has been the best experience of my life.

I live on the sixth floor with one of the best views that Delhi can give you. The greenery of Sanjay Van and the Majestic Qutab Minar towering above every thing else in sight. “MBA”, these were the only words that used to go around my mind for the last three years. And after coming to IIFT for the MBA(IB) I thought there would be a lull. But guess what I haven’t got the time to think or miss any thing.

The first few weeks were really hectic, with a lot of problem adjusting to the new place, mess food and that of living in the hostel for the first time. But after a week or so it was alright things didn’t change but I got used to it. We are having 9 papers in the first trimester and I come from a college were we had 8 papers in one year. Two hours of continuous lectures on subjects like Psychology, Economics and Statistics drove us crazy. But the rule of the game is to compromise and adjust. Hardly had we emerged from these initial shocks that we had a mountain load of projects and assignments thrust into our faces.

Every subject had a project to be submitted almost every week. These were all group assignments, so had to be a part of 9 groups with different things to be done with different people. I had to stay awake till 3-4 in the morning completing chores. And the most dreaded thing used to be Yoga sessions after at 6 am in the morning after you got to sleep at 4am. But we as batch did not miss a single deadline. I think that is a great achievement. The group at IIFT is so diverse and we get to learn so much from our selves. I am form Bihar my roomie is from Bangalore another from Assam. The work experiences people have is awesome. Ranging from people with 12 years of experience to fresher like me. And we did not have any holidays during these two months apart from 15 August.

And after these two months of hectic work and tight schedules we had an awesome 3-D Freshers Party with Dance DJ and Drinks. Man it was a sight to see all of us rejoice and frolic after these two months of classes and assignments. People danced like crazy till midnight and even after that people were not ready to let go. Every one wanted one more last song. It was great with all of the IIFT dancing together.

We have our End Sem exams from 3 september. Would you believe that one trimester of our MBA is almost over before the feeling of joining IIFT even sinks in. That’s IIFT for you. Full of challenges, surprises and deadlines. That’s IIFT for all of us.

We say with utmost pride

Go IIFT Go!!

Ritu Raj
MBA IB(2007-09)
IIFT  NewDelhi

Life As An IIFTian: Deepa G., MBA - International Business, 2005 - 2007

 

Life at IIFT starts before IIFT. There is enthusiasm and everyone is prepared to take on the world. The challenge of getting through a premier B-school has been surmounted.

 Yet, how unprepared every single person is, for what lies ahead!

 When an IIFTian says that there is so much more to life at a B-school than books, he is so right.

 One month into IIFT, he would talk about PDPs. The Personality Development Programmes, of course. The forum that enables the seniors to get to know the juniors and vice versa. Filled with fun, apprehension, song, dance, enthusiasm, mock-mental-torture, management games, they go on till 2:00 am, everyday. One month into IIFT and he would talk about early morning yoga sessions, eight to ten hours of lectures, four to five hours of interaction with seniors, club meetings. He would talk about the dynamic nature of classroom discussions and about the fact that IIFT attracts the best of students from across the country.

 Two months into IIFT, the IIFTian would talk about events. National level symposia, BT-Acumen, the works. He would look beyond his immediate surroundings and realize that IIFT has a presence, a significant one at that, in the business community. Helping the seniors organize these events and learning the ropes from them, generates a feeling of oneness with the institute and also lays the foundation for a strong bonding between the senior and the junior.

Has he left out the parties? No! The IIFTian would never miss out on the fun part. The freshers’ party, the cultural nights, and the Motley Brew! The Motley Brew is the fun-filled sports festival that lives up to its name and consists of cricket, table-tennis, basketball, treasure hunts, arm-wrestling (!), business quizzes and lots more.

Three months into IIFT, the IIFTian would not want to be disturbed from his preparation for the end-term exams. The competitive spirit is back, and the fight for good grades is on. Life at IIFT seems to slow down pace at this point.

 Come second trimester, and the pace quickens. The IIFTian would talk about classes, case studies, presentations, interlaced with some more major events and parties. B-school competitions and management festivals add colour. Then, he would be enthralled by two events. One is important for every IIFTian, whether on campus or whether a pass-out. The Alumni Meet. With alumni from all over the country and abroad who come to the institute. To them, it is a home-coming. Some come to pay their tributes to the institute that shaped their triumphs. Some come to meet their friends after ages. Some come to experience the magic all over again.

The other is Quo Vadis, IIFT’s very own management festival. The momentum that builds up before Quo Vadis is infectious and there is general cheer all around.

 The IIFTian would soon start feeling more responsible towards his institute and would talk about elections for various posts, the functioning of various clubs, and also the great show put up by his colleagues and seniors in various prestigious competitions in B-schools across the country.

 All the positions of responsibility are handed over to the next batch and there is plenty of campaigning, hopes, many visions, goals for the forthcoming year, and in general, lots of optimism.

 The IIFTian would find the second year very different from the first, where the focus is truly on out-of-classroom learning. He now organizes all the events and is now at the helm of things. He feels almost ready to get into the corporate world.

 The run-up to Placements is on in full swing. There are dream companies and there are dream profiles. Pre-placement offers do not fail to add spice to the happenings. The events are still on, the B-school competitions are still challenging, and the corporate interactions do not stop. But everything is now handled with much more poise and confidence. The IIFTian will not fail to talk about how one year of gruelling has given him this confidence in himself.

 He would now start to be sensitized to the problems of society, owing to the Social Awareness Programme. The brainchild of the Director himself, his passion for this endeavour to help the less privileged necessarily rubs off on every student. The IIFTian is now in touch with not only investment banks and FMCG majors for the purpose of his ‘industry-interaction’, but also with a spate of NGOs for the sole purpose of solving the problems of the social sector.

 Then, he is recruited into the corporate world. He now has to part from his colleagues, and from the ambience of one of the country’s premier institutes. It is the toughest act on earth to say goodbye. Friendships of a lifetime were made in the premises of IIFT. Doors of opportunity were opened to him at IIFT. But he continues to be invaluable to his institute, as his glory heightens in his career and in his life.

 Mera Pehala dhin yagha :Poem by  Rahul Kumar Gandhoghi., MBA - International Business

install 'Arjun' font to view the poem or click here to view the poem in pdf format.

esjk igyk fnu ;gkWa

bd o"kZ yEgsa lk chr x;k] dSlh ehBh ;kn gS

os esjk igyk fnu ;gkWa] tSls dy dh lh rks ckr gS

;Waw yxrk gS bu lc ds lax tSls ftUnxh esjs lkFk gSs

oks esjk igyk fnu ;gkWa] tSls dy dh lh rks ckr gSa&&

Fks oks Hkh fnu tc jkr dks 10 ls 2^ feyrs Fks ge lc lax dgha

oks eqykdkrsa Fkh] dSlh ckrsa Fkh] Fkh gj ?kM+h tSls ubZ

fQj ikuh dh ,d ckSNkj esa] cg x, oks iy gesa NksM+ dj

bd vankt esa] bd vkokt esa] fc[kjs lqjksa dks tksM+ dj

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dHkh lqcg 7] dHkh jkr ds 7 gSa dc ugha ysDpj yxs

dh dksf'k'k geus exj] ij dksbZ Hkyk dc rd txs

fQj Hkh gj dke dks geus gS cs[kwch fn;k vatke

pkgs uhan esa gh ij lh[k x. ge lqizHkkr vkSj izk.kk;ke

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gj fnu gj jkr eq>s ;gkWa gqvk ,d vglkl gS

fd esjs cSp ds gj balku esa ,d vyx gh ckr gS

dSls c;kWa d:Wa ml xoZ dks tks gksrk gS eq>s bl vglkl ij

dj tk,axs dqN vyx gke tks fVdk gS bl fo'okl ij

fd cksy mBsaxh ;s nhokjsa Hkh fd gekjk vyx bd vankt gS

oks esjk igyk fnu ;gkWa ] tSls dy dh lh rks ckr gS &&&&&

rw pyrk tk dgrk gS fny fd ;s rks cl 'kq:vkr gS

oks esjk igyk fnu ;gkWa tSls dy dh lh rks ckr gS

&&&jkgqy dqekj  ^^ dUnksbZ ^^